The Indian Institute of Technology Madras Research Park (IITMRP) and venture capital firm Unicorn India Ventures launched a 6 billion rupee ($66.3 million) fund on Friday, aiming to back early-stage deep technology startups in sectors critical to India’s strategic interests.
The fund, titled ‘IIT Madras Unicorn Frontier Fund I’, will focus on intellectual property-led startups in robotics, space technology, defence, and semiconductors.
The announcement, made at the institute’s Entrepreneurship Summit 2026, comes as India seeks to reduce its reliance on technology imports and build domestic capabilities in high-tech manufacturing. The initiative aligns with the Union Budget 2026, which introduced the ‘India Semiconductor Mission 2.0’ to expand capabilities beyond fabrication into equipment and design IP, mirroring the fund’s focus on strengthening indigenous technical sovereignty.
The fund includes a greenshoe option of Rs 400 crore and plans to invest in approximately 25 startups initially. The partners said the fund is designed as “patient capital” with a lifecycle of up to 12 years.
Earlier this week, the government officially expanded the definition of deep tech startups. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) now recognises deep tech entities for up to 20 years, double the previous limit, and raised the turnover cap to $33.1 million, acknowledging the long gestation periods and high capital requirements inherent to the sector.
The fund will have an average first cheque size of around Rs 8-10 crore. A majority of the portfolio will be sourced from startups incubated at IIT Madras, with the remainder selected from the broader Indian deep tech ecosystem.
Market data indicates growing investor confidence in the segment, despite global economic headwinds. According to Tracxn, Indian deep tech startups raised $1.57 billion across 265 deals in 2025, up from $1.24 billion the previous year, with investors writing larger cheques for high-conviction bets.
“India’s deep tech ecosystem is at an inflection point. We have demonstrated that without pouring in billions of dollars, we can build mission-driven, globally competitive and innovation-led startups from here. This initiative has given us the necessary impetus to further accelerate the speed of innovation at IITMRP. We are keen to align with some of the most cutting-edge deep tech startups and Unicorn India as partners will give us a headstart to shape up India’s deep tech future for the world,” Natarajan “Nat” Malupillai, CEO of IITM Research Park, shared in a press note.
