IISc incubator to up funding for truly deep-tech startups

From academia to enterprise, the prestigious institute's portfolio of 140 companies targets strategic self-reliance in satellite tech, turbines, and medical diagnostics

- PEERZADA ABRAR

India’s most prestigious research institution is quietly turning its laboratories into launchpads. While the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, is celebrated for academic papers and citation indices, it has spent the past decade building a portfolio of nearly 140 deeptech startups. These companies are advancing satellite communications, medical diagnostics, turbine engineering, and advanced materials. Product cycles run five to seven years; capital requirements are steep. Unlike consumer-tech ventures chasing valuations, success here is measured in patents, government contracts, and revenue.

“We have just under 140 startups — built over 10 years. Roughly one-third are founded by IISc faculty. We incubate only true deeptech companies, and early funding has been the most persistent challenge — venture capitalists’ (VCs’) appetite to invest very early is still limited,” CS Murali, chairman of FSID STEM, IISc’s deep-science incubator, told Business Standard in a video interview. “Earlier, VCs hesitated to back companies whose main customer could be government or defence. That has changed. Products with dual-use potential are seeing better traction.”

Deep science incubator STEM, part of FSID (Foundation for Science, Innovation and Development), has incubated startups working on next-generation materials, advanced robotics, computational biology, climate technology, and advanced hardware.