Key Points:
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Entrepreneurial mindset: Experts from IIT Madras and Shell India say India’s scientists and engineers must adopt a business-oriented mindset to convert research into scalable products.
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Entrepreneurial mindset: Deep tech in India faces a “valley of death” between lab success and commercial viability, where most innovations fail to reach the market.
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Entrepreneurial mindset: The focus should be on building commercialization skills, not just funding, to transform research into real-world solutions.
Entrepreneurial mindset: IIT Madras highlights the need for business thinking in deep tech in India
Experts from IIT Madras and Shell India have emphasized that developing an entrepreneurial mindset is crucial for transforming scientific innovation into commercial success. They argue that India’s deep tech sector will not thrive unless researchers and engineers are equipped with the business acumen needed to bring technology out of the lab and into the marketplace. This insight sheds light on why, despite India’s strong research base, the country struggles to produce globally competitive deep tech ventures.
According to R. Raghuttama Rao, CEO of GDC and Fellow at the School of Sustainability, IIT Madras, the key challenge is not a lack of funding but a lack of entrepreneurial capability. “There is a valley of death in between. Lab-to-market is not an automatic path of progression. Even incentivising with money does not work here because it is not money that is the problem,” he said. Rao’s remarks underline a growing concern within India’s innovation ecosystem — that brilliant inventions often fail to translate into scalable products due to the absence of commercialization strategy and leadership vision.
The deep tech in India ecosystem is often defined by cutting-edge fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, robotics, biotechnology, and advanced materials. While Indian researchers have produced groundbreaking work in these areas, many technologies remain confined to laboratories. Without the right entrepreneurial direction, these innovations fail to find industry partners, customers, or investors who can help them scale. This disconnect, IIT Madras believes, can only be bridged when scientists themselves begin to think like entrepreneurs.
Entrepreneurial mindset: Why funding alone cannot solve the deep tech in India challenge
Experts note that even though funding for startups in India has increased, deep tech in India faces a unique set of barriers. Unlike typical startups, deep tech ventures require long development cycles, specialized talent, and regulatory approval. Many founders struggle because they focus solely on scientific development, ignoring aspects such as market research, user validation, and scalability. This is where an entrepreneurial mindset can make a difference — by encouraging innovators to think beyond prototypes and patents and toward sustainable business models.
IIT Madras, through its incubation programs and innovation centers, has been working to nurture this mindset among researchers. Initiatives such as the IITM Incubation Cell and the Gopalakrishnan Deshpande Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (GDC) aim to train scientists in business thinking, market analysis, and leadership. According to Rao, “We have to teach innovators how to translate their technical proof of concept into market validation. Only then can they attract the right partners and investors.” This shift from “technology-first” to “market-first” thinking marks a major cultural change in academic and research environments.
Furthermore, representatives from Shell India highlighted that collaborations between industry and academia are vital to strengthening deep tech in India. Companies can offer real-world insights, resources, and mentoring to help startups test and refine their technologies. However, such partnerships can only succeed when researchers are willing to engage with business realities — competition, consumer needs, cost efficiency, and sustainability. The entrepreneurial mindset therefore becomes not just a skill, but a bridge connecting scientific discovery with commercial success.
Entrepreneurial mindset: Addressing India’s weak presence in deep tech startups
India currently has only about 1,000 deep tech startups — a number that pales in comparison to nations like the U.S. or China. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal recently expressed concern about this gap, noting that India must focus more on developing globally recognized deep tech ventures. Experts agree that a lack of entrepreneurial mindset is one of the main reasons behind this limited presence. Many Indian innovators excel in research but hesitate to take the entrepreneurial leap, often because they lack exposure to business strategy, risk management, or venture creation.
To strengthen deep tech in India, experts recommend an integrated approach — combining technical education with entrepreneurship training. IIT Madras has already taken steps in this direction by offering specialized programs that teach commercialization, market validation, and intellectual property management. Such programs prepare researchers not only to innovate but also to lead. The goal is to create scientist-entrepreneurs who can build startups capable of competing on a global scale.
Another crucial element is mentorship. When young innovators receive guidance from experienced entrepreneurs and investors, they can better navigate the uncertainties of taking technology from lab to market. The entrepreneurial mindset also involves understanding customer needs, developing cost-effective prototypes, and building sustainable revenue models — areas where many deep tech researchers currently lack experience. By addressing these gaps, institutions like IIT Madras hope to create a new generation of technology leaders who combine invention with execution.
Entrepreneurial mindset: Building a culture of innovation and risk-taking in deep tech in India
The path forward for deep tech in India depends on creating a culture that values risk-taking and innovation equally. Traditional academic structures often reward publication and patents but not product creation or startup success. To change this, IIT Madras and similar institutions are promoting an environment where researchers are encouraged to commercialize their work. The entrepreneurial mindset must be seen not as a secondary skill but as a core part of scientific training.
Experts suggest that government policy should also evolve to support this transition. While funding and grants are important, they should be complemented by programs that connect researchers with investors, industries, and mentors. The National Deep Tech Startup Policy, which aims to streamline regulations and boost research translation, is a positive step in this direction. However, its success will depend on whether India’s scientific community adopts a stronger commercial orientation.
Ultimately, bridging the lab-to-market gap is not just about creating more startups — it’s about changing how innovators think. As IIT Madras emphasizes, money and infrastructure alone cannot drive progress. What India truly needs is a generation of scientist-entrepreneurs who possess both technical brilliance and business insight. With an entrepreneurial mindset, deep tech ventures can finally move beyond the “valley of death” and transform India’s research potential into global market success.
