Industry Odisha Bureau, Sep 14: India’s Rs 1 lakh crore RDI programme is drawing venture capital into deeptech. Private funds are hiring scientists to evaluate technology. The bigger test remains commercialisation.
India’s Rs 1 lakh crore RDI programme is beginning to draw private capital. Venture capital firms are now evaluating deeptech companies more seriously. India has long had scientific and engineering talent. What it has lacked is patient capital for commercialisation. The RDI programme targets precisely that financing gap.
India RDI programme targets deeptech funding gap
The Technology Development Board opened its first RDI call in February. It covered technologies at Technology Readiness Level 4 and above. Projects can receive up to 50% of project costs. Financing can come as loans, equity or hybrid instruments. Interest rates range roughly between 2% and 4%. Tenures can extend up to 15 years. By July, TDB had received Rs 500 crore. It had approved 22 projects worth Rs 4,744 crore combined. RDI contributions to those projects totalled Rs 2,192 crore. BIRAC separately shortlisted eight more projects worth Rs 390.35 crore. The first call reportedly drew nearly 191 proposals. Most of those came from the private sector.
Venture capital changes its deeptech playbook
Venture firms are changing how they assess deeptech companies. Antler now evaluates seven to eight companies monthly. That compares with roughly one company earlier. Kae Capital maintains a network of technical experts. Bessemer draws on specialists in India and abroad. Peak XV has discussed hiring physicists and biologists. This reflects a shift from consumer-style investing. Deeptech requires evaluating science, not just growth metrics.
India’s R&D spending remains below 1%
India’s R&D spending remains below 1% of GDP. Latest figures place it around 0.8%. GERD crossed Rs 2.4 lakh crore in 2023-24. That compares with Rs 79,356 crore a decade earlier. Private industry’s GERD share rose to 45.2%. Government’s share fell from 54.5% to 48.2%. Private R&D spending has grown around 20% annually.
Deeptech moves beyond startup funding
Deeptech spans semiconductors, AI, space and biotechnology. These sectors increasingly shape industrial competitiveness and supply chains. Deeptech companies raised $574 million across 61 deals in 2026. Venture Intelligence supplied those figures.
China shows both opportunity and risk
China’s R&D spending is around 2.4% of GDP. That is roughly three times India’s level. China linked government financing, research and manufacturing closely. Companies like BYD and CATL became globally competitive. China also faces overcapacity and intense competition now. The comparison highlights potential, not a model to copy.
Private capital becomes the critical test
Government financing can reduce early development risk. It cannot decide which technologies become commercially viable. That depends on entrepreneurs and investors willing to take risks. Inexperienced funds could still overpay for RDI-linked deals. Weak science and poor execution remain real risks.
India does not need every deeptech startup to succeed. It needs enough of them to become durable companies. The RDI programme is one attempt to close that gap.
