Indian tech start-ups stay focused on improving fundamentals and profitability amid challenges in 2023 - Nasscom Zinnov Report

The primary findings of the Indian tech start-up ecosystem were released by Zinnov and Nasscom in a report titled "Weathering The Challenges: The Indian Tech Start-up Landscape Report 2023." India remains the third largest tech start-up ecosystem globally, with over 950 new ventures in 2023 and over 31,000 in the previous ten years. These tech startups raised a total of more than USD 70 billion in funding between 2019 and 2023.

Indian tech startups persevered in 2023 in the face of global obstacles such as valuation problems, a dearth of initial public offerings (IPOs), regulatory shifts, and macroeconomic and geopolitical developments. These challenges were met with the goal of improving the start-ups' business foundations, profitability, and revenue stream via effective sales tactics. About 60% of start-up founders reported higher revenue and profitability in 2023, according to the Nasscom-Zinnov Tech Start-up Survey-2023. Interestingly, a larger percentage of unfunded tech start-up founders than funded counterparts predict higher revenues in 2024.

Deep technology use is spreading throughout society at an increasing rate. DeepTech is being used by Indian startups to increase organisational effectiveness (59% of tech startups surveyed), lower operating costs (52% of tech startups surveyed), and automate internal processes (41% of tech startups surveyed).

The shift towards democratisation of technology in 2023 has caused Indian tech startups to expand into Tier II and Tier III areas. In 2023, the percentage of tech start-ups based in emerging hubs increased to 40%, confirming the extent of India's start-up explosion. Over the past year, there has been progress in business model innovations in core sectors. Manufacturing, automotive, and industrial sectors, for example, have shown stability and an increase in funding share when compared to other sectors.

According to a survey of more than 100 start-up founders, over 65% of them conducted moderate hiring in 2023, despite the news that layoffs will dominate the start-up sector in 2023.