A global report that assessed start-up ecosystem world over on various counts has ranked Telangana among the Top 30 Global Ecosystems for Affordable Talent in 2020.
Hyderabad figures in the Top 100 Emerging Ecosystems – placed among the 71-80 ranks – as per The 2020 Global Startup Ecosystem Report (GSER) released on Thursday.
A project of Startup Genome and the Global Entrepreneurship Network, GSER is the world’s most comprehensive and widely read research report on start-ups. A release from T-Hub on the GSER said of the 300 ecosystems that were studied, a Global Top 30 Ecosystems ranking and a Top 100 Emerging Ecosystems ranking were drawn up.
T-Hub and Startup Genome had recently announced a partnership to foster Telangana’s innovation ecosystem and showcase success stories of the State’s entrepreneurs. Startup Genome has benchmarked Telangana’s performance.
The State’s pool of innovation hubs and start-up support organisations had been cited as reasons a start-up should move to Hyderabad. The regional sub-sector strengths include Life Sciences and AI, Big Data and Analytics. Telangana has created $759 million in ecosystem value with $65 million in total early stage funding over the last two and half years. The State has built a strong start-up base over time and Hyderabad alone houses over 4,000 start-ups. Known for its information technology (IT) reputation, Telangana’s innovation and tech ecosystem have enormous potential to redesign the economy nationally and globally, the release said.
CEO of T-Hub and Chief Innovation Officer of Telangana Ravi Narayan said over the last five years Hyderabad has emerged as a start-up hub, and the city has seen a growing push towards new-age technology start-ups. Telangana is at the forefront of creating demand for innovative start-ups to scale up in the Indian and international markets.
The 2020 GSER provides insights and guidance on how to foster thriving start-up ecosystems, particularly taking forward the conversation on how governments can support and leverage tech ecosystems to restart economies recovering from COVID-19 lockdowns.
According to the report, as the pandemic hit the world, start-ups have found themselves in a double bind, hit hard by capital shock and declining demand. Four out of every 10 start-ups are in red zone – they have three months or fewer of capital runway; the fund raising process has been dramatically disrupted; and total venture capital (VC) funding has dropped dramatically across every single continent. On the demand front, the report said “the other side of the equation on the shocks affecting start-ups is we have seen demand drop like a rock for most companies.”
Founder and CEO of Startup Genome JF Gauthier said, “this is the time for policymakers, community leaders and foundations to double down on their support of local startups — the number one engine of job creation and economic growth.”
