Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani, known for his contributions to India’s digital public infrastructure, including Aadhaar and UPI, anticipates a 20% annual increase in the number of startups, reaching one million within the next decade. Currently, India has around 150,000 startups, with growth driven by employees of established startups launching their own ventures. Flipkart exemplifies this trend, as its former employees have created 44 startups with a combined valuation of $25 billion. Across the ecosystem, approximately 100 unicorns have given rise to nearly 2,000 funded startups, reflecting a pattern of rapid entrepreneurial expansion.
Speaking at an event by Arkam Ventures, Nilekani discussed strategies to boost India’s economic growth rate from 6% to 8%, with the goal of achieving an $8-trillion economy by 2035. He highlighted the increasing role of public markets in supporting startups as they scale, predicting that India will emerge as the top IPO market globally by 2035. At present, India is second only to the U.S. in IPO activity, with 2024 witnessing a record $20.5 billion raised.
The surge in retail investor participation has played a key role in this growth, with approximately 100 million unique equity investors now engaged in the market. According to the latest Economic Survey, average monthly gross SIP flows have more than doubled in three years, reaching Rs 23,000 crore in FY25.
Beyond startup expansion, Nilekani emphasized the importance of developing open-source AI models to support India’s diverse languages and dialects. Creating scalable, cost-effective digital infrastructure similar to Aadhaar and UPI could further drive economic inclusion. With improved network coverage and affordable smartphones, the number of UPI users is expected to grow from less than 500 million to 1 billion over the next decade.
