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BENGALURU, NOVEMBER 18, 2025
Karnataka today reaffirmed its position as India’s innovation epicentre as Chief Minister Siddaramaiah inaugurated the 28th edition of the Bengaluru Tech Summit (BTS 2025), themed “Futurise” — a clarion call to imagine, innovate, and build the next frontier of global technology. Organized by the Department of Electronics, IT & BT, Government of Karnataka, along with STPI, the summit commenced in the presence of Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, alongside prominent Indian and international dignitaries including M.B. Patil, Minister for Large and Medium Industries; Ilse Aigner, President of the Bavarian State Parliament, Germany; Jan Christian Vestre, Minister of Health and Care Services, Norway; and Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece of Melbourne, Australia.
The inaugural plenary, titled ‘India Futurises: From Leap-frogging to Pole-vaulting,’ featured an eminent panel comprising Priyank Kharge, IT & BT Minister; Kris Gopalakrishnan, Co-Founder, Infosys; Dr. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Executive Chairperson, Biocon; and Prashanth Prakash, Founding Partner, Accel India. The session set an ambitious tone, outlining India and Karnataka’s trajectory toward global leadership in innovation-led growth.
Addressing the gathering, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the Bengaluru Tech Summit has evolved into a global powerhouse where ideas, research, and enterprise converge to shape the future. Highlighting Karnataka’s robust talent pool of universities, engineering institutions, ITIs, and a highly productive workforce, he noted that the state is home to 16,000 startups, 550 GCCs, and 400 Fortune 500 companies, contributing 42 percent of India’s IT exports amounting to ₹3.2 lakh crore. He announced the launch of three landmark policies — the IT Policy 2025–2030, Space Technology Policy 2025–2030, and the Startup Policy 2025–2030 — aimed at positioning Karnataka as a global leader in knowledge, space technology, and innovation. The CM emphasized ambitious goals, including capturing 50 percent of India’s space market and 5 percent of the global space market by 2034, supported by Centres of Excellence in AI, robotics, quantum computing, and cybersecurity, along with the Beyond Bengaluru mission driving inclusive growth across districts.
Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar underscored Bengaluru’s dual strength in “technology and talent.” Citing over 400 R&D centres, 500 Fortune companies, and 12,000 active startups, he announced major infrastructure investments of over ₹1.5 lakh crore, including a 41-km twin-tunnel elevated corridor, the 130-km Bengaluru Business Corridor, a second international airport, and a dedicated platform for global NRI investments. He reaffirmed the government’s vision to extend innovation-driven growth to every part of Karnataka.
Minister for Large & Medium Industries M.B. Patil highlighted Karnataka’s evolution into the nerve centre of India’s tech-driven economy, hosting over 800 R&D centres, 100 chip design houses, and more than 18,300 startups across DeepTech, biotech, quantum, and space sectors. He outlined the government’s ₹600 crore allocation to nurture frontier technologies, develop ecosystems like Queen City, and operationalize the upcoming 200-acre semiconductor park.
Two major policy announcements marked the inauguration. The Karnataka Space Technology Policy 2025–2030 aims to create a global hub for space innovation through workforce development, deep-tech start-up support, advanced manufacturing parks, and the establishment of a Centre of Excellence in Space Technology. The Karnataka IT Policy 2025–2030 strengthens the state’s leadership through enhanced digital infrastructure, R&D-led skilling, and the expansion of IT growth across Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities with a focus on inclusive, sustainable, innovation-driven development.
The summit also unveiled KEO — an AI-ready, affordable personal computer developed in Karnataka in collaboration with KEONICS. Priced at ₹18,999, KEO aims to bridge the digital divide and expand intelligent computing access across the state.
BTS 2025 is set to be one of the largest global technology gatherings hosted by any Indian state, featuring participation from over 60 countries, 1,000+ investors, 15,000+ attendees, 500+ speakers, and 1,000 exhibitors. With 10 specialised conference tracks spanning semiconductors, DeepTech, biotech, defence, AI, global collaborations, and women’s leadership, the summit will host over 80 knowledge sessions and 5,000 curated meetings. Delegations from countries including the USA, Germany, Norway, Israel, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, France, Belgium, and Australia — the Country Partner for this edition — are participating.
The summit features distinguished speakers such as Dr. V. Narayanan, Chairman, ISRO; Sindhu Gangadharan, MD, SAP Labs India; Vishal Dhupar of NVIDIA; Ajay Vij of Accenture; and global leaders from Mercedes-Benz R&D, Narayana Health, Israel Innovation Authority, and Siemens EDA. Visionaries from Microsoft Research, QpiAI, Sarvam AI, and BharatGPT will also share insights into frontier technologies shaping the decade ahead.
The Future Makers Conclave on 20 November will serve as the summit’s grand finale — a high-energy convergence of entrepreneurs, investors, creators, and visionaries. Featuring performances by Voctronica and Suhani Shah, conversations with leaders including Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, Ankur Warikoo, Kaivalya Vohra, and sports icons Sania Mirza and Richa Ghosh, the conclave will host major investment announcements, the Elevate Awards 2025, and the Karnataka Unicorn Founders Felicitation.
Supported by over 100 global and domestic partners including Infosys, Biocon, Bosch, Kyndryl, Goldmann Sachs, Intel, CRED, SAP, NABARD, GlobalFoundries, and several international bodies, BTS 2025 marks a powerful collective commitment towards realizing Karnataka’s DeepTech Decade vision. As the summit unfolds, Bengaluru once again demonstrates why it remains the undisputed innovation capital of India — futurising ideas, talent, and technology for the world.
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