Naganand Doraswamy, managing partner, and Suryaprakash Konanuru, CTO at Ideaspring Capital, a well known deep tech VC firm in Bengaluru, sat down with me recently for an interview, which I’m publishing in two parts.
Catch Part 2, the concluding part, tomorrow, in which they talk about the raise-invest-grow-exit imperative of venture investing, and what that means for investing in deep tech startups in India. What’s happening in India’s top science and engineering schools when it comes to the lab-to-market journey? How is AI changing VC in deep tech and the ‘Flipkart moment’ of deep tech in India.
(00:22) Microsoft clarifies stance on carbon credits purchases
Microsoft issued a clarification after reports earlier this month that it had informed carbon credit developers of a temporary halt in new purchases. That news, reported first by Heatmap News, had caused immediate ripples in the carbon removal sector, as Microsoft has been the market’s dominant force, representing roughly 90 percent of global durable carbon removal purchases in 2025.
Microsoft Chief Sustainability Officer Melanie Nakagawa clarified that the “carbon removal program has not ended,” according to reports including those from ESG Dive and ESG Today. The company remains committed to its goal of becoming carbon negative by 2030.
(01:20) Fission startup X-energy files for $800 million IPO
Nuclear energy startup X-energy has officially launched its investor roadshow, filing for an initial public offering to raise up to $800 million, TechCrunch reports. The Maryland-based company is targeting a valuation of approximately $7.5 billion, with shares priced between $16 and $19.
(02:13) Inertia partners US national lab to commercialise fusion science
Inertia Enterprises has signed a landmark strategic partnership with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) to transition experimental fusion science into a commercial energy source. The collaboration includes a licensing agreement for nearly 200 patents and joint research focused on scaling the laser-driven technology used to achieve “ignition” at the National Ignition Facility.
(03:30) Battery recycler Ascend Elements files for bankruptcy
Ascend Elements, a leading U.S. battery recycling startup, has officially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to address a critical liquidity crisis, MLQ.ai reports. Despite raising over $500 million from high-profile investors like Honda and SK On, the company faced insurmountable financial pressure from plummeting lithium-ion material prices and significant construction delays at its primary facilities.
(04:47) US Department of Energy restores $1.2 billion for carbon removal
The US Department of Energy (DOE) has reversed its decision to cancel funding for major climate initiatives, restoring support for carbon direct air capture (DAC) projects previously awarded under the Biden administration, World Energy News reports. The move, confirmed in a report to Congress, ensures that nearly 2,000 projects will retain their funding after a period of intense review by the current administration.
(05:37) India officially withdraws bid to host UN climate summit in 2028
The Indian government has formally rescinded its offer to host the 33rd United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP33) in 2028, Reuters reports. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal confirmed the withdrawal after a press briefing on Friday last, stating that “several issues” were considered following a review of the country’s commitments for that year.
(06:26) Steel emissions reduction target
India’s own efforts continue, towards meeting its target of hitting net zero by 2070. The Indian government has drafted a comprehensive National Steel Policy roadmap aiming to double the nation’s crude steel capacity to 400 million tonnes by 2035-36. According to internal documents and recent ministry briefings at the Bharat Steel 2026 summit, this expansion will be paired with a mandatory 25% reduction in carbon emissions intensity, Reuters reported earlier this month.
(07:37) World Bank shareholders seek solution to preserve climate strategy
International shareholders of the World Bank, led by France, are urgently seeking ways to maintain the lender’s climate change financing strategy after its official expiration in June, Reuters reports. French development minister Éléonore Caroit stated during the IMF-World Bank spring meetings in Washington that letting the current action plan lapse is “unacceptable.”
Once upon a time, it used to be a popular joke in many industry speeches in India — one that government leaders used to sportively join in — that the IT services industry grew “despite the government.” Of course, it was untrue. Several forward-thinking officials and technocrats in governments both at the central and state levels played a strong role in helping that industry grow. As did many top political leaders.
Today, with deep tech, while micro-procedural frustrations still very much remain, no one needs to say they need to grow despite the government. Public support is visible and hundreds of thousands of crores of rupees are being committed in mission mode to R&D and Innovation.
In a recent conversation with India Tech Report, Gokul NA, founder of CynLr, a robotics venture based in Bengaluru, spoke about the other side of the table — those representing private industry, and what they need to do if India’s deep tech ventures are to have a serious chance in the long term.
Catch the full conversation by clicking on the the related post link below. Here’s two minutes on the need for exporting “homegrown IP,” building world-class research clusters and more.
Founders of Perceptyne Robots, Mrutyunjaya N, Raviteja Chivukala and Jagga Raju N are building autonomous, dexterous robots and the physical AI stack needed.
Happy new year to all of you deep tech enthusiasts in India. An area in which 2026 is already shaping up to be one that will likely see advances, is robotics and automation and the AI needed for this, being called physical AI or even ’embodied AI’.
If you caught Boston Dynamics CSO Marc Theermann recently saying the company’s Atlas humanoid is “not designed for YouTube” but for the real world, what’s your view on that — premature or prophetic? Will 2026 show us?
Listen to the preview
To kick off my reports this year, I got a chance to chat with a dynamic entrepreneur trio building what they say will be autonomous and dexterous robots for the real world — at Perceptyne Robots.
So, coming up on Tuesday, Jan. 13, this year’s first episode of India Tech Report: In Conversation, will feature Mrutyunjaya N, Raviteja Chivukala and Jagga Raju N, co-founders of this Hyderabad-based robotics and physical AI startup.
Their venture, which turns four this year, is backed a couple of well-known deep-tech VC firms, Yali Capital and Endiya Partners. Catch the full conversation right here, or wherever you get your podcasts. Here’s a less-than-a-minute preview.
