Bengaluru Tech Summit concludes on a high note as Karnataka aims to become global tech hub

The three-day Bengaluru Tech Summit (BTS) 2024, which concluded on Thursday and witnessed a footfall of over 50,000 attendees, saw the Karnataka government aiming to position the state as the top technology innovation hub for the world.

Addressing a press conference, State IT and BT Minister Priyank Kharge said, “Karnataka is propelling globally and we are working on such corridors with various countries.”

BTS 2024 saw participation from 51 countries, where during the three-day summit, the state government entered into partnerships with several countries such as Germany, Finland, United States, Japan, and Sweden.

According to the minister, these partnerships will be focused on specific areas of technology collaboration with each of the countries which is expected to go a long way in enhancing cooperation.

The three-day summit also saw the Karnataka government unveiling numerous policy initiatives encompassing the technology industry, startups and space industry. The state also came out with a separate global capability centre (GCC) policy with the goal of attracting around 500 such units, to generate a revenue of around $50 billion and create additional 3.5 lakh jobs.

Similarly, the government also came out with a space tech policy where it aims to garner 50% market share by 2033 in the country. It also unveiled a tech skilling initiative called Nipuna and signed a memorandum of understanding with leading global technology companies.

The minister noted that IT services export from the state stood at Rs 4.11 lakh crore for 2023-24. In 2022-23, the IT services export from Karnataka was Rs 3.2 lakh crore.

The Startup Springboard initiative unveiled at BTS 2024 saw over 185 startups pitching their ideas to 68 investors, with 120 emerging startups receiving mentorship.

“We have created the most conducive platform for the startups in the country,” the minister said.

The goal now is to have more than 10,000 startups from outside of the state capital, Bengaluru.

The Bengaluru Tech Summit 2024 witnessed 84 sessions with participation of 521 speakers. The event featured 686 exhibitors including 403 startups, 4,775 meetings exchanged, 570 meetings were conducted in the B2B Lounge, along with 35 on-the-spot physical meetings at the venue. It also had participation from several academic institutions.

On plans for next year, the minister said, “Next year’s summit will be bigger, better and bolder.”