- The panel discussion took place at Drone World, via ITW platform
- Experts from Bharat Innovation Fund, IdeaForge, etc. participated in the discussion
- Mr. Amber Dubey, Joint Secretary, MoA, led the keynote for the event
- Panelists talked about investments in Drone space startups in detail
‘Drones’ are the latest and the most effective instrument used at the time of COVID-19. A lot of companies are trying to evolve by adopting this technology. Also, this creates an opportunity for drone startups to start their business. But the real problem is the investment required for the startup to function.
The EFY Group launched the Earth’s Drone World via India Technology Week’s platform. Mr. Amber Dubey, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Aviation, led the keynote of the event. Six panelists were gathered at one platform to answer one question, “Are investors Open to Investing in Drone startups?”.
Scope of available investments
The panel talked about the International and Indian investor market available for Drone startups. Speakers claimed that total investment available for drone startups from around the world is estimated to be $5 Billion. The ratio at which a drone startup would get an investment is as high as 5:1, which is higher than other tech categories.
However, India sheds merely $40 Million to fund drone startups. From this amount, B2B companies in India are responsible for bulk funding.
Create success stories
Panelists shed light on how to get funds out of investors. The main challenge faced by drone startups is that they are a relatively new category, hence less trustworthy. Also, a lot of time, the investors don’t understand the technology, the reason why they are reluctant to shed money for it.
The key to impressing investors is to have the right team, right preposition, the right product, and the right potential. According to the panelists, following these four steps can get fundings for 70% of the startups.
Long term partners
Co-panelist, Mr. Amit Shrishrimal, stated that “Most of the time companies look for investors with long term goals and plans. Companies want long term investors, who understand the industry better and are not in a hurry to get the investments but will stay for a long period. Especially, in the case in the drone space investments; we have a lot of hurdles and difficulties, reason why companies look for long term partners.”
We’ll be publishing an exclusive on “Are investors Open to Investing in Drone startups?” soon.
Also, the Drone World included discussion on the topics like; ‘Popular and Emerging use-cases of drones (Driving demand)’ and ‘What are the latest technology available to create cutting edge Drones?’
