From Hyderabad To Pune: Which City Holds India’s Startup Hub Baton?

The Indian startup ecosystem entered 2026 amid a quiet but consequential reset. While the traditional power centres — Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR and Mumbai — continued to command the lion’s share of investor capital, the year also marked a decisive broadening of India’s startup map, with several non-metro and emerging cities stepping firmly into the spotlight.

According to Inc42’s Annual Indian Startup Trends Report 2025, Bengaluru retained its position as the country’s most-funded startup hub, with startups headquartered in the city raising $4.5 Bn across 300 deals during the year. 

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Delhi-NCR followed at a distant second with $2.2 Bn in funding with 224 deals, while Mumbai-based startups raised close to $2 Bn in about 146 deals in 2025. Together, the top three hubs continued to account for a majority of startup capital deployed in India, underlining their entrenched dominance within the ecosystem.

However, beneath this concentration of capital, 2025 also witnessed growing investor momentum building in a new cohort of cities. Hyderabad, Pune, Chennai and a handful of others increasingly emerged as credible alternatives for founders and investors alike, supported by improving deal flow, sectoral depth and policy backing.

Hyderabad, in particular, stood out among the emerging hubs. While startups based in the city raised around $287 Mn across 32 deals during the year, investor sentiment appears to be shifting in the startup hubs’ favour moving forward. 

As per Inc42’s 2025 investor survey, 45% of respondents identified Hyderabad as the next potential epicentre of India’s startup ecosystem — the highest share among all emerging cities.

Further, Pune and Chennai continued to remain at the centre of investor attention beyond the top three hubs. While startups in the city raised $450 Mn across 39 deals, Chennai startups also managed to bag $432 Mn across 30 deals this year.

This decentralisation trend in the startup ecosystem has been aided in no small part by policy interventions at both the state and central levels. States such as Andhra Pradesh have doubled down on startup-led economic growth, rolling out targeted initiatives like the AP Innovation & Startup Policy (4.0) 2024–2029, which aims to foster 20,000 new startups, alongside the creation of 10 unicorns and 20 soonicorns over the next five years.

At the national level, manufacturing-linked policy thrusts are also contributing to a more geographically distributed startup ecosystem. Earlier this year, the Centre approved 22 projects under the Electronics Component Manufacturing Scheme (ECMS), clearing investments worth INR 41,863 Cr. Unlike earlier batches, these projects were spread across eight states — Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan — signalling rising investor and corporate interest beyond the traditional tech corridors.

Capital formation at the early stage is also evolving in these markets. Angel networks and local capital pools are becoming increasingly visible, with platforms such as Hyderabad Angels Network (HAN) launching a Category I AIF with a target corpus of INR 100 Cr to back startups across AI, gaming, spacetech, drone tech, healthtech and fintech.

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That said, while the rise of these emerging hubs reflects a clear structural shift underway, the gap with the top three cities remains wide. Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR and Mumbai continue to set the pace in terms of capital depth, startup density and exit pathways. However, about five non-metro cities, namely Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Ahmedabad and Jaipur, stand out in terms of deals secured since 2014. 

With that, here are top emerging startups backing India’s rising startup ecosystem wave –

Note: Cities are ranked by the amount raised by startups between 2014 and 2025. 

Pune

Pune has emerged as the top-ranked emerging startup hub in India, leading the pack by the number of deals closed over the past decade. Between 2014 and 2025, Pune-based startups raised over $5.1 Bn across 421 deals, the highest among all emerging hubs.

With $450 Mn raised across 39 deals this year, the city continues to attract strong investor participation from firms such as Accel, Peak XV, Kalaari Capital and Chiratae Ventures.

Pune’s startup ecosystem is anchored by enterprise tech, SaaS and fintech, supported by a deep engineering talent pool and proximity to large enterprise customers. In recent years, the city has also seen growing activity in deeptech, climate tech and industrial technology startups.

With a mature operator base and steady early-to-growth stage deal flow, Pune has firmly positioned itself as India’s leading emerging startup hub by volume and consistency of investor interest.

Chennai

Chennai trails Pune closely among emerging startup hubs, driven by disciplined founders and capital-efficient businesses. Between 2014 and 2025, startups headquartered in the city closed over 410 deals, raising $5.1 Bn.

The ecosystem has seen participation from investors such as Accel, Tiger Global, Blume Ventures and Indian Angel Network. It is home to prominent startups like Zoho, Freshworks, Chargebee, Yubi and Garuda Aerospace. 

SaaS and enterprise software dominate Chennai’s startup landscape, with the city widely recognised as India’s SaaS capital. Fintech and deeptech startups also form a growing part of the ecosystem, alongside hardware and manufacturing-linked ventures.

Hyderabad 

Hyderabad follows closely as the third-ranked emerging startup hub, combining strong deal activity with increasing institutional backing. Since 2014, startups based in Hyderabad have closed over 416 deals, leading to a capital infusion of over $3.3 Bn. 

In 2025, Hyderabad-based startups raised around $287 Mn across 32 deals, down 3% YoY. Key investors active in the ecosystem include Peak XV Partners, 3one4 Capital, Hyderabad Angels and T-Hub–backed funds.

The city has built sectoral depth across enterprise tech and fintech, while also recording consistent deal activity in ecommerce and edtech. Hyderabad has also emerged as a leading spacetech hub, housing startups such as Skyroot Aerospace and XDLinx.

Backed by policy continuity and rising investor confidence, Hyderabad is increasingly being viewed as a strong contender to India’s traditional startup centres.

Jaipur

Since 2014, startups headquartered in Jaipur have raised $1.5 Bn across 117 deals.

The city’s startup ecosystem has been supported by angel investors, micro-VCs and state-backed initiatives aimed at promoting entrepreneurship across Rajasthan.

Fintech, edtech and ecommerce dominate Jaipur’s startup mix, with several companies building national-scale businesses while retaining their base in the city. 

Although average deal sizes remain smaller compared to larger hubs, Jaipur’s growing startup density and deal flow signal its rising importance in India’s decentralising startup ecosystem.

Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad has steadily emerged as a key startup hub from western India, supported by strong state-led initiatives and rising founder activity. Since 2014, startups based in the city have secured more than $1 Bn across 182 deals.

The city has attracted investor interest from firms such as Blume Ventures, Artha Venture Fund and GVFL, aided by Gujarat’s proactive approach towards startup incubation and funding support.

Ahmedabad’s startup activity is concentrated across fintech, B2B commerce, cleantech and manufacturing-tech, reflecting the region’s industrial heritage. D2C and logistics startups have also gained traction in recent years.

With improving access to early-stage capital, Ahmedabad continues to strengthen its position as Gujarat’s primary startup hub.

[Edited by: Akshit Pushkarna]