{"id":881674,"date":"2026-04-09T04:44:22","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T04:44:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/881674\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T04:44:22","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T04:44:22","slug":"why-keralas-left-success-story-is-facing-a-multi-million-dollar-scaling-hurdle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/881674\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Kerala\u2019s \u2018Left Success Story\u2019 is Facing a Multi-Million Dollar Scaling Hurdle"},"content":{"rendered":"

The high ceilings and glossy black floor, reflecting lights and movement, give the glass-walled lounge of the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) in Kochi a contemporary feel. Conversations unfold in small clusters: techies perched on colourful stools discuss prototypes, funding pitches, and making hiring plans, as laptops flicker with presentations over cups of coffee.<\/p>\n

Kerala\u2019s much-talked-about startup ecosystem now appears on firm ground. The state is home to over 8,000 startups that have generated about 75,000 direct jobs over the last decade, according to data from KSUM, the government\u2019s nodal agency for promoting entrepreneurship. This comes at a time when educated unemployment in Kerala has declined: from around 5.3% in 2020\u201321 to 4.7% in 2021\u201322 to 4.5% in 2022\u201323, and 4.4% in 2023\u201324, according to the latest available Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) data. The rate has, however, remained higher than the national average, which declined from about 3.8% to 3.1% over the same period.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Ahead of the polls, startups have emerged as a key plank in political parties\u2019 narrative<\/a> centred around employment. State Industries Minister P Rajeev tells The Indian Express<\/a> that the government has been supporting entrepreneurship through several interventions, including Maker Village, an electronic hardware incubator; innovation zones; and a fund-of-funds scheme to improve access to capital.<\/p>\n

He also cites Campus Industrial Parks that aim to convert unused land at educational institutions into industrial hubs. \u201cThe scheme helps link education with industry and provides hands-on experience to students,\u201d he says, adding that the government offers subsidies of up to Rs 1.5 crore for such projects.<\/p>\n

The ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF)\u2019s election promises include expanding skill training, facilitating campus placements and increasing the share of manufacturing through industrial corridors and sector-specific hubs. The LDF in its manifesto has proposed interest-free loans and incubation support to promote startups and job creation.<\/p>\n

In its manifesto, the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) has also proposed measures such as interest-free loans of up to Rs 5 lakh for young entrepreneurs and targeted financial support for MSMEs.<\/p>\n

Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan, however, has questioned the government\u2019s claims. \u201cThe valuation of the startup ecosystem in Kerala was not grounded in reality,\u201d he said last year, noting that the state\u2019s contribution to GDP has remained unchanged at 3.8%.<\/p>\n

At an education summit this February, he said, \u201cKerala must move beyond being a consumer state to become a global industrial hub,\u201d calling for stronger industry linkages and more startup-friendly policies.<\/p>\n

\"5 5 notable Kerala startups<\/p>\n

Optimism and the next step<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe startup scene has come of age in Kerala,\u201d says K N Harilal, professor at the Centre for Development Studies (CDS) in Thiruvananthapuram.<\/p>\n

He points to a broader social acceptance of entrepreneurship. \u201cThis can easily be understood from the acceptance up-and-coming businesspeople have in the matrimonial market. Earlier, that was not the case; everyone was looking for a person with a stable job.\u201d<\/p>\n

He says the change was also visible in higher education, with institutions slowly moving towards encouraging entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n

Scaling, however, remains a challenge for startups. While the number of companies launched is increasing, many have not grown into large, sustainable businesses.<\/p>\n

Despite attracting around $665 million (approximately Rs 6,200 crore) in funding, according to the KSUM, some founders say access to larger pools of capital remains limited compared with established hubs such as Bengaluru<\/a>. The ecosystem, they say, supports early-stage experimentation, but thins as companies grow.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe ecosystem has definitely grown,\u201d says FindMyHostel CEO Shiyas V P. \u201cSeed funding and angel funding come. But larger venture capital funding remains a challenge for Kerala firms compared to a city like Bengaluru.\u201d While networking opportunities exist, founders often lack mentors with experience in building companies at scale, he adds.<\/p>\n

For deep-tech ventures, the constraints can be more stringent. Abhijith Kusalan, the founder of Volador Aerospace, a drone startup specialising in defence technology, points to the difficulty of accessing both capital and infrastructure.<\/p>\n

\u201cFunders generally prefer startups founded by those who graduated from premier institutes like IITs,\u201d he says. Even testing prototypes can add to costs. \u201cWe often have to go to places like IIT Kanpur,\u201d he says, highlighting the absence of local facilities.<\/p>\n

Part of the challenge also lies in the nature of the ideas. Many startups are built around niche or problem-specific solutions that do not easily translate into large, revenue-generating businesses, limiting their ability to scale.<\/p>\n

A Kochi-based entrepreneur who launched a remarriage platform found that while users signed up readily, converting them into paying customers proved far more difficult. \u201cPeople were expecting it to be like Tinder,\u201d he says, explaining how users preferred free engagement over paid subscriptions.<\/p>\n

Some startups are navigating these constraints by adapting their ideas for broader markets. Astrek Innovations, a Kochi-based firm, develops robotic exoskeletons for lower-limb rehabilitation. Sitting beside the fourth iteration of their product \u2014 a skeletal frame of motors and joints that mirrors the human leg \u2014 co-founder Vishnu Sankar recalls how the idea took shape after a friend\u2019s grandfather lost mobility. The company has since attracted funding from international sources, including Chile and Japan, and now supplies its product to hospitals. It is also exploring applications in sectors such as defence.<\/p>\n

\"Astrek Astrek Innovations, a Kochi-based firm, develops robotic exoskeletons for lower-limb rehabilitation. (Express Photo)<\/p>\n

KSUM CEO Anoop Ambika tells The Indian Express that the agency has introduced initiatives to address issues such as growth-stage funding, market access, and regulatory bottlenecks. These include Big Demo Day, where startups pitch directly to corporates and MSMEs, and Close the Deal, which aims to convert pitches into business outcomes. \u201cIn 2025 alone, more than 80 procurements were facilitated from startups across government departments, amounting to over Rs 12 crore,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

A paradox<\/strong><\/p>\n

The challenges are layered on top of deeper structural factors shaping Kerala\u2019s economy. The state\u2019s long-standing dependence on remittances has influenced both investment patterns and risk-taking, says International Institute of Migration and Development chair S Irudaya Rajan.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn one of our studies, we found that nearly Rs 2 lakh crore comes into Kerala as remittance income, about 25% of the state\u2019s income,\u201d he says, adding that much of this had historically flowed into housing and gold rather than job-generating enterprises. This has resulted in a paradox: while people from Kerala have built successful businesses outside the state, far fewer have done so at home.<\/p>\n

This paradox, Rajan says, is also rooted in social attitudes. Migration has long offered a reliable pathway to upward mobility, reinforcing a preference for stable incomes over risk-taking. \u201cFrom a young age, children are encouraged to pursue secure careers,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Both Rajan and Harilal point to changing global conditions that could alter this trajectory. With tighter visa regimes and uncertainties in traditional migration destinations, Kerala could see more skilled workers returning. If their experience and capital are channelled into enterprises, it could open up new possibilities for the state\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n

Ambika says policymakers are also looking to tap into the state\u2019s diaspora through initiatives such as the \u201cThirike\u201d campaign, which aims to connect returning professionals with local startups.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The high ceilings and glossy black floor, reflecting lights and movement, give the glass-walled lounge of the Kerala…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":881675,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3094],"tags":[51,249405,10363,249400,3134,249407,53070,53069,249397,53071,249399,249404,249408,249398,249401,249410,249411,249403,249409,249412,16,15,249402,249406],"class_list":["post-881674","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entrepreneurship","tag-business","tag-campus-industrial-parks","tag-deep-tech-startups-india","tag-educated-unemployment-kerala","tag-entrepreneurship","tag-genrobotics","tag-kerala-startup-mission","tag-kerala-startups","tag-kochi-tech-hub","tag-ksum","tag-ldf-vs-udf-kerala-elections","tag-maker-village","tag-netrasemi","tag-p-rajeev","tag-periodic-labour-force-survey-india","tag-remittance-economy-kerala","tag-s-irudaya-rajan","tag-scaling-startups-in-india","tag-solar-electric-boats-navalt","tag-startup-matrimonial-market","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-venture-capital-funding-kerala","tag-volador-aerospace"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/881674","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=881674"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/881674\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/881675"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=881674"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=881674"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=881674"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}