The Department of Electronics, Information Technology and Biotechnology, Government of Karnataka, held discussions with Antonio Bartoli, Ambassador of Italy to India, on potential collaborations across startups, research, space, AI and other emerging technologies.
“Karnataka has a strong and vibrant innovation ecosystem, with startups, industry, academic institutions and research centres working across a range of emerging technologies. We welcome opportunities to build stronger connections with Italy and create practical pathways for startups, researchers and institutions to collaborate,” Dr Manjula said.
“Our focus is on taking these discussions forward through focused partnerships and initiatives that can create meaningful opportunities for both ecosystems,” she added.
A key focus of the discussions was the possibility of launching three to four sector-focused startup acceleration programmes that could connect startups from Karnataka and Italy with technical experts, investors, corporates and potential partners. The programmes could subsequently be expanded based on their outcomes.The two sides also discussed creating soft-landing mechanisms to help startups access each other’s markets, including physical spaces, ecosystem networks, industry partners and research institutions.
The discussions extended to potential collaboration in space and DeepTech, including Earth observation, disaster management and environmental monitoring. Karnataka and Italy are also exploring partnerships in artificial intelligence, including possible linkages around Karnataka’s proposed AI university.
The proposed university is being developed as a public-private initiative focused on advanced and frontier research, postgraduate and postdoctoral programmes, industry participation and research and development.Another focus area was strengthening industry-academia linkages through joint programmes, research partnerships and knowledge exchange involving universities, research institutions, startups and companies.
New avenues for research
The two sides also explored opportunities in urban technology, including integrated public transport, intermodal connectivity, AI-based passenger information systems and predictive maintenance. Karnataka highlighted its ongoing efforts to integrate different modes of public transport in Bengaluru.The Department also highlighted the Global Innovation Growth Alliance (GIGA), a soft-landing platform being developed for international startups looking to enter India. The platform aims to provide startups access to physical infrastructure, ecosystem networks, industry partners and research institutions.
The Italian side, meanwhile, shared plans for a delegation of companies and institutions to participate in the upcoming Bengaluru Tech Summit 2026, which could provide a platform to take forward the proposed partnerships.
The discussions also covered stronger linkages between innovation hubs, including Mangaluru, and potential institutional collaboration in areas such as science and technology, energy, urban technology and design.
Both sides said the focus would now be on moving from broad discussions to a limited number of practical collaborations involving specific startups, institutions and sectors, before scaling the initiatives based on outcomes.
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