Kerala startups have raised about $551 Mn across 110 deals since 2015, with fintech and SaaS taking 66% ($364 Mn); Kochi is home to about 37% of the state’s startups and ranks 14th in India for ecosystem strength
The state has built roughly 6,200 startups over eight years, drawing about INR 5,800 Cr and 62,000 jobs, supported by around 18 active investors in Kochi
Kochi names include edtech platform Entri (over $17 Mn raised, including a $7 Mn Series A led by Omidyar Network India) and healthtech startup BestDoc ($2.1 Mn from Accel and Arkam Ventures)
Kerala’s 2024 budget set aside INR 90.52 Cr for the Kerala Startup Mission, including INR 20 Cr for a Technology Innovation Zone in Kochi, plus a 1,000-seat Integrated Startup Complex in Kalamassery and a target of 15,000 startups by 2026
Kerala startups have raised about $551 Mn across 110 funding deals since 2015, with fintech and SaaS alone accounting for 66%, or roughly $364 Mn, of that capital. Kochi is the anchor city for most of this activity.
The wider base is large too. Kerala has built around 6,200 startups over eight years, drawing about INR 5,800 Cr of investment and creating close to 62,000 jobs. Kochi carries the largest share of that base, home to about 37% of the state’s startups against roughly 23% in Thiruvananthapuram, and Inc42 places the city 14th in India and 326th globally for ecosystem strength. A community of around 18 active investors, including Konglo Ventures and TiE Kerala, sits alongside more than a dozen coworking spaces, and TiE Kerala launched the Kerala Angels Network in the city back in 2016. The state also punches above its weight in hardware, leading India in the share of hardware startups, helped by incubators such as Maker Village, which had incubated more than 65 startups in a single year.
Kochi-headquartered names show the depth. Edtech platform Entri, which teaches exam preparation in regional languages, has raised more than $17 Mn, including a $7 Mn Series A led by Omidyar Network India. Healthtech SaaS startup BestDoc raised $2.1 Mn from Accel Partners and Arkam Ventures to improve in-patient admission and hospitalisation workflows. The city has also drawn marquee angels, with Twitter cofounder Biz Stone backing Kochi-based freelancer-infrastructure startup Sieve.
Institutional support is unusually deep for a non-metro city. The Kerala Startup Mission anchors the ecosystem, and the state has opened what it calls India’s largest startup hub, a 1,000-seat Integrated Startup Complex in Kalamassery, Kochi. Kerala’s 2024 budget earmarked INR 90.52 Cr for the mission, including INR 20 Cr for a Technology Innovation Zone in Kochi, with the rest going to youth entrepreneurship programmes. The state’s stated ambition is 15,000 startups and one lakh jobs by 2026.
With a fintech and SaaS core and that 15,000-startup target, Kochi remains South India’s most active non-metro startup city in 2026.