KOCHI: Despite fears of funding winter and tougher valuations, Kerala’s startups have made a big comeback this year. They raised $14.7 million in the first nine months of 2025 — a 147 per cent surge from $6 million during the same period last year, according to Tracxn’s Kerala Tech Ecosystem Wrap Report .
The sharp rise comes despite a drop in deal volumes, indicating deeper investor bets on select high-potential ventures, according to the report by the data intelligence platform.
“Kerala’s tech ecosystem is steadily maturing, supported by a strong educational foundation, emerging innovation hubs, and increasing investor participation,” said Neha Singh, co-founder of Tracxn.
“The rise in early-stage funding this year reflects growing confidence in the state’s deeptech and hardware-focused startups,” she added.
The latest numbers highlight the volatility of Kerala’s funding landscape over the years. Funding had peaked at $24 million in the first nine months (9M) of 2022 before cooling in 2023 and 2024, and this year’s surge marks a decisive recovery.
State ranks 13th in startup funding; K’taka tops chart
Across the eight 9M periods between 2018 and 2025, inflows have ranged widely — from a low of $7.1 million in 2019 to the 2022 high.
But compared to other Indian states, Kerala ranks 13th in startup funding in the first nine months of 2025. Karnataka tops the chart with $2.6 billion, followed by Maharashtra at $2 billion, and Delhi at $1.4 billion.
Early-stage capital dominated the ecosystem in 2025, accounting for $12.4 million — almost entirely driven by semiconductor startup Netrasemi’s Series A round, which also made it the top-funded startup of the year. Seed funding contributed $2.3 million, while no late-stage rounds were recorded.
Only nine equity rounds were closed in 9M 2025, down from 18 a year earlier, but the emergence of five first-time funded startups, one new Soonicorn — startup that is likely to become unicorn in the near future — and a notable acquisition signal continued pipeline strength.
Along with Netrasemi’s big-ticket round backed by Unicorn India Ventures, Maithan Alloys, and Zoho, other key fund raises included MyDesignation’s $1.3 million seed round, and smaller tickets into startups such as I Hub Robotics, AugSenseLab, and FemiSafe.