Sector Briefing · India
Materials & Nanotech
Data as of 12 Oct 2026Methodology
Materials and nanotech is one of India’s largest deep-tech domains, driven by a substantial base of startups and a high volume of patent activity with significant foreign participation. Teams are focused on sustainable construction materials, advanced high-strength steels, natural fibre composites and green chemical synthesis, leveraging techniques such as machine learning, additive manufacturing, extrusion and microstructure control. Fly ash utilisation and green synthesis routes are central to efforts aimed at reducing industrial waste and improving material performance.
India has 2,876 materials & nanotech startups mapped; 30,035 patent applications analysed, of which 9,054 are granted; 3,504 foreign filers are active in the sector.
- Startups:
- 2,876
- Patents:
- 30,035
- Granted:
- 9,054
- Foreign share:
- 47%
- Inventors:
- 68,712
- In opposition window:
- 1,392
Why this page exists - and how to read it
A one-page brief of this sector: its filing trend, the problems being worked on, the technologies in play, who files most, foreign interest, and a sample of the startups we've mapped to it. Each panel is a door - most drill into a fuller view.
- Investors
- Read the trend and foreign share first - momentum plus outside interest - then scan the roster for patent-backed startups.
- Founders & operators
- The problems list is a whitespace map: crowded themes are validated demand, thin ones are open ground.
- Corporate & R&D
- Top filers and technologies show who to benchmark and where the sector is consolidating.
- Policy & TTO
- The domestic-vs-foreign filing split signals where Indian players lead - and where outside applicants dominate.
2,876
Startups
30,035
Patents
9,054
Granted
3,504
Foreign filers
68,712
Inventors
Who's filing
Indian companies lead - institutes & foreign kept separate
- TATA STEELIN · 395
- ARCELORMITTALIN · 280
- Individual / Self-FilerIN · 148
- JSW STEELIN · 115
- ASIAN PAINTSIN · 68
- CHAIRMAN DEFENCE RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT ORGANISATION DRDOIN · 66
Educational institutes (6) - ranked by grant rate (share of filings granted, sample-adjusted), not filing volume
- INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY KANPUR53 of 63 granted
- INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY MADRAS111 of 154 granted
- INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY BOMBAY72 of 99 granted
- INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY VARANASI41 of 52 granted
- INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY ROORKEE61 of 86 granted
- COUNCIL OF SCIENTIFIC AND INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH99 of 150 granted
Foreign applicants - 47% of filings
- JFE STEELJP · 957
- NIPPON STEELJP · 702
- DOW GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIESUS · 463
- BASF SEDE · 439
- BOREALISAT · 269
- DAIKIN INDUSTRIESJP · 213
Filing trend
Chart starts at 2022 - earlier years reflect granted-only survivorship, not full filing volume.
View data
| Year | Domestic | Foreign | Granted |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 1498 | 2530 | 9 |
| 2023 | 2088 | 3038 | 163 |
| 2024 | 2895 | 3142 | 2565 |
| 2025 | 2894 | 3264 | 1104 |
| 2026 | 2388 | 1116 | 1142 |
Capital in this sector
Web-sourced funding across the deep-tech startups we track - a snapshot, not a time series
237
Funded startups
~$933.5M
Total raised
~$1.2M
Median raise
6 / 4
Series A / B+
Notable funded startups
- SOURCE · ~$361M
- Grihum HousingOther · ~$125M
- Log9 MaterialsSeries B · ~$90.3M
- EYVAOther · ~$69M
- Membrane GroupOther · ~$50M
- Sapala OrganicsAcquired · ~$27.5M
- Corsis Technologies · ~$24.1M
- EF PolymerSeries B · ~$22M
115 raised at seed / pre-Series A. Funding is from public sources and may contain errors - verify before relying on it. Company details, funding, stage, investors and brand names here are AI-matched to public web sources - not human-verified. Coverage is incomplete and some records may be matched to the wrong company. Treat as a directional starting point, verify before relying on any figure, and note the platform takes no responsibility for errors.
Public money in this sector
Government missions and funds, as their own releases state them
National Critical Mineral Mission
Ministry of Mines · Approved by the Union Cabinet on 29 January 2025
- Government outlay
- ₹16,300 crore
- Expected from PSUs and others
- ₹18,000 crore
- Period
- Seven years
- Exploration, mining, beneficiation, processing and recovery from end-of-life products
- Recycling of critical minerals (₹1,500 crore incentive scheme) and mineral processing parks (₹500 crore)
- Research in critical mineral technologies and a Centre of Excellence on Critical Minerals
Source: PIB: Cabinet approves the National Critical Mineral Mission.
A mission's own bodies and hubs, registered as not-for-profit or government companies, are not counted among the funded startups on this page. A grant or an investment a mission makes in a startup is that startup's funding.
Problems being solved
Patents mapped · click to see the filers
Technologies in play
Patents mapped
| Label | Patents |
|---|---|
| Green Synthesis | 2981% |
| Machine Learning | 2021% |
| Microstructure Control | 1701% |
| Hot Rolling | 1701% |
| Cold Rolling | 1581% |
| Additive Manufacturing | 1581% |
| Sintering | 1500% |
| Extrusion | 1490% |
| Fly Ash | 1430% |
| Heat Treatment | 1410% |
| High-Strength Steel | 1390% |
| Corrosion Resistance | 1350% |
| Hydrothermal Synthesis | 1320% |
| Continuous Casting | 1310% |
| Injection Molding | 1290% |
| Compression Molding | 1290% |
| Powder Metallurgy | 1260% |
| Fly Ash Utilization | 1250% |
| Carbon Nanotubes | 1200% |
| Calcination | 1180% |
| Geopolymer Concrete | 1160% |
| Steel Composition | 1160% |
| Distillation | 1130% |
| 3D Printing | 1110% |
| Alloy Composition | 1110% |
| Annealing | 1060% |
| Epoxy Resin | 1040% |
| Silver Nanoparticles | 1000% |
| Olefin Polymerization | 1000% |
| Alkali Activation | 980% |
Problems and technologies are grouped from each patent's text by AI, so treat the buckets as a map of what the sector works on - not an exact count. Open a bucket to see the filings behind it.
Where startups are mapped
| State | Startups mapped |
|---|---|
| Maharashtra | 534 |
| Gujarat | 351 |
| Karnataka | 319 |
| Tamil Nadu | 256 |
| Uttar Pradesh | 219 |
| Telangana | 184 |
| Delhi | 182 |
| Rajasthan | 114 |
| Haryana | 112 |
| Kerala | 98 |
| West Bengal | 79 |
| Madhya Pradesh | 69 |
When these companies were incorporated
1,844 companies with a company-register match, 497 of them with matched IP. Open a year to see the companies founded in it.
Incorporation dates come from the MCA register, which we have matched for about 69% of the deep-tech base - so this is the shape of the cohort, not a census of it. It is also not the DPIIT recognition date, which can be years later.
Startups · 15 of 2,876
Classified into Materials & Nanotech by their primary technology focus (shown under each name). IP chips count a company's total matched patents, designs and trademarks - across all sectors.
Log 9 Materials Scientific Private Limited
Nanotechnology
A graphene commercialization company setup in April, 2015 as Log 9 Materials Scientific Pvt. Ltd. (Log9) a company registered in India, headquartered at Bangalore.We identify laboratory “proof of concepts†in Graphene nanotechnology and develop commercially viable application
Bengaluru
ENVIRON CARE PRODUCTS LLP
Green Technology
Environ Care Products focuses on manufacturing and supplying Activated Carbon Fabric and Activated Carbon Felt with customized applications and products. Environ Activated Carbon fabric is an effective adsorbent obtained by carbonization and activation process of appropriate fibr
Gautam Buddha Nagar
NANOSPAN INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED
Nanotechnology
Nanospan India Pvt Ltd is a graphene application development pioneer based in Hyderabad, focused on research and development of graphene intermediates & composites, and graphene application products for Defense, Electronics and Energy sectors. We are a team of Nano scientists, En
Ranga Reddy
GREENOMERS PRIVATE LIMITED
Food & Beverages
Greenomers Private limitedManufacturer of biodegradable plastic that can be used in conventional machineries without any modifications. Our granulas has good water solubility and degrades within 180 days.
Ahmedabad
NAVODAY SCIENCES PRIVATE LIMITED
Green Technology
We, here at Navoday Sciences Private Limited,We are providing Sustainable or “Green Construction Material†which are high in performance, great in strength and is a need to changing times to protect environment. Our innovative technology is presenting a complete path breaking
Udaipur
CUMINCO KITCHENWARE PRIVATE LIMITED
Retail
Cumin Co. is India's pioneering health-first kitchenware brand, designed to meet the needs of modern households with a focus on wellness, durability, and aesthetics. Our mission is to transform everyday cooking into a healthier experience by crafting cookware from 100% natural ma
Gurugram
PROTO9 MATERIALS PRIVATE LIMITED
Nanotechnology
Proto9 creates industrial materials that combine a high sustainability quotient with superior performance. Our product insights are derived from from material sciences, nanotechnology, and industrial chemistry. Our product portfolio focuses on improving fuel utilization, conservi
Mumbai
NANOMATRIX MATERIALS PRIVATE LIMITED
Nanotechnology
Nanomatrix Materials is a nano and advance material manufacturer which uses proprietary disruptive graphene technology and its integration into smart application. We work closely with industries to understand their issues and apply our knowledge and experiment in Nanotechnology t
Jaipur
THERMOFLYDE INDUSTRIES PRIVATE LIMITED
Chemicals
Project Title: Production of flow control refractories for steel plants Project Description: Thermoflyde Industries Private Limited is being formed with the aim of making world-class refractory products. The focus being steel plants, our main products are flow control refractorie
Hyderabad
KANPUR FLOWERCYCLING PRIVATE LIMITED
Green Technology
Kanpur Flowercycling Pvt. Ltd. is a first of its kind venture that has pioneered the world’s first technology to convert temple-flowers and stubble-waste into Florafoam® - a high performing, mouldable and durable biomaterial that displaces the Earth’s 5th biggest pollutant-
Kanpur Nagar
PHITONS BIOENGINEERING PRIVATE LIMITED
Green Technology
Phitons Bioengineering is a Bangalore based organization that is the result of scientists, technologists, engineers and socially conscious entrepreneurs coming together to make a compelling contribution to biophilic design and development. It started in 2018 with a food and perso
Bengaluru Urban
AMWOODO ECO PRODUCTS PRIVATE LIMITED
Green Technology
A new age plastic alternative initiative manufacturing functional Eco Friendly and Sustainable products!
Kolkata
THINKMETAL PRIVATE LIMITED
Technology Hardware
ThinkMetal is an early-stage deep-tech start-up revolutionizing the way we manufacture & redefine 3D printing to print a better future. We offer compact metal 3d printers that sit right at your desk and 3d print metal parts in mere hours through our patent pending process. We
Kanchipuram
PWS FLOORS LIMITED LIABILITY PARTNERSHIP
Construction
PWS Floors LLP delivers *engineered false flooring systems* designed to handle the demanding needs of mission-critical environments like data centers, airports, and corporate offices. With advanced design, precision engineering, and sustainable materials, we offer scalable floori
Udaipur
WABI SABI SURFACES PRIVATE LIMITED
Construction
Just when you thought concrete is all about grey, niche, peculiar, one-dimensional, and bold, we added cool to it. Born out of wonderment, HeyConcrete explores the unlimited fresh possibilities this ancient material hides in its imperfections. That’s why, we do not hesitate to
Udaipur
Deep-tech basis: site-backed (own website fetched and read), IP-backed (patent or design filed in its own name), web-backed (described elsewhere on the open web), registry only (registry description alone). How this is decided
See all 2,876 mapped startups
Full rosters and startup profiles come with a subscription.
Showing 15 of 2,876.
Briefings on this sector
funding brief
Missions Outspend Investors 115 to 1 in Chips. In Space, Investors Lead 7 to 1.
We set ten government missions and funds against the private rounds on our record in the same sectors. In chips, quantum, critical minerals and green hydrogen, the state has committed more than every private round the sector's startups have on our record. In space, robotics, defence, health and mobility, investors have put in more. AI is close to level.
funding brief
The RDI Fund Pays Half. How Many Indian Deeptech Companies Can Raise the Other Half?
The ₹1 lakh crore RDI Fund will finance no more than half of a project; the company must find the rest. The first 22 approvals needed a median ₹101 crore each from their own or private sources. In the past year, 47 deep-tech companies on our list closed a private round of ₹100 crore or more.
funding brief
The RDI Fund's First 22 Companies: ₹2,192 Crore Approved, ₹376 Crore Paid
The Technology Development Board, the first manager to lend from India's ₹1 lakh crore Research, Development and Innovation Fund, has approved 22 companies for ₹2,192 crore against projects worth ₹4,744 crore. By 30 September it had paid ten of them ₹375.69 crore. Here is the full list, what each is building, and what our data says about them.
tech brief
Indian Deeptech Reaches Series B at 7%. Its Space Companies Do It at 19%.
A reader asked whether our Series B figure was a real graduation rate. It was not, so we recomputed it. The deeptech-versus-everything-else gap did not survive the recount. The gap inside deeptech did, and it runs from zero to nineteen percent.