Budget 2025: DeepSeek, Fund Of Funds To GCC, How Tech & Finance Sector Leaders Reacted

Technology and financial sector leaders have reacted to the Budget 2025 proposals announced today by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Know what Aalok Kumar, Arun Awasthy, Srividya Kannan, Bruce Keith and others had to say about everything from DeepSeek, GCC, Fund of Funds, artificial intelligence, skilling, technology, innovation to research.

Aalok Kumar, President And CEO, NEC Corporation India:

"The Union Budget 2025 is a welcome step towards accelerating India’s economic vision and unlocking its full growth potential. The budget also places a forward-looking emphasis on technology and skilling. Initiatives like the Deeptech Fund of Funds, Centres of Excellence for AI in Education, and expansion infrastructure across the nation’s most prestigious technical institutes demonstrate a strong commitment to nurturing India’s unmatched talent, innovation and research. 

The establishment of Atal Tinkering Labs in schools and National Centres of Excellence for Skilling reflect this Budget’s focus on retaining the Indian edge in the technology domain and STEM Education. No doubt this will accelerate our innovation capabilities, particularly in emerging technologies like AI and quantum computing." 

Arun Awasthy, President And Managing Director, Johnson Controls, India: 

“The Union Budget 2025 marks a decisive step forward in strengthening urban infrastructure, manufacturing, and public-private partnerships (PPPs), all of which are critical to India’s long-term economic growth. 

The Rs 1,500 crore allocation to solar grid development reinforces India’s commitment to green energy, and ensures that India’s economic growth is realised in alignment with our sustainability goals, and rendered future proof. Furthermore, The National Manufacturing Mission is a game-changer for India’s self-reliance, focusing on clean-tech manufacturing and bolstering industrial growth.”

Srividya Kannan, Founder And CEO, Avaali:

“A key decision by the government to drive the digital economy is the formation of a national framework for promoting Global Capability Centers (GCCs) in emerging Tier-II cities. This move is set to boost employment growth and position India as a hub for high-value global services.

Investment in AI Centres of Excellence (CoEs) in education is a positive step towards the adoption of emerging technologies in key industries. Additionally, the expansion of infrastructure in the five IITs established after 2014, including increasing capacity for 6,500 more students and enhancing hostel and other facilities at IIT Patna, is a significant move towards strengthening India’s tech workforce.”

Anirudh A. Damani, Managing Partner, Artha Venture Fund:

“The renewal of the Rs. 10,000 crore commitment to the Fund of Funds for AIFs is a significant step forward for the Indian startup and investment ecosystem. The initial Rs. 10,000 crore commitment catalysed Rs. 91,000 crore in investments, and I fully expect this fresh infusion to attract an additional Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 1.5 lakh crore in capital. This initiative will provide much-needed growth capital to early-stage startups, further strengthening India’s position as a global innovation hub.”

Bruce Keith, Co-Founder And CEO, InvestorAi:

“While the Budget started with a big bang quite literally, the Honourable Finance Minister has announced a string of boosters for the Indian startup sector. The extensions to the loan programmes make sense in the context of micro enterprises. However, the crucial fund of funds of Rs 10,000 crore will play a key role in boosting domestic capital in the startup sector. The announcement on deep tech fund, while details are awaited, it should be viewed through the DeepSeek lens of what can be done with relatively small amounts of capital when provided to agile and creative teams. We expect the VC ecosystem to bring velocity and momentum into funding these enterprises.”

Sridhar Parthasarathy, Co-Founder And General Partner At Bluehill:

“The government’s announcement of another Fund of Funds (FoF) worth Rs. 10,000 crore in the budget is strong commitment to cultivate an entrepreneurial ecosystem and an acknowledgement of Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) in channelling these resources effectively.

Additionally, the plan for a new Deep Tech Fund of Funds is a crucial step towards advancing deep tech innovation in India. This signals a clear intent from the govt to position India strongly in the global AI race, which is much needed boost for deep tech startups specially in AI and space tech.”