Mangaluru: Three years after the launch of the Silicon Beach programme to chart a technology roadmap for the coastal region, Mangaluru’s technology ecosystem is showing steady growth, with rising startup activity, new GCCs, expanding IT infrastructure and increased investor interest.Speaking at the sixth edition of Mangaluru Technovanza, held at the Dr TMA Pai International Convention Centre on Wednesday, Rohit Bhat, lead industry anchor, Mangaluru cluster, said the programme was launched through a collective decision by entrepreneurs and industry leaders to shape the region’s technology future.Its 2034 vision targets two lakh IT professionals, 4,000 startups, five unicorns, green IT infrastructure and an increase in the region’s GDP from $20 billion to $100 billion.“Companies have grown steadily and startups have increased,” Bhat said, pointing to recent public listings by Manipal Hospitals and Manipal Payment System as indicators of the region’s entrepreneurial potential.He said the initiative had focused on building the ecosystem’s underlying infrastructure and support systems. Govt has allocated about Rs 9.5 crore to K-Combinator, an industry-led accelerator that selected eight startups from nearly 80 applications. Silicon Beach Angels, a group of 25 investors, is also backing local startups.The next phase will require greater ambition and collective effort, Bhat said, adding that a new Karavali Vision 2047, aligned with India’s national goals, was being planned.City eyeing global technology cluster status: KDEMKarnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM) CEO Sanjeev Kumar Gupta said Mangaluru was steadily emerging as a global technology cluster, driven by collaboration among industry, govt and educational institutions.He said Mangaluru was one of only two places in the world popularly identified as a “Silicon Beach”, and urged stakeholders to look beyond their organisational roles and see themselves as citizens of the wider technology cluster.Gupta outlined a vision of two lakh technology jobs, Rs 40,000 crore in technology exports, more than 4,000 startups, at least 80 GCCs and 10 centres of excellence, along with data centres, cable landing stations and advanced manufacturing and electronics facilities.“We are the safest city, and the cluster already has 15 GCCs, more than 102 global brands and around Rs 35,000 crore in exports. Its talent pool includes about 35,000 professionals working from offices and another 20,000 working remotely. Also, the most premium infrastructure is available here,” he said.Data centre at NITK likelyLK Atheeq, financial adviser to the chief minister and chairperson, Bengaluru Business Corridor, said a good number of GCCs had come to the region over the past three years. Govt was also looking at data centres and cable landing stations, while ready-to-use office infrastructure was expanding through local entrepreneurship, he said.He said govt was looking at developing five vibrant clusters, including Mangaluru-Udupi and Manipal.In an effort to deepen academia-industry collaboration, govt is in talks with NITK director B Ravi, who has offered land on the campus to host a data centre, Atheeq said.
