India's tech startups raised $2.5 billion in Q1 2025

India's technology startups raised $2.5 billion in the first quarter of 2025. This amount is a 13.64% increase compared to the previous quarter and an 8.7% increase from the same period last year. The country secured its position as the third most-funded nation, following the United States and the United Kingdom. According to a report from Tracxn, late-stage startups attracted significant funding, reaching $1.8 billion. This marks a 38.46% rise from the fourth quarter of 2024 and an impressive 114.54% increase compared to the first quarter of 2024. However, seed-stage startups saw their funding decline. They raised $157 million, which is down 23.79% from the previous quarter and 55.77% compared to the same period last year. The report highlights that sectors like auto tech, enterprise applications, and retail were the strongest performers in Q1 2025. Auto tech alone received $1.1 billion in funding, significantly higher than previous quarters. Enterprise applications garnered $650.7 million, while retail raised $481.5 million. Six companies went public during this quarter, including Nukleus and Maxvolt Energy. Notably, no new "unicorns," or startups valued at over $1 billion, were created in Q1 2025, compared to two in the same quarter last year. A total of 38 acquisitions occurred this quarter, reflecting a 15.15% rise from the previous quarter and a 40.74% increase from last year. The largest acquisition involved Magma General, which was bought by DS Group and Patanjali Ayurved for $516 million. This was the highest-valued acquisition for the quarter, surpassing a $350 million deal by HUL. Delhi-based startups attracted 40% of the total funding, while Bengaluru accounted for 21.64%. Key investors included Accel, Blume Ventures, and Peak XV Partners. The top seed-stage investors were Venture Catalysts, Unicorn India Ventures, and YourNest. Meanwhile, Avataar Ventures and Sofina led in late-stage investments.