Indian Startup Leaders Push Back Against Piyush Goyal’s “Dukaandari” Remarks

Union Minister Piyush Goyal’s recent comments criticizing the focus of India’s startup sector have sparked widespread discussion among startup leaders.

While speaking at an investment event in Delhi, Goyal questioned whether India’s startup ecosystem was too focused on consumer services like food delivery, rather than innovating in areas such as artificial intelligence, electric vehicles, and semiconductors.

“We are making food/hyper delivery apps; creating cheap labour so the rich can have a meal without stepping out, while the Chinese are working on AI, EVs, and semiconductors,” Goyal remarked.

He asked pointedly, “Should we make ice cream or make chips? Dukaandari hi karna hai?”

He also expressed concern over the growth of online betting apps and challenged whether India was utilizing its talent pool effectively, especially with the country producing the highest number of STEM graduates annually.

Industry Leaders Respond

Mohandas Pai Criticizes Government Policy

Mohandas Pai, former CFO of Infosys, called Goyal’s comparison with China “unfair” and criticized the government’s role in stunting deep-tech growth.

“These are bad comparisons. India has startups in all those areas too but they are small,” he posted on X, adding that the minister should reflect on what he has done to support deep-tech startups in India.

Pai also criticized India’s financial ecosystem. “We have a hostile @FinMinIndia @nsitharaman who harassed startups on Angel tax for many years,” he said.

He pointed out that India attracted only $160 billion in investment from 2014 to 2024 compared to China’s $845 billion, blaming the RBI and finance ministry for scaring away foreign investors.

Ashneer Grover Fires Back

Former BharatPe co-founder Ashneer Grover also challenged Goyal’s remarks. He wrote, “The only people in India who need a ‘reality check’ are it’s politicians.”

Grover highlighted that China also started with food delivery before moving toward deep tech and suggested that politicians should focus on ensuring sustained economic growth. “Thanks Minister sir for starting this healthy debate,” he added.

Aadit Palicha Defends Consumer Startups

Zepto’s Role in the Ecosystem

Zepto co-founder Aadit Palicha defended the role of consumer internet startups, citing the real-world impact of companies like his.

“There are almost 1.5 lakh real people who are earning livelihoods on Zepto today,” he stated. Zepto became a unicorn in 2023 and pioneered 10-minute delivery in India.

Palicha shared that Zepto pays over ₹1,000 crore in taxes annually and has attracted over a billion dollars in foreign direct investment. The company has also invested heavily in strengthening India’s supply chain for fresh produce.

“If that isn’t a miracle in Indian innovation, I honestly don’t know what is,” he said.

Consumer Startups as a Launchpad

Palicha pointed out that major tech companies globally—like Amazon, Google, and Facebook—began as consumer internet startups.

“Most technology-led innovation over the past two decades has originated from consumer internet companies,” he said. He added that these firms gain access to valuable data, talent, and capital, enabling them to drive innovation.

He argued that India needs strong internet companies to create future tech leaders and that the government and investors should support this journey rather than discourage it.

“Zepto is still far away from being a great Internet company that can hold a candle to the global best. But we are executing day in and day out to get there,” he said.

Shark Tank’s Anupam Mittal Weighs In

Anupam Mittal, founder of Shaadi.com and a Shark Tank India judge, also contributed to the debate. He noted that Indian entrepreneurs are already making strides in deep-tech areas like AI, space tech, and material science.

However, he pointed out that the ecosystem for growth and commercialization remains weak. “Founders can do most things but not EVERYTHING,” he wrote on X.

India’s Startup Landscape: A Snapshot

According to the Startup India website, India is home to around 20,000 startups, with approximately 4,750 being tech-led. The country has produced 110 unicorns to date, but the pace of unicorn creation has slowed, with only five new unicorns in 2024.

The most recent was MoneyView, which reached unicorn status in September 2024.