Omnivore, one of India’s leading sustainability-focused venture capital firms, has released a report titled “India Life Sciences Startup Investing Report – A Five-Year Review“ in partnership with Nucleate. Unveiled during the BioWave event at C-CAMP in Bangalore, the report presents a deep dive into India’s biotech funding landscape from 2020 to 2024.
The report reveals that India’s biotech sector has gained remarkable momentum with $1.9 billion invested across 465 deals over five years — a clear signal of shifting capital flows towards biotech innovation. Peak funding was recorded at $749 million in 2022 followed by a slowdown with investments dipping to $269 million in 2024.
BioWave, an initiative by Omnivore, Nucleate, and IndieBio, is designed to boost investment and innovation in India’s bioeconomy. Supported by BIRAC, C-CAMP, IKP, Bangalore Bioinnovation Centre, Venture Center, and SINE (IIT Bombay), the platform seeks to highlight the work of entrepreneur-scientists across the country.
Biopharma and medical biotechnology dominated the funding landscape, accounting for 42% of total investments. However, investor interest is rising in emerging verticals such as sustainable and novel materials (7%), agrifood life sciences (10%), industrial biotech (10%), and bio-services & informatics (31%).
Geographically, Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR, Mumbai and Chennai attracted 90% of the total investment. Yet, mid-tier cities like Pune, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad are emerging as promising biotech hubs.
Seed-stage deals peaked in 2021 with 77 rounds, but fell to 62 in 2024, reflecting investor caution towards pre-revenue ventures. While Series A remained consistent, Series B deals surged to $253 million in 2022 before dropping to $48 million in 2024.
“This report offers crucial insights into that transformation—highlighting where capital has flowed and how investor readiness is accelerating deep tech across industrial biotech and sustainable materials,” said Mark Kahn, Managing Partner at Omnivore. “To truly unlock India’s potential in climate action, resource efficiency, and food security, sustained capital flow into bioscience-led startups will be essential.”
India’s bioeconomy has more than doubled, growing from $86 billion in 2020 to $165.7 billion in 2024—now contributing 4.25% to the national GDP. While biotech startups remain a small part of the ecosystem, they are playing a vital role in driving innovation across agriculture, manufacturing, and healthcare.
“BioWave marks a significant milestone in India’s biotechnology landscape by bringing together incubators, venture capitalists, and ecosystem stakeholders,” said Dr Jitendra Kumar, Managing Director of BIRAC, Department of Biotechnology. “DBT-BIRAC has consistently championed bio innovation, and I welcome new change-makers to this mission. This strategic collaboration creates the foundation needed to elevate India’s life sciences ecosystem globally. The report clearly demonstrates promising investment diversification beyond traditional biopharma into sustainable materials and agrifood technologies — perfectly aligned with our national innovation priorities.”
Dr Taslimarif Saiyed, CEO and Director of C-CAMP, added, “C-CAMP is delighted to collaborate with Omnivore and Nucleate on this initiative. BioWave is creating critical connections between scientific innovation and investment capital needed to nurture our next generation of biotech breakthroughs. The report’s revelation that 90% of investments remain concentrated in just four metro cities highlights both our progress and the tremendous opportunity to cultivate regional innovation hubs across India.”
While early-stage investments faced headwinds, the report notes a steady rise in institutional investors, corporate VCs, and global climate funds backing biotech ventures. To fully realise the sector’s potential, it calls for sustained capital flow into both early- and growth-stage companies driving India’s bioeconomy.
