Fortune India Startup Summit 2026

ABOUT

The Fortune India Startup Summit brings together founders, investors, policymakers, and operators shaping India's next startup decade from those building in Bharat to those driving AI-led disruption, and redefining what sustainable growth truly looks like. As the ecosystem moves beyond the frenzy, the conversation is shifting to what truly matters in building companies that last.

Across the evening, conversations will span the full spectrum of what defines this moment. AI-led innovation, Bharat-first businesses, consumer disruption, and the capital powering it all featuring some of the most influential voices actively building and backing India's startup ecosystem. Curated through Fortune India's lens, this is a platform designed for clarity, not noise where sharp insights meet real experience, and conversations move beyond the obvious.

The summit brings together founders who have scaled, investors who have navigated cycles, and policymakers shaping the next phase of growth. It offers honest perspectives over rehearsed narratives, and ideas that challenge rather than simply validate. No clichés. No surface-level takes. Just the people shaping what comes next and the conversations that will define it.

THEMES

The Agentic Embrace by Enterprises

Building a FinTech Ecosystem with AI

From Valuation to Value

Setting up AI Based Disruptive Models

Optimizing AI for India

Disrupting the Consumer Space

Bharat led Innovation

Small towns, big dreams

Building an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

The Second Act

My Entrepreneurial Script

SPEAKERS

Priyank Kharge

Minister for Electronics, IT/BT and Rural Development & Panchayat Raj

M B Patil

Minister for Industry & Infrastructure Development, Govt of Karnataka

Irina Ghose

Managing Director, Anthropic

Rahul Chari

Founder & CTO, PhonePe

Mohit Bhatnagar

Managing Director, PeakXV

Pranav Pai

Managing Partner, 3one4 Capital

Ritesh Banglani

Partner, Stellaris Venture Partners

Haren Chelle

Co-founder & CEO, Pulse

Saurabh Pandey

Founder & CEO, Eloelo Group

Rajiv Kumar

President and Managing Director, Microsoft India Development Centre

Rishav Jain

Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal

Saumyajit Roy

Co-Founder & CEO Emoha Elder Care

Shashi Kumar

Founder & CEO, Akshayakalpa

Sidhharth Nihalani

Co-Founder, Practo

Ankush Sabharwal

Founder & CEO, Corover AI

Devyani Gupta

Founder, Arrowhead

Kannan Sitaram

Co-founder and Partner, Fireside Ventures

Pranav Kapoor

Founder, PKapo Perfumes

Satyajit Singh

Founder & MD, Shakti Sudha Makhana Founder Emak Global Agritech Nutrition Pvt. Ltd.

Sanjeev Kumar Gupta

CEO, Karnataka Digital Economy Mission

Shweta Rajpal Kohli

President & CEO, Startup Policy Forum (SPF)

Aditya Shukla

Partner, Bain & Company, Head of India Private Equity practice

Chaitanya Ramalingegowda

Co-Founder, Wakefit

Ashish Goel

Co-founder, Optimist

Dr. Vivek Anand Oberoi

Serial Entrepreneur, Philanthropist, Award-Winning Actor

AGENDA

4:45 PM - 4:50 PM

Welcome Address

Sourav Majumdar, Editor-in-Chief, Fortune India

4:50 PM - 5:10 PM

Fireside Chat with Priyank Kharge

Priyank Kharge, Government of Karnataka

5:10 PM - 5:25 PM

The Agentic Embrace by Enterprises

Irina Ghose, Managing Director, Anthropic

5:25 PM - 5:40 PM

Building a FinTech Ecosystem with AI

Rahul Chari, Founder & CTO, PhonePe

5:40 PM - 6:00 PM

From Valuation to Value

Mohit Bhatnagar, Managing Director, PeakXV
Pranav Pai, Managing Partner, 3one4 Capital
Ritesh Banglani, Partner, Stellaris Venture Partners

6:00 PM - 6:15 PM

Setting up AI Based Disruptive Models

Haren Chelle, Co-Founder & CEO, Pulse
Saurabh Pandey, Founder & CEO, Eloelo Group

6:15 PM - 6:30 PM

Optimising AI for India

Rajiv Kumar, President and Managing Director, Microsoft India Development Centre

6:30 PM - 6:50 PM

Disrupting the Consumer Space

Rishav Jain, Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal
Saumyajit Roy, Co-Founder & CEO, Emoha Elder Care
Shashi Kumar, Founder & CEO, Akshayakalpa
Siddharth Nihalani, Co-Founder, Practo

6:50 PM - 7:05 PM

Bharat led Innovation

Ankush Sabharwal, Founder & CEO, Corover AI
Devyani Gupta, Founder, Arrowhead

7:05 PM - 7:25 PM

Small towns, big dreams

Kannan Sitaram, Co-founder and Partner, Fireside Ventures
Pranav Kapoor, Founder, PKapo Perfumes
Satyajit Singh , Shakti Sudha Makhana Founder Emak Global Agritech Nutrition Pvt. Ltd. ( known as Makhana Man of India )

7:25 PM - 7:45 PM