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Deep Tech: Riceberg Ventures invests in early-stage deep tech companies across India, Europe and the US.
India’s Potential: Talent, space-tech progress, policy changes and global supply-chain shifts are supporting India’s deep tech growth.
Future Trends: Gandola highlights industrial robotics as a technology that could see major growth in the coming years.
India is entering an important phase in deep tech as artificial intelligence, space technology, robotics, quantum computing, energy and advanced manufacturing reshape industries. Growing government support, strong technical talent and global investment are creating new opportunities for Indian technology companies.
In this episode of Analytics Insight Conversations, host Priya Dayalani speaks with Lino Gandola, Co-founder of Riceberg Ventures, about deep tech, investment trends and India's growing role in global innovation.
Priya Dayalani: Could Lino Gandola explain Riceberg Ventures and its investment focus?
Lino Gandola: Riceberg Ventures is a fully early-stage deep tech fund investing across India, Europe and the US. The firm invests mainly at the pre-seed and seed stages, sometimes even before a company is incorporated or has a commercial product.
The goal is to identify strong technology companies early and help them grow. The investment approach is global because great deep tech companies can come from many different technology hubs, not only Silicon Valley.
Priya Dayalani: What led to the creation of Riceberg Ventures?
Lino Gandola: I started Riceberg Ventures with my partner, Ankit Anand, who has been a close friend for years. We met at a startup conference in Zurich. At that time, I was working in venture capital in Berlin, mainly investing in B2B software, while Ankit was building an Indian office for a major technology company.
We started angel investing in Indian companies, especially space tech, and gradually became convinced that India had a strong future in deep tech. That belief eventually led us to build Riceberg Ventures.
Priya Dayalani: Why has deep tech become such an important investment area?
Lino Gandola: I think ChatGPT changed the software industry in a major way. Creating software became much easier, which made traditional software investing less attractive as a category. This pushed more investors toward deep tech.
For me, deep tech is not simply about building better hardware. I look for breakthrough technologies that can create a major change in an industry. Fusion energy is a good example because it could transform energy and also affect global supply chains.
Priya Dayalani: Why do you believe India is ready to become a major deep tech hub?
Lino Gandola: I see talent as one of India's biggest strengths. India has a highly educated, ambitious and capable workforce. Many Indians already hold leadership positions in global technology companies. For years, much of this talent moved abroad, but I now see more people considering a return to India to build companies.
The progress in India's space sector is also changing the mindset of young engineers. Recent orbital launches and the success of Chandrayaan-3 show that ambitious technology can be developed in India. I believe the old mental ceiling around what can be built in India is gradually coming down.
Priya Dayalani: How are policy changes and global trends supporting India's deep tech ecosystem?
Lino Gandola: I think government support has become an important part of India's deep tech story. Space technology is a good example. The sector was once closed to private companies, but it has opened significantly and now allows 100% foreign direct investment.
Global companies are also looking to reduce their dependence on China. The China-plus-one strategy is bringing manufacturing and supply-chain opportunities to India, and I believe this could have a major impact on the country's broader technology ecosystem.
Priya Dayalani: Which technology do you think could reach an important inflection point next?
Lino Gandola: I would point to robotics, although I cannot predict the future with certainty. Robots have been part of popular culture for generations, but useful humanoid robots have not yet reached large-scale adoption. I remain cautious about predictions of household humanoid robots arriving very soon.
However, I believe industrial robotics could develop much faster. Robots handling routine tasks in factories could become increasingly common as companies invest heavily and compete to develop this technology.
