ET Soonicorns Sundowner kicks off in Hyderabad: Spotlight on product-first startups, deeptech disruptors, and sectoral soonicorns and minicorns

Time of India

11-07-2025

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The Economic Times Soonicorns Summit, India's largest platform spotlighting the next generation of unicorns, is back with its fourth edition in Bengaluru this August. But before the mainstage buzz, a new chapter begins. In a first-of-its-kind expansion, ET Soonicorns is hitting the road with its sundowner series, bringing curated startup gatherings to India's rising innovation hubs. First on the map? Hyderabad.On 31 July, Hyderabad will host an evening that promises sharp insights, high-impact storytelling, and fresh data. The ET Soonicorns Sundowner series will kick off with the Hyderabad edition, setting the tone for India's evolving soonicorn landscape. A central highlight would be the launch of an exclusive ET X Tracxn report, listing the Top 10 Sectors X Soonicorns and Minicorns of the Andhra Pradesh-Telangana cluster, with sharp city-wise and sectoral analysis.Hyderabad's startup ecosystem has long operated under the radar—but no longer. From bootstrapped business-to-business (B2B) scale-ups to deeptech pioneers and capital-efficient fintech plays, the city is home to some of India's most product-first, hype-last founders. Over the past five years, Hyderabad has emerged as a concentrated innovation hub, with a staggering 99.7% of all startup capital in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.The Andhra Pradesh–Telangana startup corridor is emerging as a story of sectoral discipline and capital concentration, not just valuation vanity. The ET Soonicorns X Tracxn 2025 report, based on startup and investment data spanning January 2020 to May 2025, reveals two powerful currents driving the region. First, the P0 sectors, such as Healthcare Booking and HRTech, show strong market validation, attracting the most unique investors and over $640 million in cumulative funding. These are mature, capital-attracting categories with depth. But it's the P1 sectors where the future is being seeded: Electric Vehicles (EVs) alone saw 50 funding rounds, five minicorns, and two soonicorns, while Beauty Tech raised $260M from just 18 investors.* Alternative Lending produced two soonicorns with $149M in backing.* These capital-intensive bets signal where conviction is highest. Together, the AP-Telangana startup map is no longer just promising—it's proof of a high-growth region rewriting India's innovation geography.This sundowner will spotlight the unique DNA of Hyderabad's founders: frugal, focused, and quietly disruptive. The ecosystem's lower media churn may not always dominate headlines, but it has shielded many of its ventures from premature scaling and overvaluation pitfalls.The evening starts with opening remarks from the ET editorial team, framing the relevance of Hyderabad's innovation story in the national startup narrative.This flagship panel discussion, titled 'Built in Hyderabad: The Rise of India's Product-First, Hype-Last Startups', will feature a leading unicorn founder, a deeptech/ B2B/ fintech investor, and a key voice from a premium incubator/ accelerator in the region.Moderated by an ET journalist, the panel will unpack why Hyderabad startups differ—from enterprise-first go-to-markets to deep R&D pipelines, and from bootstrapped growth to post-Series A discipline.From startups pioneering research-led innovation and product-first principles without chasing headline-grabbing valuations, to those prioritising investment with long-term value creation in mind, this session promises to be a deep dive into a dynamic startup culture.Next, the first-of-its-kind EconomicTimes.com Top Soonicorns and Minicorns across Top 10 Sectors of Andhra Pradesh-Telangana cluster report, in collaboration with research partner Tracxn, will be unveiled. Spotlighting promising startups across 10 high-growth sectors in this southern region, this would be more than just a list; it would reveal a powerful story of centralisation: Hyderabad accounts for 99.7% of regional startup funding, with cities such as Vijayawada and Vizag still in the early stages of ecosystem maturity.In a power-packed open-mic storytelling segment, handpicked soonicorns will take the mic to share one moment that changed everything— a sharp turn, a tough bet, or a breakout decision that rewrote their trajectory. From patient capital to everyday credit, from hardware hustle to scale-up stories, this is where personal conviction meets startup inflection.Each founder will share a story followed by a two-minute Q&A, offering real glimpses into the risks, pivots, and breakthroughs behind their success.As the lights dim, the conversations heat up. With a curated crowd of founders, investors, and ecosystem enablers, the post-agenda networking session is designed for meaningful collisions and potential capital connects.The ET Soonicorns Summit 2025 is not just celebrating India's next unicorns, but decoding startup ambition's evolving geographies. And Hyderabad, with its talent depth, R&D ethos, and capital-efficient scale stories, deserves the spotlight.So if you believe that real innovation doesn't always scream for attention, but builds patiently, this sundowner is where you need to be.360 One Wealth is the presenting partner of the ET Soonicorns Summit 2025.*As per the current inclusion criteria, only companies with revenue reported as of March 2023 or March 2024 have been considered.