During 15 - 20 September 2025, Ms. Sasirit Tankulrat, Director-General of the Department of South Asian, Middle East and African Affairs, together with senior representatives from the National Innovation Agency of Thailand, led a delegation of eight Thai startups in the field of advanced technology and artificial intelligence (AI) to visit Chennai in Tamil Nadu and Bangalore in Karnataka, known as major hubs of manufacturing and startup development in India. The visit aimed to explore opportunities for startup cooperation and to foster a stronger startup ecosystem between Thailand and the States of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, in areas such as urban management using Internet of Things (IoT), AI and innovation driven by DeepTech.

The delegation paid courtesy calls on high-level representatives of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, as well as held discussions with key institutions, including (1) Chennai Smart City, Greater Chennai Corporation; (2) NIRMAAN pre-incubator of the Indian Institute of Technology – Madras, known as India’s top-ranked engineering university; (3) i-Tamil Nadu Technology (iTNT) Hub; (4) Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society (KITS) under the Department of Electronics, IT & Biotechnology of Karnataka; (5) National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM); and (6) NSRCEL Startup Incubator of the Indian Institute of Management – Bangalore. Discussions focused on digital technology policies, including AI, IoT, DeepTech, FinTech and EdTech, as well as measures to support Thai - Indian startup collaboration. The meetings also discussed, among others, opportunities for personnel exchange, technology transfer, startup incubation, startup ecosystem development, and business matching between Thai startups and their counterparts in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

The visit helped to open up an opportunity for Thailand to develop a supportive startup ecosystem, enhance mutual learning and technology transfer, as well as prepare Thailand and India for future industries that will play a vital role in driving both countries’ economies.