In a country rapidly emerging as a global tech and innovation hub, Union Minister Piyush Goyal’s recent comments on the Indian startup landscape sparked both criticism and conversation. Speaking at Startup Mahakumbh 2025, Goyal pointed to the contrast between India and China, suggesting that Indian startups are overly focused on gig economy models such as food delivery, rather than pushing boundaries.

While some industry voices viewed this statement as harsh, Aravind Srinivas, co-founder and CEO of Perplexity AI, came out in firm support. During a session at the Rising Bharat Summit 2025 in New Delhi, Srinivas labeled Goyal’s comment as "positively provocative", noting that it was meant to ignite ambition and drive change.

“It’s meant to instigate us to build something better,” Srinivas said, aligning himself with the minister’s sentiment.

India’s Startups Must Dream Bigger

Goyal's rhetorical question—“Are we going to be happy being delivery boys and girls?”—was meant to question whether Indian startups are satisfied with replicating existing gig models instead of innovating at a global scale.

Aravind Srinivas echoed that concern, stating that India has immense potential to rise beyond low-risk, low-return business models. According to him, many Indian startups are focused more on survival and operational safety, rather than building transformative products.

He emphasized that Perplexity AI is committed to growth in India, with the country already ranking among the top 10 revenue generators for the company—likely “even close to the top five,” he added.

Time for VCs to Rethink Risk and Reward

One of the most critical issues Srinivas highlighted was the risk-averse nature of Indian venture capitalists.

“VCs in India are still very risk averse. They invest only in things they know won’t fail, rather than exploring ideas that might return 100x or 1000x,” Srinivas noted.

He advocated for a mindset shift, urging VCs to understand that 95 percent of their bets might fail, but 5 percent could change the game entirely. This model, widely accepted in Silicon Valley, needs to be embraced more openly in India, he stressed.

This risk-averse approach, according to Srinivas, could hinder India’s ability to produce world-class innovation and create true global players in the AI and tech space.

Perplexity AI Eyes India with Big Plans

Perplexity AI, which is built as a conversational AI search engine, has seen impressive traction in India. The firm is already considering India-specific pricing and is exploring ways to add localized content like TV shows, entertainment, and movies to better serve the Indian audience.

However, Srinivas admitted that the India pricing model is still under evaluation.

“Our inference is expensive,” he said, referencing the compute-heavy infrastructure used in AI models. “We don't want to offer a lower-tier quality product just to save costs.”

This reflects Perplexity's intention to offer the same high-quality service globally, including in cost-sensitive markets like India.

The Role of Engineers and the Rise of AI in Code

Apart from business and funding, Srinivas also took time to highlight the importance of engineers adopting AI in their coding processes.

He made a bold statement:

“If you're not using AI when you're writing code, you're stagnating. You're sticking to the old workflow.”

According to him, AI is now an essential part of modern software engineering, helping programmers write better, faster, and more reliable code. This aligns with Perplexity’s mission to integrate AI across all layers of digital experience.

A Call for More Ambition in Indian Innovation

The discussion between Srinivas' perspective and Goyal’s critique brings up an important reflection point for India’s startup ecosystem: Is India aiming high enough?

Despite having one of the most vibrant startup cultures globally—with unicorns emerging rapidly—a large chunk of Indian startups are still focused on incremental solutions rather than bold, disruptive ideas. The infrastructure, talent, and capital are slowly aligning. What remains, perhaps, is the mindset to lead global innovation.

Goyal’s message was not a dismissal, but a challenge. And Srinivas’ response was a validation of that challenge, asking India’s builders, investors, and engineers to embrace a higher vision.

Conclusion: From Gig Work to Global Vision

India’s startup community stands at a critical juncture. While it has shown excellence in service delivery and operational execution, the call for innovation-led disruption is growing louder. With support from leaders like Aravind Srinivas and industry pushback on status quo thinking, India could very well be on the cusp of its next tech revolution.

Bold comments, forward-thinking strategy, and a fearless approach to failure—these could be the ingredients India needs to truly compete with global tech giants, not just serve them.

Stay tuned as Perplexity AI continues to roll out its India strategy, while the larger conversation on India's tech ambitions heats up.

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