Here's what is keeping startup founders in India up at night

Around 30% of founders are grappling with concerns such as high burn rates, hiring challenges, fundraising hurdles, and extended sales cycles. Interestingly, only 16% of founders see competition as a major worry, signaling a shift towards prioritizing internal business dynamics over external factors.

While consumer-centric startup founders are laser-focused on curbing burn, B2B SaaS operators are concerned about longer, tougher sales cycles and regulatory curveballs are keeping those in fintech on their toes, according to the report.

The majority of founders (58%) surveyed for the report aspire to be profitable in the near to medium term while 18% state they have already reached this milestone, stated the report.

As startups lean into efficiency, two out of three founders surveyed reduced their monthly burn rates over the past year. Among these, half have managed to lower their burn by at least 30% and marketing witnessed the highest spending cuts in 38%.

The number of profitable unicorns has surged from 27% in 2021-2022 to 35-38 percent in 2023. Several more are expected to turn profitable within the next 12-18 months.

Efforts towards reducing cash burn has enabled startups to turn profitable and extend their capital runways in a tough funding environment.

As funding for Indian startups hit a five-year-low in 2023, the survey found 7 out of 10 startup founders in India saying "it's definitely hard to raise funds right now". Half of them are hopeful for a warmer season, with fundraising becoming easier in the next 12 months.

Additionally, one in two startup founders believe having at least 18 months of runway (it refers refers to how many months your business can keep operating before it's out of money) is ideal. However, one in three founders surveyed is currently operating with a runway of less than 12 months

However, optimism seems to be returning to the Indian startup ecosystem.

Most founders believe there is 'no better time than now to build in India’. About 83% of surveyed startup founders opined that now is a good time to be starting up a business in India, while 50% felt there has never been a better time than the current moment to pursue entrepreneurship.

Founders are also viewing the IPO landscape in India for venture-funded startups with renewed optimism even after the boom witnessed in 2021. Six out of 10 founders believe that there will be more IPOs of venture-funded startups in the next 5 years compared to the previous five, with the optimism ringing even louder among late-stage founders.

The survey covered over 250 founders across various stages and sectors, including B2B SaaS + AI, Consumer Brands & Consumer Tech, Fintech & Financial Services & others.