On 9 and 10 October 2025, Mega Prawita, Managing Director of KUMPUL, and Ester Widya, VP of Business and Marketing at KUMPUL, joined the Tamil Nadu Global Startup Summit 2025 in India. The summit gathered 72,278 participants and brought together 609 speakers from 47 countries. It facilitated 1,206 curated meetings between 453 startups and 115 investors. The scale of participation provided a clear view of how Tamil Nadu structures collaboration across its entrepreneurial ecosystem.

For KUMPUL, the summit offered an opportunity to understand how founders in Tamil Nadu prepare for market engagement. Many early stage businesses in Indonesia face similar needs related to compliance, packaging standards, financial documentation, product validation, and customer trust.

Early Stage Realities Shared Through the Indonesia India Panel

During the summit, Mega and Ester joined a panel discussion on connecting the Indonesia India startup ecosystem. In this session, they shared how KUMPUL supports innovation across the Asia Pacific while building sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems in the region. They discussed practical challenges faced by early stage founders and highlighted the importance of structured guidance, reliable information, and access to cross border networks.

These insights aligned with several initiatives introduced at the summit. Corporate actors provided payment solutions, accounting tools, and packaging support to strengthen operational capability. Research institutions announced agreements for technology transfer and sector based incubation. Global partners presented soft landing programs that guide startups through regulatory and market navigation in new countries. Each initiative illustrated how different ecosystem components support founders during early growth.

How Policy Directions Shape Founders’ Pathways in Tamil Nadu

Outside the panel discussion, KUMPUL met policy makers and ecosystem leaders responsible for implementing Tamil Nadu’s Vision 2035 roadmap. Their conversations explored how incubation and pre incubation programs contribute to foundational capacity building. During the summit, the state distributed sanction orders for 22 pre incubation centres and 15 incubation centres under the Scale up Grant scheme, signalling an investment in long term ecosystem development.

Throughout the two days, KUMPUL engaged with partners from Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. These interactions revealed opportunities for Indonesian startups in joint research, product co development, targeted pilot projects, and overseas market access. The summit recorded 235 cross border engagements across 47 countries, forming a landscape of collaboration that can extend beyond the event.

Observations on Regional Connectivity and Founders’ Needs

Reflecting on what she observed, Mega noted how the ecosystem operates through shared structures that involve multiple stakeholders. In her words, “Within India’s broader innovation landscape, the ecosystem in Tamil Nadu shows a high level of integration across ministries, government entities, consultants, global partners, and ecosystem enablers. This coordinated structure provides clarity for founders as they navigate available resources.”

Her observation aligns with mechanisms seen throughout the summit, where public institutions and private actors work within coordinated frameworks that guide founders toward the support they need. By engaging with emerging innovation hubs and building relationships across borders, KUMPUL supports founders who seek access to knowledge, networks, and opportunities within the broader Indo Pacific ecosystem.

Grow Locally, Expand Globally with KUMPUL

As Indonesia’s leading entrepreneurship ecosystem enabler, KUMPUL accelerates growth by connecting entrepreneurs with strategic networks, exclusive resources, and expert insights.
We strengthen local communities while facilitating two-way global market access, helping international businesses tap into Indonesia’s dynamic ecosystem, and empowering local entrepreneurs to expand globally.

Through impactful collaborations with key industry players, KUMPUL enables entrepreneurs to scale efficiently, compete globally, and create meaningful impact.

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