Funding, tax sops not enough to lure start-ups: Dassault India MD

As states rush to showcase their start-up mettle, French group Dassault is pitching itself as an aggressive enabler in the space. A top official of Dassault Systemes, a software multinational and part of the aviation-to-information technology family, said there had been several layers of talks with Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, and Telangana.

Since Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the Startup India policy last Independence Day, states have been working to project themselves as ultimate destinations for entrepreneurs.

Start-up companies need access to cutting-edge technology and design platforms to help them succeed, Chandan Chowdhury, managing director, Dassault Systemes India, told Business

Standard. “We need to look beyond the traditional ‘ease of doing business’, tax benefits, physical infrastructure, credit guarantee, funding etc for start-ups.” The company has built an innovation platform — 3D Experience Platform — which can be hosted in the data centre of both the central and state governments. The French group had spent $3 billion to develop the platform and launched it in 2012.

Internationally, too, other cities and states are starting to recognise the importance of virtual digital innovation platforms to encourage a healthy start-up environment, according to Chowdhury.

“For instance, a city in China recently deployed this platform in their data centre, to attract start-up companies, and encourage them to leverage this platform to accelerate their innovation process.”

It is believed that a successful start-up environment will enhance employment numbers, increase economic activities and contribute positively to the gross domestic product growth of a country.

Chowdhury cites the example of French company XtreeE for revolutionising the construction process with 3D printing and digital technologies using the Dassault solution. With studies estimating the annual number of deaths due to medical errors in the hundreds of thousands, the time has come to revise the way the medical profession gains knowledge and experience. Advances in 3D printing technology and virtual simulation are creating new opportunities to improve the quality of treatments and patient safety.

Healthcare start-up Biomodex is innovating in this area also by developing sophisticated software and fabricating life-like human organs that can be used by medical students to learn and by doctors to practise surgical procedures before a live operation.

“We need to look beyond the traditional ‘ease of doing business’, tax benefits, physical infrastructure, credit guarantee, funding, etc for start-ups.” CHANDAN CHOWDHURY MD, Dassault Systemes