JLR is the latest company to establish venture clienting partnerships with startups in the Indian market.
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is set to launch an innovation hub in Bangalore, India, which will function primarily as a venture clienting arm, in partnership with startup accelerator Plug and Play.
The programme is an outgrowth of JLR’s open innovation programme, and will target technologies like autonomous driving, AI, big data, internet of things and sensor technology. It mirrors the similar initiatives the automaker has with Plug and Play in the US, with Cubo and Firjan in Brazil, and with TCS in Israel.
Initially, the venture clienting programme will complement the existing engineering capability JLR has in India, but over time its investment arm, InMotion Ventures, will seek to deploy capital there too.
“The way the hub is being set up is mobility and engineering focused, but obviously our long-term vision would be that this becomes another location for us to look at investing,” says Mike Smeed, managing director of InMotion Ventures. The team would invest at earlier stages than the companies that would be part of the new hub.
It comes as an increasing number of VC investors are looking to India to expand operations and set up new offices.
India benefits from a perfect storm of factors that are attracting investors from all over the world. It has a rapidly growing economy – one of the fastest in the world – as well as a young tech-savvy population with a median age in the late 20s, the disposable income of a growing middle class, an expanding startup ecosystem and a government that is eager to provide incentives.
It comes just months after Japanese electronics manufacturer TDK’s venturing unit, TDK Ventures, opened its own office in the country. Venture capital funds such as Bessemer Venture Partners set up nine-figure dollar funds there in recent years.
”You’ve got to have local market knowledge and credibility and engagement. You can’t just dip in and out of these things,” says Smeed. Jaguar Land Rover benefits from the fact the carmaker’s larger parent, Tata Group, is well-known in India.
InMotion Ventures is also eyeing increased investment activity in European markets like France and Germany.
JLR will be holding a launch event for the new innovation hub in Bengaluru on January 30th.
Fernando Moncada Rivera
Fernando Moncada Rivera is a reporter at Global Corporate Venturing and also host of the CVC Unplugged podcast.