The next hardware revolution of the world will not be driven by smartphones or entertainment devices; it will be shaped by climate technology. With the whole world racing against the impact of global warming, the spotlight is shifting to innovations that are making sustainability practical and scalable. India is now emerging as the hub where affordability meets sustainability; this is where climate-tech hardware is being built.
Founder and CEO
CHILTIER
India largely missed the first wave of global consumer-electronics manufacturing. While the world’s leading economies built their dominance around consumer devices, India became known more for software and digital services than for hardware. But climate-tech hardware presents a different opportunity. It is deeply aligned with India’s strengths: cost-efficient engineering, frugal innovation, and scalable manufacturing.
With a population vulnerable to rising temperatures, water stress, and erratic weather, India faces some of the most complex climate challenges. The country ranks seventh on the Global Climate Risk Index 2021, and projections indicate that by 2050, 40% of India’s population could face water scarcity, while 35 million people could be exposed to annual coastal flooding. Against this backdrop, the requirement for locally designed, affordable, and resilient climate solutions has never been more urgent.
The investment momentum
Globally, climate change could push more than 132 million people into extreme poverty by 2030. For India, this looming crisis is also an opportunity to innovate for resilience, not just for growth. Between 2016 and 2021, Indian climate-tech startups received nearly USD 1 billion in venture capital funding, placing the country ninth globally in climate-tech investment. In the past five years alone, 120 startups have raised over 200 funding rounds from 272 investors.
Sustainability is viewed as a cross-sector imperative, a metric of long-term business viability rather than a niche consideration. The innovation ecosystem now spans across clean energy, sustainable manufacturing, agri-tech, smart wearables and mobility. These sectors together redefine the way in which India pursues growth and cares for the environment.
Hardware innovation at its core
The climate-tech opportunity is deeply rooted in hardware: from solar-powered cold storage systems and decentralized water purification units to next-generation EV batteries and smart wearables. India’s innovators are designing solutions that balance performance with accessibility.
The transformation is already visible in the mobility space. The Indian EV market is likely to touch a valuation of USD 15,397 billion by 2027 and may generate more than 1,20,000 new employment opportunities. This will send ripples across the value chain by automatically fueling demand for the latest components, including motors, battery systems, and charging infrastructure worth over INR 2 lakh crore.
Agriculture also takes center stage in climate-tech hardware innovation, given that nearly 60% of India’s workforce depends on it. Precision irrigation systems, IoT-based soil monitoring and renewable-powered machinery are helping farmers adapt to growing climate challenges. According to a recent IMARC report, India’s agritech market is expected to grow at a CAGR of around 10.9% from 2025-33
At the same time, smart wearables are emerging as silent enablers of climate resilience. Devices that monitor air quality, body temperature, and hydration levels are helping individuals respond to heat stress and pollution in real time. Startups are developing wearable technologies for industrial and agricultural workers, bikers and soldiers by integrating sensors that track exposure to high temperatures to promote health and safety in a warming climate.
From ‘Make in India’ to ‘Invent for the Planet’
What makes this revolution different is the transition of India from a predominantly manufacturing-based economy to an innovation-centered economy. It is here that government policies like Make in India and Startup India have created a platform for such transformation. The next logical step, however, is creating homegrown export-worthy IPs that solve global climate challenges.
Indian startups are already exporting solutions, such as energy-efficient cooling systems fine-tuned for tropical countries, modular solar inverters designed for Southeast Asia, and affordable biogas kits for rural Europe.
What’s next
The climate-tech hardware story in India is still unfolding, but the trajectory looks promising. Strong policy support, a robust startup ecosystem, and a pool of engineering talent place India in a good position to lead this transformation. Going forward, sustaining this momentum will depend on enabling collaboration between startups, research institutions, and large manufacturers, consistent policy frameworks, and access to climate finance.
–Authored by Kulpreet S. Sahni, Founder and CEO, CHILTIER