Proof of a deep-tech fund is in its outcomes. That’s the audit worth doing

The audit worth doing is the assessment of a fund's outcomes, not its processes. In India's case, the government recently established a deep-tech fund with a budget of two hundred crore rupees, with the expectation that it would be disbursed over five years through multiple fund managers. The first cohort of companies selected for funding was a small portion of the larger fund, chosen based on their early application and proximity to the ecosystem.

While 62 percent of the first round of funding went to firms with panel members' interests, this was not an indication of a pattern of favoritism, but rather a result of the sequence in which the companies applied for and were informed about the fund. The government's exposure is capped at half the project cost, and there are strict guidelines in place to manage conflicts of interest, such as disqualifying firms where a member has a significant stake or ownership.

The success of the fund will ultimately be determined by the outcomes it produces, rather than the absence of conflicts of interest.