The Department of Electronics, IT & Biotechnology, Government of Karnataka, under its Global Innovation Alliance (GIA) initiative, hosted the GIA Meet today at Hotel Four Seasons to promote the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2026 (BTS 2026) among its partner countries and international trade mission representatives.
The Meet was attended by Shri Priyank Kharge, Hon’ble Minister for Home, IT & Bt and E-Governance, Government of Karnataka; Dr. Manjula N, IAS, Chairperson, BWSSB, Secretary to Government, Department of Electronics, IT, Bt and S&T, Government of Karnataka; Dr. Avinash Menon Rajendran, IAS, Managing Director, KITS & KEONICS and Director, Department of E, IT, Bt and S&T, Government of Karnataka; Dr. E. V. Ramana Reddy, IAS (Retd.), Chairman, Karnataka Skill Development Authority; and Jagdish Patankar, Event Curator, BTS 2026 and Executive Chairman, MM Activ Sci-Tech Communications, along with global collaboration partners and representatives from more than 40 countries.
Speaking at the GIA Meet, Shri Priyank Kharge said,
“GIA 2.0 is about moving from engagement to execution, from MOUs to outcomes, and from delegations to enduring partnerships. Ecosystem-to-ecosystem relationships will always outlast individual transactions. Our ambition is to make Karnataka not just a destination for investment, but one of the world’s most consequential innovation partners – a place where global ideas meet Indian scale, where global technology meets Indian talent, and where partnerships do not end with an MOU; they begin with one.”
He added, “Under GIA 2.0, success will not be measured by the number of delegations or MOUs alone, but by how many startups enter new markets, how many technologies are jointly developed, how many research programmes are launched, how many pilots become businesses, and how many investments and jobs are created. We want our international partners to bring their startups, innovations, universities, researchers and companies to Karnataka and build long-term programmes with us.”
The Global Innovation Alliance (GIA), an initiative of the Department of Electronics, IT and Biotechnology, Government of Karnataka, fosters partnerships with leading technology and innovation nations. Launched in 2017 under the Karnataka Unit for International Cooperation (KUIC), the GIA network has expanded from 10 countries in 2018 to over 40 formal partner countries by 2026, while engaging with more than 90 countries globally.
The GIA Meet was convened to further strengthen cross-border collaboration in the lead-up to Bengaluru Tech Summit 2026, scheduled to take place from 17–19 November at BIEC, Bengaluru. Dr. Manjula N, IAS, presented an overview of the Summit and highlighted opportunities for partner countries to showcase their cutting-edge technologies, government initiatives, leading industry players and academic excellence through the international exhibition, conference and country delegations.
The New GIA Engagement Framework & GIGA Initiative
To support the next phase of GIA, the Government of Karnataka is introducing a new GIA Engagement Framework aimed at making international collaboration more structured, reciprocal and outcome-oriented.
The framework organises engagement across four tracks:
– Global Startup Mobility and Market Access
– International Institutional Partnerships
– Global Visibility and Strategic Engagements
– Governance through a dedicated International Desk
As part of this next phase, Karnataka is also developing GIGA – the Global Innovation and Growth Alliance, a dedicated physical infrastructure in Bengaluru for international innovation engagement.
GIGA is envisaged as a permanent landing and collaboration space for partner-country startups, innovation agencies, delegations and institutions, offering workspace, meeting and programme facilities while connecting them with Karnataka’s Centres of Excellence, incubators, universities, industry, investors and startup ecosystem.
The objective is to create a tangible gateway through which international partners can establish a presence, engage with Karnataka’s ecosystem, explore market opportunities and build sustained collaborations in the state.