Homegrown startups in robotics and hardware are facing the brunt of China’s move to increasingly deny visas to Indian executives. The impact is more pronounced for such specialised startups since their officials need to frequently travel to China for meeting supply chain partners and staying abreast of global innovation in the domain.
Some are currently exploring alternate supply chain partners in markets such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore, while others are waiting for clarity on the visa situation, founders told ET. Such measures are delaying R&D activity, disrupting operations, and may potentially cost millions of dollars in lost business, according to the founders. The challenge is more so for smaller firms having low volumes and for whom finding alternatives is less viable.
