Chief Minister Shri D. K. Shivakumar inaugurates the 14th edition of Bengaluru INDIA NANO 2026

Nanotechnology leaders, researchers, industry and startups converge in Bengaluru to advance the next frontier of Innovation.

Devadas TP  -Industry  Technology Media Special Correspondent -Bengaluru, 4 August 2026:

Bengaluru INDIA NANO 2026 Highlights

• 14th edition of Bengaluru INDIA NANO inaugurated on by Hon’ble Chief Minister of Karnataka

• Theme: “Nanotech’s Next Frontier: AI & Beyond – Conceive, Converge, Commercialize

• Bharat Ratna Prof. C.N.R. Rao felicitated for his contributions to science and his pioneering  role in advancing nanotechnology.

• Prof. C.N.R. Rao Bengaluru INDIA NANO Science Award presented to Prof. B. L. V. Prasad.

• Conference, exhibition and networking sessions commenced with participation from academia, industry, startups and government.

The 14th edition of Bengaluru INDIA NANO, India’s flagship international nanotechnology conference and exhibition, was inaugurated today at LaLiT, Bengaluru. Organised by the Department of Science & Technology, Government of Karnataka, Karnataka Science and Technology Promotion Society (KSTePS)
and Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), the event brings together leading scientists, researchers, industry leaders, startups, policymakers and students to accelerate research, innovation and commercialization in nanotechnology.

The event was formally inaugurated by Shri D.K. Shivakumar, Hon’ble Chief Minister of
Karnataka; Bharat Ratna Prof. C.N.R. Rao, Honorary Chairman, Vision Group on
Nanotechnology, Government of Karnataka; National Research Professor & Linus Pauling
Research Professor, Honorary President, JNCASR, Bengaluru; Shri Priyank Kharge,
Minister for Home, IT & Bt, e-Governance Government of Karnataka; Shri Rangesh
Raghavan, Managing Director, Lam Research India; and Shri Rizwan Arshad, Hon’ble
Member of the Legislative Assembly Shivajinagar Assembly Constituency.
Also present on this occasion were Prof. Navakanta Bhat, Chair, Vision Group on Nanotechnology, Government of Karnataka Dean, Division of Interdisciplinary Sciences Professor, CeNSE, IISc, Bengaluru; Dr. N. Manjula, IAS, Secretary to Government, Department of Electronics, IT, Bt
and Science & Technology, Government of Karnataka; Prof. P. S. Anil Kumar, Chair, CEC, and & Technology14th Bengaluru INDIA NANO Dean, Administration & Finance Professor, Department of Physics,IISc, Bengaluru; and Shri Bharath S, IAS, Director, Department of Science
Managing Director, KSTePS, Government of Karnataka.

In a moment of immense pride for the scientific community, Bharat Ratna Prof. C.N.R. Rao,
FRS, was felicitated for his extraordinary contributions to science and his pioneering role in advancing nanotechnology in India and beyond. The Prof. C.N.R. Rao Bengaluru INDIA
NANO Science Award was presented to Prof. B. L. V. Prasad, Director, Centre for Nano and
Soft Matter Sciences (CeNS), Bengaluru.

Ahead of the inauguration, a dedicated Pre-Conference Tutorial Day was held on 3 August, attracting students, researchers and professionals. The expert-led sessions covered
Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing, AI & Machine Learning for Sciences and
Engineering, and Advances in Nano Characterization.

The main conference officially commenced with an engaging programme of plenary
lectures, multi-track technical sessions and industry interactions centered on the theme
“Nanotech’s Next Frontier: AI & Beyond – Conceive, Converge, Commercialize.” The
conference sessions will how nanotechnology is converging with artificial intelligence and
other frontier technologies to accelerate innovation and commercialization across diverse sectors. The multi-track programme features focused sessions on Nano in Semiconductors, Nano in Agriculture & Health, and Nano in Energy & Environment, highlighting nextgeneration electronics, climate-smart agriculture, advanced healthcare solutions, sustainable energy systems and environmental resilience.

The conference also features a dedicated
Global Innovation Alliance (GIA) track, with country sessions from Germany, France and
the Netherlands highlighting collaborative research, technology transfer, and innovationled partnerships driving the future of nanotechnology across academia and industry.

Some of the prominent speakers include Prof. Umesh V. Waghmare, Secretary, Dept. of
Science & Technology, Govt. of India; Dr. B. L. V. Prasad, Director, Centre for Nano and Soft
Matter Sciences (CeNSE), Bangalore, India; Prof. Chennupati Jagadish, Research School of
Physics and Engineering, The Australian National University (ANU), Australia; Prof.
Arghya Bhowmik, Dept. of Energy Conversion and Storage, Technical University of Denmark (DTU),Denmark; Prof. Akshay Rao, Dept. of Physics, Cavendish Laboratory, University of
Cambridge, UK; Prof. Radha Boya, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy, University of
Manchester, UK; Pradeep Ramachandran, Senior Director and Head of Research at
Advanced Computing Lab, KLA, Chennai, India; Dr K S Subramanian, Former Director of
Research & Founder Head, Center for Agricultural Nanotechnology, TNAU, Coimbatore, India;Dr. Pushplata Singh, Director and Senior Fellow, TERI-Deakin Nanobiotechnology Centre
(TDNBC), The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), India; and Dr. Paramita Kar
Choudhury, Senior Scientist, Embedded Devices and Intelligent Systems (EDIS), TCS
Research.

Complementing these technical discussions were the Nano for the Young programme, the
Nanotech Quiz, interactive poster presentations and industry networking, reinforcing Bengaluru INDIA NANO’s role as a platform that bridges scientific research, industry collaboration and real-world deployment of nanotechnology.

Shri D. K. Shivakumar, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Karnataka said “Karnataka has established
itself as India’s technology capital, and today we are laying the foundation for the next era of
scientific leadership. The future belongs to those who can translate research into real-world impact, and Bengaluru INDIA NANO demonstrates our commitment to building an ecosystem where science, industry and innovation come together to solve global challenges. We want
Karnataka to lead not only in digital technologies, but also in nanotechnology, advanced materials, semiconductors and deep-tech innovation.”

Shri Priyank Kharge, Hon’ble Minister for Home, IT, BT and e-Governance said
“The next wave of innovation will be driven by the convergence of AI, nanotechnology, biotechnology and
semiconductors. Karnataka is uniquely positioned to lead this transformation because of its strong research institutions, thriving startup ecosystem and progressive policy environment. Through platforms like Bengaluru INDIA NANO, we are accelerating the journey from scientific discovery to commercial innovation, creating technologies that are globally competitive while delivering meaningful impact for society.”

Dr. N. Manjula, IAS, Secretary, Department of Electronics, IT, BT and Science & Technology
said “Bengaluru INDIA NANO continues to strengthen its position as India’s premier
nanotechnology platform by bringing together researchers, industry, startups and
policymakers under one roof.

This year’s theme, ‘Nanotech’s Next Frontier: AI & Beyond –Conceive, Converge, Commercialize,’ reflects our focus on fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and accelerating the commercialization of breakthrough research.

Our objective is to build partnerships that translate scientific excellence into scalable
technologies and sustainable economic growth.”

The Event also features an International Exhibition bringing together industry, startups,
research laboratories, academic institutions and technology providers to showcase cuttingedge products, technologies, research and innovations across the nanotechnology ecosystem.

This year, the event has attracted 26 conference sessions, over 80 speakers, 800+
delegates, 150+ scientific posters, participation from 10+ countries, 50 exhibitors and
over 4,000 attendees, making it one of India’s largest nanotechnology platforms.

Bengaluru INDIA NANO 2026 brought together a strong ecosystem of partners, with support
from Applied Materials, Visvesvaraya Technological University, Indian Oil (Sprint
Ahead 2026), Detroit Engineered Products (DEP), Ramaiah University of Applied
Sciences, and ACT Enterprise, alongside international session partners from Denmark,
France, Germany and the Netherlands, reinforcing the event’s collaborative global Outlook.