Karnataka government to float Rs 20-crore fund for AVGC-XR sector

Bengaluru: The government of Karnataka announced Rs 20 crore of investment in AVGC-XR (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming & Comics and Extended Reality) sector through the KITVEN ( Karnataka Information Technology Venture Capital) Fund 4 on Monday. The money is being pitched to aid startups and SMEs (small and medium enterprises) in this sector.

"Karnataka remains a frontrunner in the AVGC sector. Our initiatives, including the KITVEN Fund 4, aim to support startups and SMEs in the AVGC-XR sector," said Priyank Kharge, Minister for IT & BT at the curtain raiser of the event.

The funding would range anywhere between Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1 crore, per company initially, with follow-on investments of up to Rs 2 crore. The state government has collaborated with the Association of Bangalore Animation Industry (ABAI) and will host GAFX (Gaming, Animation and Visual Effects) 2025 from February 27 to March 1, 2025.

The state also has plans to set up a Skill Advisory Council on Emerging Technologies to invest in talent for this sector. Additionally, the state government is working on setting up an AVGC-XR Park and Gaming Center of Excellence (CoE). However, no timeline has been provided by the government for this.

“Karnataka’s 20 per cent market share is driven by around 300 specialized AVGC-XR studios employing approximately 15,000 professionals,” added Kharge.