MANGALURU: Coastal Karnataka, often referred to as the Silicon Beach of India, has drawn a north India-based startup to establish its operations in the region. Sophrosyne Technologies, an Indian semiconductor startup focused on healthcare technologies, has set up its research and development and product design centre in Udupi, according to its Founder and CEO Manish Srivastava, a native of Lucknow.Co-founder and chief business officer Jatin Gupta, who hails from Faridabad, said the startup raised $2 million in seed funding from Bluehill VC and began operations with a small office in Udupi about a year ago. The company formally inaugurated its larger facility on Saturday. Sophrosyne has also secured a $1.2 million grant under the Union government’s Design Linked Incentive (DLI) programme.Manish said the Udupi office was launched with a team of six full-time employees and four external consultants. Over the past year, the workforce has grown to 30 members, comprising in-house professionals and domain experts. “We plan to build a strong entry-level talent pipeline and groom engineers into mid-level roles, complemented by selective lateral hiring for critical positions. Our aim is to scale the team to over 50 professionals focused on product development and commercialisation within the next 18 months,” he said.The startup is exploring multiple focus areas, including real-time health monitoring, smart surgical navigation systems, brain health chipsets, and RF-based energy-harvesting technologies designed to extend the life of implantable and wearable devices. The company plans to significantly expand its team and capabilities over the next four to five years.Sophrosyne is among the first Indian startups developing a single low-power system-on-chip (SoC) capable of measuring multiple vital parameters such as ECG, PPG, temperature, and respiration. The technology is aimed at healthcare wearables and AI-driven models that deliver real-time health insights.Although headquartered in north India, both founders have lived and worked in Karnataka for several years, and are well acquainted with the state’s innovation ecosystem. “Coastal Karnataka, particularly the Manipal-Udupi belt, offered a natural fit for our work in medical technology and semiconductors. The region combines clinical proximity, academic depth, and a strong talent pipeline, enabling faster product development and real-world validation,” Manish said.The founders noted that the region offers a collaborative ecosystem, where healthcare and engineering intersect closely. Proximity to Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, has enabled direct engagement with clinicians to identify real-world challenges and validate use cases early. Institutions such as NITK Surathkal, MIT Manipal, and other nearby colleges provide access to skilled talent and a strong research culture. They added that the region is well suited for sustained R&D due to the close clinical-engineering feedback loop, and offers long-term potential for phased manufacturing expansion, from prototyping and validation to quality assurance and medical-device manufacturing.
