In a significant step towards fostering international collaboration in science, technology, and innovation, the Government of Karnataka on Saturday signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with the Government of Chile during the Innovation Summit held in Bengaluru.

The summit was organised as part of the official visit of the President of Chile, Gabriel Boric, who is leading a high-level delegation to India.

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The LoI aims to establish a framework for mutual cooperation between Karnataka and Chile in key areas, including emerging technologies, startups, research and development, knowledge exchange, and skill development. The agreement reflects a shared commitment to deepen innovation-driven engagement and create pathways for collaborative growth between the two regions.

Notably, Chile becomes the first Latin American country to partner with Karnataka under the Global Innovation Alliance (GIA)—a flagship initiative through which the Government of Karnataka collaborates with over 30 countries to promote cross-border innovation, research, and entrepreneurship.

President Gabriel Boric welcomed the partnership and invited startups and technology companies from Karnataka to explore opportunities in Chile, highlighting the vibrant innovation ecosystem being built there and the country’s openness to global collaborations.

Addressing the summit, Minister Priyank Kharge, State Minister for IT & BT and Rural Development & Panchayat Raj, emphasised Karnataka’s strengths as a global technology and innovation hub and noted that this partnership marks the beginning of deeper collaboration between the ecosystems of Karnataka and Chile.

“Karnataka offers unmatched talent, thriving startup energy, and a mature innovation infrastructure. With Chile’s dynamic efforts to build a strong tech ecosystem, this partnership can unlock exciting new opportunities for both sides,” the Minister said.

This collaboration is expected to boost market access for startups from both regions, facilitate joint R&D initiatives and academic exchanges, enable the sharing of best practices in policymaking and innovation governance, strengthen institutional linkages between research and innovation bodies in Karnataka and Chile, and promote investments and partnerships in key technology areas.

This partnership underlines Karnataka’s position as a global innovation hub and reinforces its vision to collaborate with like-minded regions to co-create solutions for a better, more connected future. It also marks a significant milestone in building South-South innovation partnerships, with Chile leading the way from Latin America.