That the long litany of things that people attribute to you, all the milestones, all the success that you achieved, what are you, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, the proudest of today?
Well, I think I am just proud to have pioneered biotech in India. That really to me has been something I have really, really been very proud of. And I think to see so many women entrepreneurs in the biotech sector is also something that makes me very inspired.
But you know, I want to talk about that, Kiran, because one of the objectives I remember when you started Biocon was that you wanted to create an environment. You wanted to create a space where women scientists would flourish. As you look at what Biocon has been able to achieve, what you have been able to do to create that environment, how do you feel about that today and how do we replicate that success across other organizations?
So, one thing that I am very proud of in Biocon is that 50% of our research employees are women. Big round of applause, ladies and gentlemen, that is true equity. And that's one division where we have gender parity, which tells you the role women can play. And this is not about having an affirmative action. These are smart women. These are women who have made it by merit. And I can tell you, every time I meet these women, I just feel so good about the fact that what I had aspired for, what I wanted this company to represent, is happening right before me. And I think what we need to ensure is that we create a boundless world for women to enter, because I think there are too many boundaries even today. I mean, when I look at just the shop floors, it's still not very apparent that gender parity, and I know that it was the shop floor that turned me away from those brewing jobs because they felt that this is not the right environment for women. And I think that psyche still exists even today. Because I know that even in Biocon, we haven't been able to get that gender parity on the shop floor. Hmm. So I think there is a lot to be done there. Of course, it started with the fact that women were not allowed to function in second and third shifts. That changed. I think many states have changed that policy. But it still becomes very onerous on companies to have women in night shifts because of the kind of security measures that you have to provide women. But I think this is the boundless world that we need to create so that women can participate in every aspect of corporate India and startups and anything. Another thing that really excites me today, Sharin, is the fact that when I look at startups, especially in biotech, I see so many smart women as co-founders, as team members, and they are all pursuing very exciting new ideas. That's something which we need to celebrate and build. We do need to celebrate, and we have many such founders here with us in this room, and we will be celebrating their stories in just a second.
But you know, Kiran, you often spoken about the fact that there is a credibility challenge which gets exacerbated if you are a woman and you face that. Of course, as you grow and as you encounter success, the credibility challenge also starts to diminish. Has it changed though? You are talking to young women founders, you are talking to young female entrepreneurs who are looking at starting up. Does the credibility challenge still get in the way? How much of a deterrent is it today?
I think unfortunately there still is a credibility challenge. I mean, I constantly have to mentor young women who are starting companies, to basically help them through their challenge of raising capital. For some reason, I think banks and financial institutions and venture funds are very reluctant to really invest in women. I mean, that's something which I have found. I think men have it easier. I think maybe they hustle their way through. Women don't hustle their way through. So I think it is unfair, and I think women have created some wonderful companies, but they are just not able to access the capital the way men can. So I think there still is that sort of old boys' club, because unfortunately the money is still in the hands of men. There are very few women who are investing as venture funds into women. And even the women who are investing in businesses often have teams that are sort of populated by men. So they end up, they might be leading the fund, but unfortunately their team is not very gender-equalized. And so I think again, when they take these decisions, women get a raw deal. Women get a raw deal. And we will address this issue with women here in the room, as well as investors and former investors here in the room.
But Kiran, you know what I want to talk about now is the overall environment that we are seeing here in India. There is a lot of focus on the fact that as we move faster and faster into this AI world, it's going to be about IP. It's going to be about innovation. You don't hold back. You basically been on this tire rate for several years now, saying that regulation needs to make way for innovation, regulators need to make way for innovation. Have we moved on that? How are we doing on that front? Are we ready for innovation and for IP?
You know, the world doesn't wait for us, and we are moving too slowly. I think we need very rapid regulatory reforms, and I think we need to understand that if we want to play in the world and if we want to catch up with others who are sort of beating us to that game, we should do it fast. And the reason I say this is that we don't lack talent. Hmm. We don't lack resources, very often, because let's face it, the government is also investing in innovation in a big way. You know, we have heard so many new announcements, of the RDF, yeah. And PRIP and Bioshakti and what have you? So I think there is enough money coming into the space for backing innovation, but I think the regulatory reforms that I am seeing to really leverage that innovation and leverage the incentives to really translate into big success is not there.
So I feel we need regulatory reforms. I mean, I think we had a chat that if you look at the kind of the virtual cycle of investment, an idea needs risk capital, seed capital to go to pre-proof of concept, and the government is doing its bit to do there. But then you need follow-on capital to scale that idea, and that has to come from venture capital. And once you take that idea to the market, when venture capital exits into the capital markets, they reinvest, and that's how you create the virtual cycle. Today we are very good at taking it up to proof of concept, but the follow-on venture capital is not coming through because of the poor exits that venture funds have into the capital markets, and then investors are not backing innovation the way they should because they are risk averse. So I think the risk appetite of the country has to really grow. We are too comfortable, and we are too used to low-risk predictable returns on our investment. We are not willing to back new ideas. We are not willing to basically get excited about blue sky ideas, like space. Would it? It would have never done well in India. You know, you don't think we could do a SpaceX in India, because we can. Because we don't have the risk appetite to be able to value in that way.
But that's what is that your frustration, Kiran, as far as the stock markets particularly are concerned, and do you believe that the kind of pressure on delivering quarter on quarter has stifled innovation? Does that continue to stifle innovation? You see, we have created an investment climate where investors are very happy with getting dividends and getting share buybacks.
I don't think investors are getting excited about denying themselves with either dividends or share buybacks and investing that money into creating new technologies. So I think that's what I mean by saying that we have to change the way we think about investing. If you invest in new ideas, in innovation, your share value should go up and that should be your return. That's the way I look at it. You have to invest in companies that think ahead of the curve. You have to invest in companies that come up with new ideas. And I can tell you, I am mentoring a number of startups today who have the coolest ideas, but will they be valued? Will they be able to grow their ideas into very large, impactful global businesses? Big question mark. Big question mark.
But you also firmly believe, Kiran, that biology is the future. You are willing to make big bets as far as biology is concerned. But biological intelligence in the world of artificial intelligence, where does biological intelligence come in and what is the plan for that?
