New Delhi: The Indian Venture and Alternate Capital Association (IVCA) convened the IVCA Clean Air Forum 2026, bringing together institutional investors, venture capital funds, family offices, policymakers, development institutions, climate-tech entrepreneurs and ecosystem leaders to explore how private capital can play a catalytic role in addressing one of India’s most pressing challenges—air pollution.

While air pollution claims nearly 1.7 million lives in India every year, discussions at the Forum highlighted that clean air is no longer only an environmental or public health concern. It is increasingly emerging as an investment opportunity with the potential to create new markets, drive innovation and generate long-term economic value. Studies presented at the Forum indicated that scaling clean air solutions could unlock an estimated US$220 billion economic opportunity by 2030, while delivering significant health, productivity and climate benefits.

Held at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi, the Forum featured keynote addresses, panel discussions, research presentations and startup showcases focused on the business case for clean air. Conversations centred on mobilising institutional capital towards scalable air quality solutions across sectors including transport, waste management, industry, agriculture, clean cooking and monitoring technologies, while also examining the policy and financing frameworks required to accelerate adoption.

The Forum also served as a platform for founders building innovative air-tech solutions to engage directly with investors and ecosystem stakeholders. Through curated startup showcases, entrepreneurs demonstrated technologies aimed at addressing air pollution through cleaner mobility, industrial decarbonisation, emissions monitoring, waste management and advanced filtration solutions.

Throughout the day, speakers emphasised that India’s clean air transition would require closer collaboration between government, private capital, industry and innovators. Discussions explored how catalytic capital, blended finance, stronger policy support and market creation can help bridge the gap between promising technologies and large-scale deployment.

Aakriti Bamniyal, Senior Vice President, IVCA, said, “India’s clean air transition cannot be achieved by policy or technology alone. It requires sustained participation from investors, entrepreneurs, industry and government. The IVCA Clean Air Forum has been conceived as a platform to bridge these worlds and foster meaningful dialogue around financing scalable air quality solutions. Our objective is to help position clean air as a long-term investment theme while strengthening the ecosystem needed to support innovation, capital formation and sustainable growth.”

The Forum also featured presentations and discussions by leading experts from across the investment, policy and climate ecosystem. Key themes included the economic case for clean air, financing pathways for air quality management, the role of family offices in climate investing, city-level investment opportunities, and India’s growing air-tech innovation ecosystem.

The IVCA Clean Air Forum reflects the Association’s continued efforts to strengthen India’s climate investment ecosystem by bringing together capital providers, entrepreneurs and policymakers around high-impact sectors. By positioning air quality management as both an environmental necessity and an investable opportunity, the Forum aimed to encourage greater institutional participation in building scalable solutions for cleaner, healthier and more resilient cities.