Discover MarTech 2026 Pune edition champions India-Built Martech

HT Syndication
Pune (Maharashtra) [India], February 5: The inaugural edition of Discover MarTech 2026, a premier conclave for India's marketing technology ecosystem, held in Pune on January 29, 2026 underscored the growing influence of India-built MarTech solutions and actively championed the 'Made-in-India MarTech' narrative. With industry reports projecting the Indian MarTech market to reach USD 100 billion by 2030-31, the speakers on the platform highlighted India's increasing role as a global hub for marketing technology innovation.
Amit Tandon, Managing Partner, MavGen Media, said, "The Discover MarTech 2026 Pune edition celebrated homegrown excellence, spotlighted regional marketing leadership from Maharashtra, and moved the conversation away from buzzwords toward real, measurable business impact. Designed as a long-term initiative, Discover MarTech aims to recognise and amplify practical, business-led innovation emerging across Bharat. We will soon be taking Discover Martech to Ahmedabad, Indore, Mumbai and other cities."

Talari Anand Mahesh, Managing Partner, MavGen Media, added, "We chose to launch the Discover MarTech series from Pune because of the quality and depth of MarTech work emerging from the region, despite the absence of a dedicated knowledge-sharing platform. The strong response to the Discover MarTech 2026 Pune edition reinforces our belief that India's MarTech journey extends far beyond a few metros. Our vision is to contribute meaningfully to the ecosystem through learning, collaboration, and recognition. We look forward to partnering with brands and agencies across the country as we build this movement together."
Abrar Chunawala, Executive Director - Technology, Vision, and Innovation, Onextel, said, "Discover MarTech 2026 brought together the right mix of marketing, technology, and business transformation at a critical moment for the industry. At Onextel, we believe connected customer experiences form the foundation of modern brand success. Integrated, compliance-first communication platforms play a crucial role in enabling smarter, more human-centric marketing and that is the direction in which MarTech must continue to evolve."

The first panel discussion of the day, 'The New Marketing Function: Human + AI Capabilities', was moderated by Hemal Bhuptani (Vector Consulting Group) and featured Ranjan Dutt (Russell Investments), Dr. Anuja Anil Pradhan (Symbiosis Institute of Media & Communication), and Akhil Duggal (Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals). The panel explored how AI is rapidly reshaping marketing functions while reinforcing the enduring importance of human judgment, leadership, and decision-making.
Sharing his perspective, Ranjan Dutt said, "What stood out for me was how quickly AI adoption has accelerated--and yet how central people, judgment, and leadership remain in the workplace. Technology gives you speed, but teams give you direction. Without direction, speed only gets you lost faster."

The second panel, 'Customer Acquisition: Winning Customers with AI', was moderated by Ajay Dusane and featured Kapil Khalgaonkar (Clodura.ai), Nishant Arora (Netcore), and Amol Ghadge (Pfizer). The discussion focused on the shift from spray-and-pray tactics to precision-led acquisition powered by intent data and predictive signals. Panelists examined how AI is reducing wasted media spend through real-time optimisation, reshaping multi-touch attribution, and helping brands identify unviable customer segments early in the acquisition journey.
Summarising the discussion, Ajay Dusane observed, "Technology can enable solutions, but clarity of thinking determines whether they actually work. One thing became very clear that AI is no longer about acquiring more customers. It's about acquiring the right customers predictably, profitably, and repeatedly."
He further added, "AI doesn't fix broken acquisition strategies. It exposes them faster."

The third discussion, 'Made in India MarTech: Challenges and Opportunities', was moderated by Arijit Bhattacharyya of VirtualInfocom and featured Dr. Sapptarishi Ghosh (Symbiosis Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation) and Dr. Vinod Shastri (MIT-World Peace University). The panel examined the realities of building globally relevant MarTech solutions from India and the structural challenges faced by B2B startups.
Responding to a question on why India has relatively few B2B MarTech unicorns, Dr. Vinod Shastri remarked, "Why do we even aspire to be a unicorn--a mythical animal? Why not aspire to be a dog instead?" Elaborating further, he added, "Like a pet, a sniffer dog, or a therapy dog, startups can be of immense value to someone. In our pursuit of becoming unicorns, we often try to be everything to everyone. Real value is created by being indispensable to someone."
The fourth panel, 'Brand Engagement in an AI-Driven World', was moderated by Kalyan Challapalli (WolfzHowl) and featured Rohan Kamat (Adobe), Siddharth Dhabade (Lemma), and Preetesh Jain (Zerply.ai). The discussion highlighted a shared conviction that AI is becoming foundational to how brands build relevance, loyalty, and trust not through scale alone, but through intent-driven, human-centred engagement.

Reflecting on the conversation, Preetesh Jain said, "AI-driven engagement works only when it is human-centred, not automation-first. Scale is powerful, but context and intent are what truly drive loyalty. The future belongs to brands that treat AI as a strategic partner in experience design, not merely as a productivity layer."
The event also featured the Discover MarTech Awards 2026, celebrating brands and teams that demonstrated measurable business impact through the effective use of marketing technology. The winners were selected by an esteemed jury comprising Gaurav Sinha of Audi India, Jitendra Mahendra from Shoppers Stop, and Hemal Bhuptani of Vector Consulting Group. The awards focused on substance over showmanship, recognising teams that demonstrated clear strategic thinking, strong execution, and outcomes that were tangible and measurable.

Winners at the Discover MarTech Awards 2026 included:
- Best Use of Marketing Technology:
Gold - Bajaj General Insurance
Silver - YES Bank
Bronze - Crocs India
- Best Omnichannel Strategy:
Gold - Nippon India Mutual Fund
Silver - Fabindia
Bronze - Navia
- Content Marketing Mastery:
Gold - Myntra
Silver - Hero MotoCorp
Bronze - Coolberg
- Lead Generation & Nurturing Champion:
Gold - Zurich Kotak General Insurance
Silver - Shriram Finance
Bronze - Bajaj Finserv and Axis Max Life Insurance
- Best Customer Data Platform:
Gold - Adobe
Silver - Netcore
Bronze - Clodura.ai
- Most Innovative Martech Solution:
Gold - Netcore
Silver - Adobe
Bronze - Clodura.ai
- Best CRM Solution:
Gold - Clodura.ai
Silver - Netcore
- Emerging Martech Solution:
Gold - Zerply.ai
Silver - CashDrip.ai
The 2026 edition was supported by Onextel Limited as Title Sponsor, with Wolf Odysssey, Inbox Media Pvt. Ltd., Xccess Defenders, and STAIRS Talent Hub joining as Associate Sponsors reflecting the convergence of communications technology, security, and inclusive digital platforms shaping the future of marketing.
With strong participation from industry leaders, technology providers, and practitioners, Discover MarTech 2026 successfully created a collaborative forum for learning, exchange, and recognition, further cementing its position as a key platform for India's evolving MarTech community.
About MavGen Media
MavGen Media is a partnership firm held between Mavcomm Group, one of India's leading Integrated Communications firms with two decades of experience, and Genuus, an award-winning global Marketing Services company. The Mavcomm-Genuus combine is placed at the intersection of creativity, communications, experiences and technology.
MavGen is focused on creating high-impact platforms for marketing, technology, and business leaders, enabling knowledge-sharing, community building, and recognition of excellence across emerging business domains.
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