Authors: Samaksh Jain
Abstract: Startups — newly established, high-growth-potential firms — have become pivotal drivers of economic expansion in the twenty-first century. This paper examines the multidimensional relationship between entrepreneurial startup activity and macroeconomic growth. Drawing on Schumpeterian theories of creative destruction, empirical data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, and comparative analyses of prominent startup ecosystems worldwide, this paper argues that startups contribute to economic growth through five interrelated channels: job creation, technological innovation, productivity enhancement, market competition, and foreign direct investment stimulation. The research further explores the structural conditions — including access to capital, regulatory environments, and educational infrastructure — that either facilitate or impede startup-driven growth. Special attention is given to India's rapidly expanding startup ecosystem as a case study in policy-enabled entrepreneurial development. The paper concludes that governments and institutions which prioritize entrepreneurial ecosystems through targeted policy interventions can unlock significant and sustained economic development, making startup-led growth not a fortunate accident of market forces but an engineerable outcome of deliberate public policy.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19506033
