Discover MarTech 2026 Pune edition
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.”
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
