Open-Source Hardware in India: Why We're Still Playing on Hard Mode

Brutally honest conversation about why building hardware in India feels like playing a video game on nightmare difficulty.

• Why VCs/funds/grants ghost you the moment you mention "open source"

• Real estate costs that make a simple garage workshop cost 40-50k/month

• Getting scammed while trying to buy parts and supplies

• Why talented engineers are planning to escape to countries where there's a future

• The hidden costs beyond just "building cool stuff"

• Why "Make in India" is still mostly a hashtag for gov./startups

Anyone curious about hardware entrepreneurship reality, policy makers who think throwing money fixes everything, and founders wondering if they're the only ones struggling. Takeaways:

• Infrastructure gaps that software folks never see (Why the software playbook doesn't work for hardware)

• The chicken-and-egg problem of market size vs. innovation

• Why manufacturing in India works for global markets but fails locally (Systemic barriers to hardware innovation in India beyond just funding)

• Creative workarounds that actually work