A Bengaluru-based entrepreneur who is building what could become the future of data storage is moving her company to San Francisco — not because India lacks talent, but because she believes the Indian ecosystem still lacks the risk appetite needed to build deep-tech companies.Anagha Rajesh, founder of BioCompute, is moving her company to the United States.Anagha Rajesh, founder of BioCompute, announced that the company will relocate to the US as it begins developing the first version of its DNA data storage chips. In a blog post shared yesterday, Anagha explained the reason behind her decision to relocate from India to the United States.What is BioCompute?BioCompute is a deep-tech startup founded by Anagha Rajesh that is building a new way to store data using DNA instead of traditional computer hardware. The company aims to make data storage far more compact and energy-efficient by using the natural ability of DNA to hold huge amounts of information.In simple terms, BioCompute is trying to build the future of data storage where massive amounts of digital information could fit inside tiny biological systems.BioCompute over 2 yearsIn 2024, Anagha Rajesh started BioCompute with the ambition of making data storage and computing infrastructure as efficient as biological systems. Over the last two years, the 24-year-old founder built a team, raised over ₹5 crore from investors including WTF Fund, Grad Capital and 1517 Fund, set up a lab, conducted thousands of experiments and developed an end-to-end prototype.“We are the first lab in India to go after the audacious problem of DNA data storage, and have leveraged the resources in India over the last 2 years to get to an end to end prototype,” Anagha explained in her blog post.Despite this, she is now looking to do more, and feels that India is not the right place to build.(Also read: Ex-OpenAI researcher explains why he chose India over Silicon Valley: ‘Moving back felt counterintuitive’)Why is Anagha Rajesh leaving India?Anagha said BioCompute became the first lab in India to pursue DNA data storage at this scale and used the country’s resources to reach the prototype stage.However, as the company moves towards building its first chips and taking the product to customers, Rajesh believes San Francisco offers the ecosystem needed for the next phase.In an interview with Vyom Bhatia, Anagha Rajesh explained that she is moving to San Francisco because “people there got the point of what I was doing”. They understood her long-term vision and wanted to remove the challenges she faced, rather than worrying about revenue.“They [the people in San Francisco] were not as concerned about revenue. They were more concerned about what I would need to follow this through,” said the founder of BioCompute.In her blog post, she expounded upon this theme by saying that the Indian ecosystem is not ready for their product.“While India is now starting to invest in deep tech through RDI fund and the likes, we don’t think the ecosystem is ready for a product like ours.“India often likes to play safe, looking at what has been built in the West and adapting it to our socio-cultural and economic landscape. But what we need to build a new age data storage hardware company, and take on Goliaths like IBM, is an ecosystem that is built on abundance and takes high-risk-high-reward bets,” Anagha wrote.Capital and talentVyom Bhatia shared Anagha’s story on social media, arguing that India’s challenge is not a shortage of talent but a lack of capital for ambitious deep-tech ventures.“India ke paas paise ki kummi nahi hai. Awareness ki hai,” Bhatia wrote.He highlighted that BioCompute had already raised funding and won several recognitions, but was still moving because of two key factors: capital and talent.“In one of the many conversations i have had with her, this one stuck with me: There are Indians in the US who I know I will be hiring. They don't want to raise their kids there. They want to come home.“So this isn't about talent either. It's about money. If there's capital for people like Anagha, starting with Anagha, the dam will break,” Bhatia said.Wrapping up Bengaluru operationAnagha Rajesh said the decision to relocate also meant letting go of her Bengaluru-based team, describing the exit conversations with employees as among the hardest moments of her founder journey.“These are folks who have spent most of their waking hours thinking, building, troubleshooting and most importantly enjoying the challenges that come with having a once in a lifetime opportunity to shape data infrastructure,” she wrote.(Also read: 27-year-old founder leaves Bengaluru for Dubai: ‘Completely burned out with system in India’)In a LinkedIn post last week, she put up her office furniture, equipment and chemicals for sale.Anagha said the next chapter will focus on product development, building BioCompute’s chips and taking the technology to customers from San Francisco. “It’s an exciting (and nerve-wrecking) chapter ahead as I head out to San Francisco and build on the product development we have done in the last few years, and take our first chip to customers,” she wrote.