Globally, there are more than 150 million startups in active mode. As of March 31, 2026, India has over 2.23 lakh DPIIT-recognised startups, with over 55,200 entities registered in FY 2025–26 alone. The actual figure will be much higher. Artificial IntelligenceThere is, however, one major caveat. More than 90 percent fail to reach cruising altitude, shattering both ambitions and wallets in the delusional process. According to CB Insights, 42% of startups fail due to poor market timing, while team and execution follow as a close second. Data from Tracxn further states that over 28,000 startups have collapsed in the last two years, particularly in sectors such as fintech, edtech and health care. This raises an important question. What explains this gap?The reasons are rarely about the idea. More often, it is the absence of the right guidance at the right time. This is where mentorship becomes a critical differentiator in founder journeys. While capital remains essential, long-term success is shaped by how effectively it is deployed, with unit economics and disciplined execution taking precedence over headline growth. What often makes the difference is experienced guidance that shapes decisions across operations, governance, and growth. Founders are known to focus too much time on the domain challenges and thus neglect the core financial metrics. A resultant disturbing pattern is premature scaling, wherein the sheer presence of funds leads to unsustainable growth.It is also important to distinguish between mentoring and coaching. Coaching typically addresses specific skills or short-term gaps. Mentorship, in contrast, is a continuous engagement that influences how founders think about strategy, governance, capital allocation, and long-term value creation.At its best, mentorship acts as a sounding board during uncertainty and a strategic input during inflection points.Every founder's journey has multiple stages, quite like batting in a T20 innings. Mentoring comes to the party in all three stages. In the early overs, it helps rightsize ambitions and provides a long-term foundation for governance and capital discipline. This ensures that capital is deployed in the interests of the organisations, not individual impulses. It sets the stage for tactical frugality and sensible investments, as building blocks. Over time, the founder's mindset translates systemically to organisational culture, defining the character of resilient organisations. In the middle overs, mentoring takes on a different role. This is when challenges begin to emerge, as the business becomes a fully operational entity. Roadblocks may be policy driven, market led or a result of execution gap, sometimes even external disruptions such as Covid-19. At this stage, experience becomes critical. The ability to draw from past learnings can help founders navigate complexity and take more informed corrective action.As the business moves into a consolidation phase, the focus shifts again. It requires sharper judgment and a more strategic outlook for the long term. Those who have navigated similar journeys bring valuable perspective, helping founders make better decisions in an uncertain and evolving environment.As businesses go through multiple cycles, Mentorship will assume newer shades of relevance. In an age where AI brings both opportunity and uncertainty, generational wisdom needs to come to the party in more ways than one. It helps new-age founders unlock the fullest potential of emerging technologies, while ensuring that human ingenuity, in action and intent, remains as its prolific best. This balance, importantly, is still very much ‘work in progress’. Globally, AI chatbots are seeing close to a 70% success rate in managing customer interactions, while the market for AI robots is projected to exceed $ 111 billion by 2032. At the same time, while 70% of organisations are experimenting with generative AI, as many as 95% of enterprise pilots are yet to deliver meaningful performance outcomes. This is also the age where integrity is being increasingly tested, whether through artificial deep fakes or the growing tendency to fake it till you make it. Mentoring can play a critical role in helping founders navigate these pressures and stay anchored in sound judgment and professional discipline. In doing so, it lays the foundation for long-term trust with customers and all stakeholders.If capital deployment is the fuel for the journey, then mentoring is the innings that turns a good score into a winning one. It provides the momentum and perspective founders need to navigate complexity and build enduring organisations. When done well, it can be the defining difference between success and failure. (The views expressed are personal)This article is authored by Ajay Jain, chairman, IIM Calcutta Innovation Park Board.