A new report by the National Foundation for American Policy is a testament to the role of immigrants in the development of America’s startup ecosystem. At least as of April 2026, the study looked at 775 U.S. unicorns privately owned startups worth more than $1 billion and immigrants had founded 59% of them, or 455 companies with a collective value of $5 trillion. And each unicorn employs an average of 833 people, with startups in artificial intelligence, healthcare, fintech, and enterprise software.
Among immigrant founders, Indian entrepreneurs are the most successful with 96 unicorns, ahead of Israel (60) and the United Kingdom (47). And this is in line with India’s growing position as a talent center, especially in technology and innovation. Six Indian founders have even had success before, including Mohit Aron, who co‑founded Nutanix and Cohesity.
The report also hints at the larger debate in the brain drain versus global opportunity debate. India has created more than 130 unicorns; the best entrepreneurs in the country are still setting up companies in the U.S., driven by the advantages of venture capital, deep markets, and a solid infrastructure. Analysts say that this is not only a loss of talent for India but also a chance for Indian talent to thrive worldwide and create networks that benefit both countries.
The findings demonstrate the crucial role immigrants play in maintaining America’s innovation edge. Immigration is key to creating jobs, technological breakthroughs, and economic growth in the United States, and immigrant entrepreneurs have been instrumental to almost six out of ten unicorns: many of them started their companies as students or skilled professionals in the U.S. and have become entrepreneurs.
But restrictive immigration policies could undermine this advantage because many of them came to America to study or become successful entrepreneurs as a result of such a system; they’re in a better position to help create jobs and grow the economy.
For India, the success of its diaspora reinforces the need for entrepreneurial ecosystems at home. With increasing venture capital funding and government support for startups, India’s domestic unicorn count continues to grow. But the U.S. remains a good place to scale globally as it has a mature financial structure and a very friendly environment for innovation.
The fact that Indian immigrants lead with 96 unicorns in the U.S. represents the depth of talent and the opportunities in the U.S. is indicative both of India’s talent pool and America. As the debate over immigration and global competitiveness becomes a more heated topic, the report shows how immigrant founders are still critical to the future of innovation.
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