Cyprus is making a serious and strategic bid to position itself as the preferred European entry point for Indian technology and AI enterprises, with a high-level investors’ roundtable hosted by Invest Cyprus – held in the presence of President Nikos Christodoulides – signalling the country’s ambitions with unmistakable clarity.

Avinash Mudaliar, Co-Founder and CEO of HT Labs, the innovation and technology arm of HT Media Group, represented the Indian delegation at the exclusive gathering, which brought together statesmen, technologists, entrepreneurs, and investors to explore the expanding India–Cyprus Strategic Partnership across AI, digital infrastructure, media-tech, and innovation-led economic collaboration.

Cyprus presented a compelling investment proposition. Chief Scientist Demetris Skourides highlighted the country’s globally competitive IP Box regime – offering an effective tax rate as low as 3% on qualifying intellectual property income – alongside a 120% deduction on eligible R&D expenditure. Deputy Minister Dr. Nicodemos Damianou outlined a forward-looking policy architecture built around innovation sandboxes, regulatory agility, and startup acceleration frameworks aligned with European institutions.

HT Labs expressed strong interest in leveraging Cyprus’s sandbox environments to scale its Technology-as-a-Service initiatives, exploring co-building opportunities across AI-led media systems, recommendation engines, and next-generation digital platforms.

Invest Cyprus Chairman Evgenios Evgeniou confirmed that several major Indian enterprises expressed serious intent toward long-term strategic partnerships, with structured follow-up engagements planned in the coming months.

For Indian enterprises seeking global scale, Cyprus is making an increasingly persuasive case that the road into Europe runs through Nicosia.