After three rounds of screening, Atal Incubation Centre (AIC) – Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence has shortlisted 28 startups for its Venture Challenge 6.0.
It is a call for application for startups to participate in the annual incubation program of the AIC, which enables the selected startups to grow and scale and saw over 366 aspiring entrepreneurs vying for world-class incubation support. The response for Venture Challenge 6.0 was 30% more than the last cohort.
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Dr. Ananya Mukherjee, Vice-Chancellor Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence, said, “Entrepreneurship resides at the heart of Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence. The university works with many entrepreneurs to make their vision become a reality. The Venture Challenge is an effort in that direction.”
The startups that contested were shortlisted on the parameters of the novelty of the idea, compelling solution, and scalability potential. In the second round, 150 shortlisted startups pitched their business ideas to a jury of successful founders, ecosystem enablers, investors, and academicians, after which 28 startups were selected.
Most startups that applied for the program are in the early revenue stage from various fields like EV/Renewable Energy, AR/VR, Drone and AI/ML, and Biotechnology. The program has received the highest number of applications from Uttar Pradesh, which very positively indicates the thriving startup ecosystem in the state, followed by Delhi NCR and Tamil Nadu. Venture Challenge 6.0 has seen a substantial increase in ventures exploring new avenues in Circular Economy, Green Industry, ICT (Information and Communications Technology), and Medtech.
The names of the selected startups are: Upcycleluxe, Tumpudi Automotive, Sahy Electric, ZTOP IOT, CORR ROBOTICS PVT LTD, Educlouds, Humanli.ai, Bluegreens, Raytom Medical Systems, Aaiena, Machenn Innovations, Fontierz, Mindful Gurukul , Eco365, PedalX, SparkLiv Innovation, Adhyay, GrowPro, Euphelity, Gau Rakshak, Recyclebaba, Dailygurus, VR Green, Jetsons Robotics, AIONTHEFLY Technologies, AIQ Connect, Berry Avionics.
Speaking about the program, Sheeba Khan, CEO of Shiv Nadar AIC, said, “Shiv Nadar AIC is a tech-agnostic incubator where we have supported 100+ startups and has helped them to raise over Rs 6 crores through funds and grants. We offer an enabling environment for technology and research, including 154+ labs, stimulating research centers, business support services, mentorship, investment platforms, and networking opportunities. We thank our partners - Dassault Systèmes, HCL Technologies, and Headstart Network Foundation for helping us nurture the most promising new ventures.”
AIC - Shiv Nadar IoE has supported over 60 startups and currently has 34 tech-agnostic active startups from areas like Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, B2B SaaS, Edutech, Agri-tech, and Blockchain.
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The last edition of Venture Challenge received 292 applications, of which 19 startups were shortlisted as part of our incubation program equipped with advanced facilities.
The Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence AIC was established in August 2017 with the support of AIM Niti Aayog, Government of India, and the leadership of Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence, Delhi-NCR, to serve as an active catalyst for the development of promising entrepreneurs by providing them with a comprehensive and integrated range of support, including incubator space, mentorship, business support services, high-end technology infrastructure, investment platform, and networking opportunities. The incubation center has world-class facilities and state-of-the-art infrastructure sprawling 286 acres of land. The incubated startups have access to 154 labs and 9 Research Centers of the host university, attracting startups from across the country to do transitional research, R&D, and build a business.
About Shiv Nadar AIC
The Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence - AIC was awarded the prestigious Atal Incubation Centre grant by the Atal Innovation Mission of NITI Aayog (Government of India) in the first round in 2017. The AIC has supported 110+ startups to date and has 50 tech-agnostic active startups, which raised more than INR 6 Cr. grants & funding. The incubated startup sectors include Industry 4.0, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, B2B SAAS, Edu-Tech, Agri-tech, and others. The top-performing startups are generating annual revenue of more than Rs 3 crores. The incubator has already carried out 100+ training & outreach events and workshops to sensitize 2000+ young minds to foster entrepreneurship and stimulate innovation.
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About Shiv Nadar (Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University)
Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence, is a student-centric, multidisciplinary and research university offering a wide range of academic programs at the Undergraduate, Graduate and Doctoral levels. The Institution was set up in 2011 by the Shiv Nadar Foundation, a philanthropic foundation established by Mr. Shiv Nadar, founder of HCL. The Institute is in the quest to become a globally acclaimed center for learning and innovation in the fields of Engineering, Natural Sciences, Humanities & Social Sciences, and Management. The core of the Institute consists of a select, world-class faculty with doctoral and postdoctoral experiences from ranked universities all over the world.
About Shiv Nadar Foundation
Established in 1994, by Shiv Nadar, Founder, HCL - a US$11.8 billion leading global technology enterprise, the Foundation is committed to the creation of a more equitable, merit-based society by empowering individuals through transformational education, and to bridge the socio-economic divide. Over the last 27 years the Foundation, has directly touched the lives of over 36,000 alumni and students through its marquee institutions in literacy, K12 and higher education. Today, the Foundation has a community of over 100,000 constituents, which includes not only globally dispersed alumni and students but also faculty members, corporate executives, and extended families.
The Shiv Nadar Foundation pursues the philosophy of 'Creative Philanthropy'. It is a powerful model which envisages creation of institutions that are built to last and continue to impact future generations. It is an approach that allows sustained institutionalized philanthropy for long-term, high impact, socio-economic transformation.