The GAIN (Global Accelerator for Innovation Network), a leading startup growth accelerator and a section 8, not for profit organization from Bengaluru, implementation partner of MeitY Startup Hub (MSH), Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), Govt. of India has launched the first cohort of 10*(an additional set of 5 startups are selected in case of drop outs) startups under “StartupToScaleup” program today.
There is no fee and no equity dilution for the startups as the program is supported by MeitY. The first cohort pertains to current significant sectors – Healthcare and Edtech which require technology innovations and solutions to address industry and eco-system challenges. It comprises of 10 startups that have gone through a rigorous selection process to make it to the final list out of 330 applicants for this specialized, curated, and coveted program.
Dr. Ajai K Garg, Director – Startup, Innovation, IPR and International Cooperation, MeitY, mentioned “MeitY has been continuously working towards strengthening the startup and innovation ecosystem of the country. MSH has been set up in order to facilitate MeitY’s vision of promoting technological innovation, startups and the creation of IPs. We are positive that our latest partnership with The GAIN which leads India’s pioneering innovation ecosystem will catalyze the scale-up efforts of Tech-startups in the country. It is important for us to engage the startup community and bring innovative thinking into product development that can accelerate the creation of new offerings in an era where technology will be the key economic driver.”
BV Naidu, Chairman – The GAIN expressed, “StartupToScaleup is a high value power packed program from MeitY to elevate the startups on a growth trajectory. The GAIN ensures Global market access to the participating startups, hence, giving a different dimension to Atmanirbhar Bharat.”
StartupToScaleup is a 10-week program which comprises interactive sessions and workshops by International and Indian Subject Matter Experts (SMEs). Dr. Garg added, “Surviving in a volatile environment requires developing not only technological prowess and application breakthroughs but also requires smart mentoring and well-connected network of technical expertise; it is here that The GAIN with its established infrastructure has a great role to play in nurturing innovation best practices and ensuring long term sustainability. The short-term high-intensity cohorts driven by The GAIN is helping young startups to grow, boost their concepts and scale.”
The unique feature of this program is to promote cross border IP and Innovation by enabling the partnerships with the International organizations through an in-built 4 weeks ‘Global Immersion’ module. The GAIN also conducts such programs for the International startups from various geographies to work with Indian startups / companies through its “Access 2 India” (A2I) program.
Vivek Saxena, who has recently taken over as CEO said, “Along with innovation and access to global markets, the situation warrants the need for avenues that can channelize efforts and showcase the hidden potential of Indian Startups to the rest of the world through our unique acceleration programs.” One of the major advantages for the qualified startups will be to get evaluated from The GAIN’s sister fund “StartupXseed Ventures”, a deep technology focused in-house funding platform. Its network of funds makes this offering as a ‘one of its kind offering’ in this segment where an accelerator has got its own Fund Platform.
