Giving an impetus to local hardware and product innovation in the country, Intel India today announced the top 10 finalists of the Intel & DST* - Innovate for Digital India Challenge 2.0 (“Challenge 2.0”). The shortlisted solutions can potentially accelerate the country’s Digital India vision, and comprise of projects in healthcare, smart cities, sustainability, and agriculture.
The companies and teams – Oizom Instruments Pvt Ltd, IoTrek Technology Pvt Ltd, AllizHealth Pvt Ltd, Gayam Motor Works Pvt Ltd, Banyan Sustainable Waste Management Pvt Ltd, Waste Ventures India Pvt Ltd, Thyrometer, NeuroTech, iNICU, and E-DeWeeder – will leverage Intel® architecture (“iA”) to develop their prototyped solutions that integrate IoT, data analytics, open data, cloud technology, devices and/or connectivity, aimed at solving India’s grassroots problems.
The teams have been shortlisted on the basis of the presentation of their ideas to jury members including Mr. Sachin Kelkar, Head, APAC Scale Program - Asia Pacific, Intel Software and Services Group, Mr. Hasit Kaji, Vice President, Special Initiatives, Tata Consultancy Services, Mr. Satya Prasad, Director, Ideas-2-Reality (internal incubator at Intel India), Mr. Chandrashekhar Bhide, Start-up Mentor and ex-Vice President, DBS Bank, Mr. Praveen P.A., Director, Aerospace and Defence, Government of Telangana, Mr. Ramesh Rao, Venture Capitalist, Aquila Partners, and Dr. Amit Garg, Medical Director, Emerging Markets, Dr. Reddy’s. The selected teams will now advance to the 8-week NanoAccelerator™ program at the T-Hub start-up incubator in Hyderabad.
Congratulating the shortlisted teams, Ms. Debjani Ghosh, Managing Director, and Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Intel South Asia, said, “Local innovators are becoming increasingly passionate about using technology to positively impact lives, and Intel India is very excited to be a part of the ecosystem that is making this happen. I can’t wait to see how the Top 10 teams of the Challenge 2.0 will transform their ideas to reality. Healthcare continues to be a huge attraction for Indian makers, and this year, smart cities emerged as an equally popular category. The accelerator program will be thrilling as teams build minimum-viable products, transitioning from mind-to-market, the real philosophy of the initiative. Last year’s winners focused on creating solutions for domestic problems, but their innovations are being evaluated for deployment in countries with similar challenges. This is proof of the resounding success that can come with innovation. Good luck to the competing teams this year.”
Mr. Jay Krishnan, CEO, T-Hub, said, "We are happy to announce the select Top 10 names who will be participating at the 8-week NanoAccelerator™ program at T-Hub along with a four-day US Market Access Center boot camp. It has been an exciting journey with lots of innovation and out-of-the box ideation happening. Rolling up our sleeves and getting involved with these entrepreneurs with the right guidance and support will enhance their opportunity to scale. We wish all of them a great future ahead.”
Under the NanoAccelerator™ program, each team will receive grants up to Rs. 3,00,000 (up to Rupees three lakh) from T-Hub to create minimum-viable products (MVPs) based on iA. They will also have access to engineering support and hardware kits from Intel, and access to the Intel® Maker Lab in Bengaluru as well as the IoT Lab at T-Hub. With inputs from design and user interface firms about developing user experience, the teams will undergo virtual team management and prototype monitoring. They will also receive weekly mentoring by a cross panel of experts from Intel, T-Hub and MyGov*, as well as from technical specialists, venture capitalists, and business modelling experts. The accelerator phase will culminate on Demo Day, a showcase event at T-Hub Hyderabad, where the teams will present their prototypes based on iA to a panel of venture capitalists, technology experts and industry stalwarts.
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