IIT Madras Director: Start-ups and Innovation Will Propel Viksit Bharat
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Synopsis
On April 26, Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director of IIT Madras, emphasized that Viksit Bharat will be fueled by start-ups and innovation. The institute incubated 104 new start-ups in FY 2024-25, marking a significant leap in deep-tech innovation.
Key Takeaways
- IIT Madras incubated 104 start-ups in FY 2024-25.
- 52% of these start-ups were established by IIT Madras members.
- The institute filed 417 patents in the same period.
- Future goals include fostering multinational start-ups.
- Start-ups span various sectors such as AI, robotics, and biotech.
New Delhi, April 26 (NationPress) Viksit Bharat will be propelled by start-ups and innovation, declared Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director of the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-Madras), on Saturday.
"Viksit Bharat in 2047 will certainly be driven by start-ups and innovation, and there is no doubt about it," Kamakoti informed IANS.
"We must own ideas and foster start-ups that create businesses with technical, economic, and social impact," he added.
He further highlighted that the institute has successfully incubated 104 new start-ups during the FY 2024-25.
The newly incubated start-ups span various high-impact deep-tech sectors, including manufacturing, robotics, automotive and batteries, materials and defence/aerospace; AI, ML, AR/VR, blockchain, quantum computing, analytics/SAAS and fintech; healthtech; biotech, pharma, nutraceuticals, agritech; and IoT, cyber-physical systems.
"The challenge of ‘Start-up Shatam’ (100 start-ups), aimed at incubating one start-up every third day, was initiated on April 1, 2024. I am pleased to announce that the Institute has successfully met this challenge with the incubation of 104 start-ups," remarked Kamakoti.
Notably, 52 percent of the 104 start-ups were established by members of IIT Madras—faculty, staff, students, and alumni.
The remaining 48 percent of start-ups were founded by external entrepreneurs.
Incubating over 100 start-ups in FY25 signifies a remarkable increase from the institute’s prior annual average of 60 start-ups.
Kamakoti pointed out that the institute also filed 417 patents during the 2024-25 Financial Year, averaging more than ‘one patent a day’.
The future goal is to promote the growth of ‘multinational’ start-ups.
"Looking ahead, the IIT Madras Incubation Cell aims to expand the start-up pipeline, accelerate the commercial success of existing incubated companies in India, and facilitate global market entry through strategic international partnerships. We will also welcome start-ups from areas like East Africa, the Middle East, and Europe, further strengthening IITM’s position in deep-tech innovation,” stated Dr. Tamaswati Ghosh, CEO of the IIT-M Incubation Cell.
Over the last 12 years, the IIT Madras Incubation Cell has supported 457 deep-tech start-ups, collectively valued at over ₹50,000 crore (based on funds raised from VCs), including two unicorns and one company nearing an IPO.
These start-ups cover a diverse array of crucial and emerging sectors, ranging from manufacturing and robotics to spacetech, aero/defence, AI, biotech, and IoT.
