IIT Madras Hosts DST-GDC I-NCUBATE to Boost Deep-Tech Startups

• DST-GDC I-NCUBATE helps researchers build startups, backing 500+ deep-tech ventures.
• India’s deep-tech sector grew 50%, now with 3,000+ startups.
• IIT Madras targets 1,000 startups by 2032, focusing on real-world tech.

India is rich in innovation but requires a platform to support it, and DST-GDC I-NCUBATE provides the framework that enables researchers to transform deep-tech concepts into sustainable businesses, bringing scientific advancements from the lab to everyday life, stated Pramod Shankar, Scientist-D, Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government of India.

"DST is proud to support this initiative not just as a funder, but as a committed partner in building India’s deep-tech ecosystem. Our goal is to see translational research flourish across academic institutions, and I-NCUBATE is a vital part of this mission. India does not lack innovation; it needs platforms to nurture it. The DST-GDC I-NCUBATE program is one such platform, a national engine for translating potential into progress," he said.

India's deep-tech startup environment has expanded by 50 percent in the last five years and currently includes more than 3,000 enterprises, Shankar remarked, noting that a fresh perspective is developing that emphasizes creating India-centric solutions in defence, space, genomics, and sustainability.

The seminar, ‘IIT Madras: Fostering Innovation & Startups’, took place on Monday, uniting leaders from government, academia, industry, and the investment sector to explore ways India can expedite the growth of deep-tech startups emerging from academic institutions.

"The DST has played a prominent role in the growth and development of deep-tech startups in the country. The Gopalakrishnan-Deshpande Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (GDC), a centre of excellence at IIT Madras, has collaborated with over 100 universities, labs, and incubators across India to catalyse the commercialisation of research by training over 1600 academics and entrepreneurs working on 500 deep-tech startups. Last year, DST and GDC collaborated to launch the ‘DST-GDC I-NCUBATE Program’ that comprises 20 cohorts, run in a bootcamp style, each eight weeks long, with 10-12 startups from diverse sectors and institutions coming together to chart their transformation and commercialisation pathways," a release from IIT Madras said.

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Prof V. Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, stated that the institute emphasizes the development of deep core technology and plans to aid 1,000 start-ups by 2032. "A targeted approach has given rise to our ambitious ‘One Patent a Day’ challenge is already yielding 1.2 patents per day. Importantly, most of these patents are grounded in real-world applications. Just last week, we introduced a lightweight wheelchair, reducing the weight from 20 kg to just 9 kg, at less than half the cost of comparable imported alternatives," he said

Delivering the keynote address, Ramesh Mangaleswaran, Adjunct Professor of Practice, Desai Sethi School of Entrepreneurship, IIT Bombay, and senior partner emeritus, McKinsey & Company, said, “The I-NCUBATE Program fills critical gaps in nurturing science-based entrepreneurship in India and building an entrepreneurial mindset amongst founders".

Prof Krishnan Balasubramanian, the overseeing professor at GDC, IIT Madras, stated that the institute aims to expand the DST-GDC program to STEM institutions throughout the Indian deep-tech academic and startup ecosystem by shifting the mindset of faculty, researchers, entrepreneurs, and scholars towards entrepreneurial thinking.