Startups are known to switch between accelerators as they naturally gravitate towards or start to seek value. Amid such a dynamic landscape what must an accelerator do to differentiate itself in the market? For starters, a truly successful accelerator must define a clear USP for itself and align with others to ensure true value for the ecosystem. Designing a sustainable program that helps a startup in every situation of its journey along with providing access to a robust set of expert mentors are vital to the success of an incubator or accelerator.
There are certain aspects that differentiate accelerators and incubators of sorts. Following are a list of the various types of incubators and accelerators:
Corporate accelerators
Corporate accelerators are a particular type of seed accelerator, sponsored by a profitable company. TLabs, Z Nation Lab, BusinessWorld Accelerate, Nasscom Initiative, Venture Nursery, Microsoft ScaleUp and others.
VC operated accelerators and incubators
To facilitate faster growth of startups, a few venture capital firms have started accelerators and incubators to facilitate faster growth of startups. Some of these include Kalaari Capital, Axilor Ventures, ACCEL Partners, Sequoia Capital, Blume Ventures, Alacrity, GSF, Venture Gurukool and Infuse Ventures.
State or central government-run programs
To give an impetus to the start-up ecosystem in their respective states, the government has initiated new programs. These include iStart Nest Incubator in Rajasthan, Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) and Maker Village in Kerala, Center for Incubation and Business Acceleration (CIBA) in Goa, International Centre For Entrepreneurship and Technology in Ahmedabad, SRIJAN in Indore, Zone Startups India, Electropreneur Park and a few others.
Privately run programs
Some privately-run accelerators and incubators are Antfarm, StartupEd, Startup Incubator and Accelerator Services, Start Up! Private Limited, Shriram Institute for Industrial Research, Surge Ahead and others.
Education sector programs
There are many education-sector backed accelerators and incubators such as Technology Business Incubator — FITT, EDUGILD, IIM Ahmedabad’s Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship (CIIE), Pune-based MIT and others.
These different accelerators and incubators are also partnering with each other to provide their expertise, funding and resources such as Startup Tunnel, Indian Angel Network, India Innovation Growth Programme 2.0, Ekta Technology Business Incubation Centre, Global Incubation Services and more.
Given below is a list of India’s top 10 most prominent startup accelerators and incubators:
1. 500 Startups
500 Startups has a 4-month seed program that provides marketing, product design, accounting, mobile, user testing, sales and more.
Location: Bangalore
Funding: Up to $150,000
Focus sectors: Digital, Retail, Education, Financial Services
Notable startups: ZipDial, PopXo, Instamojo, KartRocket, Tripoto, Sheroes
2. TLabs
Backed by Times Internet, Tlabs is a 4-month program that offers experienced mentorships in the Technology space.
Location: Noida
Funding: Up to $50,000
Focus sectors: Internet, Mobile
Notable startups: GetMyUni, Cirtru, EPaathsala, HopOn, GradeStack
3. Cisco Launchpad
Founded by Cisco, it is a 4 months program where students get access to Cisco’s technology platforms, coworking space, mentorship programs and more.
Location: Bengaluru
Funding: $8,000
Focus sectors: Security, Networking and Infrastructure, IoT, Virtual Reality
Notable startups: Astrome, Navstik Labs, VuNet, Torchfi, IQLECT, Teslon
4. GSF Accelerator
A 13-week programme which aims to provide selected startups with unparalleled access to venture and business networks, personalised and intensive mentoring, and initial capital.
Location: Gurugram/ Gurgaon
Funding: Up to $60,000
Focus sectors: Internet, Mobile
Notable startups: Little Eye Labs, Zapr, Overcart, Flinto, Browntape
5. Microsoft Accelerator
It is a global 4-month program that provides the expertise, tools and resources to scale startup businesses. It also helps create new distribution channels and markets.
Location: Bengaluru
Funding: Non-Monetary Benefits
Focus sectors: Technology
Notable startups: Touchfone, Bookpad, PlusTxt, GazeMetrix
6. Indian Angel Network
Supported by the Department of Science & Technology, National Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Development Board, Govt. of India. With an incubation period of 18–24 months, it provides mentoring and strategy inputs.
Location: New Delhi
Funding: Up to $1,000,000
Focus sectors: Agriculture, eCommerce, Education, Financial Services and others
Notable startups: Box8, Web Engage, Vitas Pharma, LawRaato
7. iCreate
iCreate (International Centre for Entrepreneurship and Technology) is an incubation program lasting up to 2 years. It provides startups with product development facilities and a go-to-market strategy.
Location: Ahmedabad
Funding: Up to INR 45 lakhs
Focus sectors: Technology, Robotics, Green Energy, Agro & Food Processing
Notable startups: Purple Docs, Hubilo, WorkSocial, Wishvilla
8. Google Launchpad
This 6-month program is specifically tailored to the India market and provides access to the best of Google’s advanced technologies, network and people.
Location: Bengaluru
Funding: $50,000
Focus sectors: Mobile Apps
Notable startups: Curofy, Flyrobe, HarshLearn, Playment, Rentomojo
9. Amity Technology Incubator
With a program duration of >24 months, it provides mentoring, infrastructure and business advisory services. It works on a balanced mix of equity and rentals.
Location: Noida
Funding: Up to INR 50 Lakhs
Focus sectors: SaaS, Clinical Research, Affiliate Networks, Online Security
Notable startups: Circuitsutra, Apnacircle.com, Kinetic Media, Biziga Solutions
10. Angel Prime
Working with entrepreneurs like co-founders, Angel Prime takes startups from the ideation stage to the go-to-market stage. The incubation period is between 9–12 months.
Location: Bengaluru
Funding: -$600,000
Focus sectors: Electronic Payments, eCommerce, Mobile Apps
Notable startups: KredX, HackerEarth, EzeTap, NiYO
AUTHOR:
Nesar Rao; He is passionate about the growing startup space in India and South East Asia. He helps founders in the fundraising process by sharing his learnings having evaluated over 500 proposals and several pitch events.
