CENTRE FOR INNOVATION
AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
AT IIIT HYDERABAD
Fostering DeepTech Innovation
Cover story
Founder Institute event brought together founders, mentors, and industry leaders to talk about the challenges of building a startup. The event kicked off with “A Brief on FI Core Program”, presented by Sujit Jagirdar, Director – FI and Ramesh Loganathan, DEAN – Outreach Committee, IIITH. Then there was an inspiring talk by Bharat Daka from Skyroot Aerospace, who shared his journey of building India’s first private rocket and encouraged founders to explore new ideas.
Steve Sidhu , mentor for FI Vietnam, Entrepreneur, and Advisor gave a presentation on how finding the right target customer helps startups save time and build products smarter. A panel discussion on the topic “Navigating AI Disruption in Fundraising & Biz Models” was moderated by Viiveck Verma and featured the full panel of M. Srinivasa Rao, Srinivas Kollipara, Aditya Vuchi and Muralidhar Nayak.
Together, they highlighted that building a good product is really about understanding your customers, asking the right questions, and improving based on feedback not just using new technology like AI. The event ended with exciting startup pitches and a networking session where everyone could connect and share ideas.
Happenings
CV Labs
The recent T-Health Cafe featured an insightful session with Devanand Kolothodi, who shared his personal journey of transitioning from a traditional business background into the dynamic and highly regulated field of med-tech.
A key theme of the discussion was the traditional medical industry’s natural hesitation toward adopting new technologies. Participants explored the unique challenges founders face when introducing innovative, disruptive solutions to an inherently cautious and risk-averse sector.
CIE X eChai
The eChai AI Builders Meetup – Hyderabad Edition successfully convened a dynamic and rapidly growing community of AI founders, technical builders, and passionate tech enthusiasts. The meetup served as a ground for networking and exchange of cutting-edge ideas.
By fostering this uniquely collaborative ecosystem, the event empowered local innovators to share their current projects, brainstorm solutions to technical bottlenecks, and ultimately collaborate on building what’s next in the ever-evolving world of AI.
Global Delegation Visits
CIE hosted two international delegations to strengthen global startup and innovation connections. Representatives from KölnBusiness (the Economic Development Agency of Cologne, Germany) visited to explore collaboration opportunities between Indian and German startup ecosystems and build entrepreneurship programs for students. CIE also engaged with a delegation from Buckinghamshire New University to discuss ways students can gain hands-on experience in the startup ecosystem.
Founders' Round Table
The August edition of Founders’ Round Table was about navigating the balance between “Founder Instinct vs. Customer Feedback.”
Participants openly acknowledged that finding the sweet spot between trusting one’s own intuition and adapting to what users explicitly ask for is rarely a straightforward path.
These experiences sparked an incredible discussion on when to pivot based on user data and when to stay the course with unwavering conviction.
Strategy Days
Strategy Days hands-on sessions were led by Prof. Ravi, who worked closely with the five promising startups exclusively selected for the current Avishkar Venture Studios cohort.
Over the course of the two days, these founders dove into core business frameworks, go-to-market strategies, and scalability planning. The startups emerged from the sessions equipped with a much more robust roadmap to navigate their entrepreneurial journeys.
Research Cafe
This month’s Research Cafe fostered a vibrant environment where emerging startups and visionary founders came together to critically examine and validate their core problem statements and proposed solutions.
This interactive session provided a platform for early-stage founders to test their ideas backed by expert guidance from IIIT, participants received feedback and actionable insights. This mentorship was helpful for founders to refine their methodologies.
CSR Times Award for Greentech
AIC’s Akash EPAM India Social Impact Innovation Program has been recognized at the 13th National CSR & ESG Summit and Awards 2026 organized by CSR Times. The program supports GreenTech Startups.
The program was awarded honors under the Environment Sustainability category for this flagship initiative implemented by AIC-IIITH. The program provides high-potential startups with critical mentorship, acceleration support, and seed grants to drive sustainable change across India.
Sales Workshop
AIC’s 2-day sales workshop, “From Prospect to Close” helped GreenTech and SocialTech founders step out of their product zone. Instead of just focusing on their products, they learned how to truly understand what buyers want, ask the right questions, and handle rejections.
A huge thank you to Subramanian Chandramouli for delivering a masterclass packed with frameworks and actionable strategies. Participating cohorts included the 5th Akash EPAM India Program, 1st Akash Coherent Corp. Program, and 5th Akash Acceleration Program.
Social Impact Mixer
The 12th Hyderabad Social Impact Mixer in partnership with the Hyderabad Management Association was all about stepping out of the boardroom and into real, meaningful conversations.
There were spontaneous ideas, genuine connections, and unfiltered discussions driving collective action for sustainable change. A big thank you to the Government leaders, CSR Executives, Investors and Incubators who joined AIC.
Spotlight
IIITH Alumni Startup : ProLearn Raises ₹30 Crore to Build the Future of AI-Powered Learning
IIIT Hyderabad alumnus Ravneet Singh is taking personalised learning a step further with his startup ProLearn, which has raised ₹30 crore in pre-seed funding, led by BEENEXT. The startup is building an AI-native learning platform for K–12 students, with a focus on making learning more personalised, interactive, and responsive to each student’s needs.
For the IIIT Hyderabad community, ProLearn’s journey is another example of how alumni are turning technology and innovative ideas into solutions with the potential to create meaningful impact. We are proud to see our alumni building what’s next.
Celebrating Ambiator Private Limited for securing 3rd Place at the Vande Bharatam Finale orgasnised by Adani Group
Kudos to Ambiator Private Limited for securing 3rd Place at the Vande Bharatam Finale! Co-founded by Jeeten (JD) Desai and Tiger Aster, this innovative company from the Akash #EPAMIndia Social Impact Innovation Program Cohort for #GreenTech startups is redefining how we stay cool. Ambiator is revolutionizing the industry by offering a cost-effective, sustainable alternative to traditional air conditioning that efficiently cools large spaces without warming the planet.
iRefill highlighted by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development
iRefill’s work was highlighted by the German Federal Minitstry for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Wissenstransfer: Das Start-up iRefill vermeidet mit innovativen Nachfüllautomaten Einwegplastik. Mit diesem spannenden Ansatz konnten sie auch die Mercedes-Benz AG überzeugen und sich einen Platz in deren Mentoring-Programm sichern.
Translated post: :”The start-up iRefill is using innovative refillable dispensers to prevent single-use plastics. With this exciting approach, they were able to convince Mercedes-Benz AG and secure a place in their mentoring program.”
Angirus® IND Featured on National Television
GreenTech startup Angirus® IND, founded by Kunjpreet Arora and Lokesh Puri Goswami, was recently spotlighted on national television by DD News and ANI Bharat on the program NextGenBharat.
A startup from the 2nd Akash EPAM India Social Impact Innovation Program (ESIIP) GreenTech cohort, Angirus is revolutionizing the construction industry by transforming plastic and construction and demolition (C&D) waste into high-performance eco-bricks and sustainable building materials.
MuddleArt Wins CITI Textile Sustainability Award
GreenTech startup MuddleArt and Sanjay Chauhan have proudly won the CITI-Reverse Resources Textile Waste Handlers Award. This honor was presented during the CITI Textile Sustainability Awards, organized by the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI). As a graduate of the Akash EPAM India Social Impact Innovation Program, MuddleArt is being recognized for its powerful mission. The startup is dedicated to transforming massive amounts of textile waste from a heavy environmental liability into a valuable economic opportunity, all while creating dignified livelihoods and driving sustainable change within the industry.
Call For Applications
AVSAvishkar Venture Studio (AVS) offers a 6-month co-creation program for deep-tech startups at the (PoC) stage who already have a market plan. Participants get the opportunity to co-create their first market-ready solution (MVP) by working directly with research labs and faculty at IIITH. Along with technical and research support, startups receive a 10 Lakh seed fund.
RootnodeRootNode is a comprehensive 3-month research advisory program designed for early-stage startups. Founders collaborate directly with IIIT Hyderabad faculty to validate their technology and refine their products. The program provides access to cutting-edge research insights, expert mentors, and valuable peer-to-peer learning within the IIITH innovation ecosystem.
Founder InstituteThis intensive 11-week, in-person program is designed to help founders understand the FI Core journey, gain valuable insights from experienced mentors, and transform early-stage ideas into global businesses. The program runs from September 18 to November 27, 2026.
ELECRAMA 2027
Electraverse is a flagship startup showcase hosted by IEEMA for innovators building solutions in electrical, electronics, and new energies. Participants will present their ideas to over 300,000 stakeholders at ELECRAMA 2027, Asia's largest energy expo. The program offers access to industry mentors, pilot opportunities, and a chance to secure a share of the ₹65 Lakh prize pool.
In News
IIIT-Hyderabad alumnus Karandeep Anand becomes Disney’s first-ever CTO
Huge congratulations to distinguished IIIT Hyderabad alumnus Karandeep Anand (BTech CSE, 2003) on his historic appointment as The Walt Disney Company’s first-ever Chief Technology Officer! A recent recipient of the 2026 Alumni Achiever Award, Karandeep brings a wealth of visionary leadership to this newly created role following his tenures as CEO of Character.AI and top executive positions at Meta, Microsoft, and Brex. As he steps into his new position on October 2 to spearhead Disney’s global tech and AI strategy, his journey to the pinnacle of the entertainment industry stands as a profound inspiration to our entire innovation and entrepreneurial community.
IIIT-Hyderabad And Hexagon Partner For Digital Twin Centre Of Excellence
IIIT Hyderabad and Hexagon R&D India have partnered to establish the Hexagon Digital Twin Centre of Excellence, a new AI-driven hub dedicated to advancing research and industry collaboration in computer vision, spatial computing, and digital twins. The facility equips students and researchers with cutting-edge tools including Hexagon’s Leica BLK360 G2 precision imaging laser scanner to capture detailed spatial data and build digital environments. By providing a dedicated platform for prototyping and proof-of-concept development, the centre aims to bridge the gap between academic research taking deep technology directly from the lab into practical applications.
Blogs
Where Innovation Meets Women’s Health
“Some health problems are difficult not because they are rare, but because they are rarely talked about.”For many women, pregnancy and childbirth mark the beginning of a new chapter but they can also bring physical changes that continue later . Discomfort while sitting or exercising, pelvic weakness, pain, or changes that affect everyday confidence can quietly become part of life. And often, these experiences are met with a simple assumption ..
Giving 3D a New Reality
An idea can be very clear in your mind, but explaining it to someone else can be difficult. You may draw a picture, add notes, draw arrows, and explain it again and again. But sometimes, a flat picture is simply not enough.Think about an engineer designing a machine, a student making a science model, or a company creating a new product. They may know exactly what they want to build, but someone looking at a drawing may still find it hard to understand the shape, depth, or different parts of it. This is the problem that Dynadio, an innovative startup incubated at CIE ..
Making Reuse & Refill Accessible for All
The world produces 400 million tonnes of plastic waste every year, with packaging accounting for 36%. A staggering 85% of this ends up in landfills or unmanaged environments, while only 10% is recycled. India has become the top polluter in 2024, with plastic use growing 20 times in the past 30 years. Around 50% of plastic packaging is discarded, and over 8 million tonnes of plastic enter our oceans annually. Despite global efforts to reduce plastic waste, lower-income communities are often excluded. For them, buying staple goods in bulk is too costly, leading to purchases in small, wasteful packaging that significantly raises household expenses and ..
Our
Impact
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15cr+
Invested in startups
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40+
Startup Research engagement
CIE at IIIT Hyderabad is a technology incubator with rich experience in seeding, nurturing, and growing deep-tech startups in emerging segments like med-tech, tech4social, visual informatics, data engineering, and machine learning, language technologies, gaming, and robotics. CIE IIITH, with a research-led innovation as its primary mandate, focuses on amplifying technology through research collaboration and co-creation models for startups to work with research groups at IIITH.
Under the CIE umbrella, there are 3 active incubators: the Deeptech incubator (Avishkar), the Medtech incubator (Ojas) & the Social incubator (AIC). CIE also includes enabling labs such as a well-equipped Maker Lab, a Medical Electronics Calibration Lab, and a AR/VR lab. IIIT Hyderabad also includes Product Labs to seed new products from research — a pre-incubation program to seed startups from research.
In the past 15 years we have grown to be the largest academic incubator in the country, have housed over 450+ startups that have raised about 250+Cr funding, and created over 2500+ jobs. Today there are very active programs focused on emerging technology startups, research-based startups, medical technologies, and social technology startups.
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