From robotics, biotech, communications to wireless safety devices and agri-tech, these startups shine a torch on why Bengaluru is on top of the world in the startup ecosystem.
They let you know if your bike is being towed or stolen, or who’s outside the door even if you are on the other side of the globe, or use a cycle for last mile connectivity from the metro station or simply call your doctor and upload your latest test parameters.
Twelve diverse startups that are part of the ecosystem touted as the largest in the world were funded by the Karnataka government today. These include companies working in robotics, biotech, communications, wireless safety devices and agri startups.
Continuing the government’s efforts to promote and support young tech talent, the department of Information Technology and Biotechnology announced grants worth Rs 3.18 crore to these 12 startups under the Idea2POC (proof of concept) scheme where each idea is entitled up to Rs 50 lakh with no equity being asked.
Idea2POC is a part of India’s first multi-sector startup policy launched by the state government in 2015 that aims to discover and encourage brilliant entrepreneurs who need early-stage funding to commercialise and scale the product.
“The funding will be in tranches. These 12 startups were chosen because they have the potential to make a difference and use technology to disrupt,” IT and BT Minister Priyank Kharge said while announcing the winners.
Gaurav Gupta, Principal Secretary, IT, BT and S&T said: “While Bengaluru is the IT hub of the country, there are startups in every field springing surprises. Our vision is to promote and mentor them.”
A last-mile connectivity foundation that provides cycles—NammaNimma Cycle Foundation (literally meaning ours and yours in Kannada)—received Rs 10 lakh.
Murali from the foundation said,
It is an initiative to enable cycling as an option for public transport that would provide last-mile connectivity between metro stations and offices. The idea is simple. If I provide 200 cycles, we want organisations and companies to provide some more for the common benefit. This way, the number of cycles that are available will increase and help ride sharing and reduce pollution.
Mithun Uliyar, Co-founder, Lightmetrics, a video analytics company, told YourStory that his startup is developing a Ridecam which analysis driver behaviour. Ridecam is a dashboard camera that is connected to the cloud and warns drivers is they exceed the speed limit, for example.
“It is targeted at fleet companies and helps to manage trucks and cab fleets. Ridecam continuously records the drive. Its robust algorithm helps companies to keep a track of good drivers and weed out the bad ones,” Uliyar said. The company will receive Rs 30 lakh.
With this grant, they are building a product for the Indian market and their prime customer base is…