Citi Startup cohort

IIT Kanpur, Citi and T-Hub select 29 startups for Social Innovation Lab by Citi

Citi, IIT Kanpur and T-Hub select 29 early- and growth-stage startups developing cutting-edge solutions to advance social development across AgriTech, HealthTech, and FinTech

Kanpur, 16 March: Social Innovation Lab by Citi selected 29 startups to receive grants and mentoring for their cutting-edge solutions, aimed at creating a positive impact on society. Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT Kanpur) and T-Hub (an innovation hub), along with Citi, selected these early- and growth-stage startups across AgriTech, FinTech, and HealthTech.

The 29 finalists were felicitated during a virtual event at which Mr. Nandan Nilekani was the keynote speaker. Mr. Nilekani said, The Social Innovation Lab by Citi program is extremely timely for India given we are at the beginning of the 'Tech Decade' and a year into the 'Age of Startups' as entrepreneurship evolves. I believe, due to the different vantage points of Citi, IIT Kanpur and T-Hub, this collaboration will provide scale to the vision of these startups. I am sure many of the startups will go on to become significant contributors to the country.

All selected 29 startups will receive mentoring, go-to-market strategy support, seed funding, networking and scaling opportunities within the incubation ecosystems at IIT Kanpur and T-Hub. Furthermore, 23 early-stage startups will receive a kick-off grant of INR 10 lakhs each, while the remaining six growth-stage startups will receive INR 20 lakhs each, aggregating to INR3.5 crores.

Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Director IIT Kanpur said, We have a dynamic startup eco-system at IIT Kanpur and our one of the primary aims has always been to groom startups that hold the potential to bring changes in society and the nation, at large. Today, we are in the Techade where startups carry the baton for development. I believe this partnership with Citi and T-Hub will be instrumental in guiding the startups of today and tomorrow in making India self-reliant across sectors, and I congratulate the 29 finalists and the entire team involved.

I believe this program demonstrates the importance of coming together to help make a transformative change to support India's development. I wish all 29 finalists the very best and look forward to making a positive difference together. Congratulations to all the finalists of the Social Innovation Lab by Citi. My sincere thanks to our collaborators IIT Kanpur and T-Hub, said Ashu Khullar, Chief Executive Officer, Citi India.

Social Innovation Lab by Citi complements the banks existing efforts to make a positive impact in the markets it serves through its efforts across philanthropy and business.

"These startups pitched innovative solutions that support three quintessential domains vital to India’s holistic growth. Our role as stewards is to guide these startups in their journeys in the development space. We are proud to be associated with IIT Kanpur and T-Hub in this endeavor to promote economic growth and enable progress across communities in India," said Mridula Iyer, Head of Treasury and Trade Solutions, Citi South Asia.

With the Social Innovation Lab by Citi, Citi, IIT Kanpur, and T-Hub will support early- and growth-stage, high-impact, for-profit startups disrupting social impact spaces.

The startups in AgriTech and HealthTech domains will receive access to IIT Kanpur’s state-of-the-art infrastructure and mentoring at its technology business incubator. “Through the Social Innovation Lab by Citi, we aim to support the selected startups in order for them to contribute to social development through their innovative solutions. As experts in technology and business mentoring for AgriTech and HealthTech, we are confident we will nurture an exceptional cohort with market-relevant solutions to the identified problem statements, said Prof. Amitabha Bandyopadhyay, Prof-In-Charge, Incubation & Innovation, IIT Kanpur.

The partnership between IIT Kanpur and T-Hub will allow the startups to leverage an outstanding technology innovation ecosystem.

India is witnessing a massive technological transformation led by startups specially in the AgriTech, HealthTech, and FinTech sectors. To continue building this transformation, startups need access to funds and the right mentorship and our synergistic partnership with Citi and IIT Kanpur has helped T-Hub achieve this need. This fund will allow startups to push past their current business roadblocks which will help them grow as sustainable businesses and create a lasting change in the economy. We will continue working with these startups together with our partners to create tangible impact for them and give access to more such new and exciting opportunities. said Srinivas Rao Mahankali (MSR), CEO of T-Hub.

The finalists were chosen from over 300 applicants after a rigorous selection process. IIT Kanpur and T-Hub organized a month-long process to review the applications and to shortlist startups. These shortlisted startups then pitched their proposals before a panel of experts within AgriTech, HealthTech and FinTech.

These experts in AgriTech, HealthTech and FinTech added immense value to the selection process to arrive at the 29 startups as the finalists. The evaluation criteria for the Social Innovation Lab by Citi program was designed to assess startups across various parameters, including solution innovation, novelty, market potential, intellectual property, scale-up potential, and the potential for impact on society. The panel’s comments were instrumental in determining the 29 finalists for the program.

About Citi:

Citi, the leading global bank, has approximately 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 160 countries and jurisdictions. Citi provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, transaction services, and wealth management.

About Citi India:

Committed to India for over 115 years, Citi takes pride in being a premier locally embedded financial institution, backed by an unmatched global network. Citi is an employer of choice in India offering consumers and institutions a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, brokerage, treasury and trade services, securities and fund services and wealth management. In line with our commitment to make a positive difference in the communities we work in, Citi is focused on creating initiatives across seven critical areas – Disaster Relief, Entrepreneurship Development, Youth Employability, Inclusive Finance, Art and Culture, Social Innovation, and Good Citizenship as part of its CSR efforts.

Additional information may be found at: www.citibank.co.in | Facebook: www.facebook.com/citiindia

About IIT Kanpur:

With path breaking innovation brewing at incubator start-ups, SIIC IIT Kanpur aims to create impact at the bottom of the pyramid. Established in the year 2000, Start-up Incubation and Innovation Centre (SIIC), IIT Kanpur, is one of the oldest technology business incubators with many successes under its belt. The multifaceted, vibrant incubation ecosystem nurtured over two decades aims to fill all the gaps on the road to convert an idea into a business. SIIC has developed the experience base and ecosystem that become critical ingredients in developing early-stage, technology-focused start-ups disrupting paradigms across the domains such as agriculture, healthcare, aerospace, energy, water, and education.

ABOUT T-HUB

T-Hub (Technology Hub) is an innovation hub and ecosystem enabler. Based out of Hyderabad, India, T-Hub leads India’s pioneering innovation ecosystem. With a mission of enabling and empowering an ecosystem hungry for innovation, T-Hub is creating impact for startups, corporations and other innovation ecosystem stakeholders. Incorporated in 2015, it has provided over 1800+ national and international startups with access to better technology, talent, mentors, customers, corporates, investors, and government agencies. It has elevated innovation for leading national and global corporations, transforming their business models for the better. Working in collaboration with innovation partners and enablers in Telangana, India and worldwide, T-Hub is building a future-ready innovation ecosystem.

For more information about T-Hub, visit www.t-hub.co. Twitter LinkedIn Facebook Instagram