Karnataka Govt Shortlists 100 Startups Through Elevate 100

The Karnataka Government shortlisted 100 innovative startups to provide a funding of Rs. 35 crores through its Elevate 100 program. In the next stage of this program, the selected startups will be given access to mentors, incubators and venture capital investors, based on the recommendations of an expert panel.

The startups were selected through a four layered selection process with over 250 startups vying for these top 100 slots in the final leg of the process. Over 1,700 startups applied for the program which was announced over a month ago. According to Minister for Information Technology and Biotechnology Priyank Kharge, close to 400 startups that applied were from rural areas and more than 350 were women entrepreneurs.

The selected 100 startups will get a kit with freebies from Google, Amazon and Zoho and services and mentoring from firms such as PwC, Yes Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank. The government investment will be made in the form of grants as well as equity through Karnataka’s BioTech and IT funds. Google, Amazon and PricewaterhouseCoopers Pvt., Ltd., along with 5 other top companies have signed a memorandum of understanding with the Karnataka Government to cater to the needs of these 100 companies.

The top 100 finalists work in areas such as electronic system design,  manufacturing and IoT space, medical technology space, biotech sector and in the agricultural space. Speaking about the selection process, Minister Priyank Kharge said not a single representative of the State was on the selection panel to ensure that the State’s role was to only bring together corporates and startups. “The efforts of the Karnataka government doesn’t stop at elevating the chosen 100. We see ELEVATE 100 as a continuing process where the best ideas from the State gets the support and guidance it deserves,” he added.

The Elevate program traversed the length and breadth of Karnataka for finding startups and promoting startup culture outside of Bengaluru. Kharge also added it was extremely encouraging to see the growth of startups in Hubbali, Belgaum, Mangaluru and Mysuru.