Microsoft Accelerator with Wipro to Drive 13 New Startups in Dec 2016

Microsoft Accelerator, a global program built to empower startups and Wipro Limited, a leading information technology, consulting and business process services company have entered into a partnership that will provide startups with greater opportunities to innovate and grow their business. This announcement was made at the accelerator’s flagship event - Think Next 2016 that brings together thought leaders who are driving transformation via innovation. Think Next 2016 also marked the graduation of 13 startups from its ninth cohort.

13 startups, Whodat, Betaout, MovenSync, Transaction Analysts, AllizHealth, Uncanny Vision, Meddiff, FarEye, Epictions, Germin8, Talview, Faircent and Surukam, graduated from the accelerator’s ninth cohort and were introduced to an audience of more than 550 corporates, investors, thought leaders, and Microsoft management who partnered to push the collaborative innovation. Almost all these are backing on advanced technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Internet of Things (IoT) to scale up.

This partnership is part of Microsoft Accelerator #CoInnovate program which provides startups with more go-to-market (GTM) opportunities by working with enterprise businesses. Wipro will also refer select startups for Microsoft Accelerator programs and events. Under the partnership, referred startups will gain access to Wipro Open Innovation initiatives, such as:

·         Global GTM reach to rapidly build scale

·         An opportunity to integrate their solutions with select Wipro solutions

·         Wipro will help take the startups solutions to its global customer base

·         Targeted Wipro marketing support for proactive business opportunities, among others

Wipro’s Open Innovation philosophy strives to bring together and   partner with key stakeholders such as startups, academia, expert networks, Venture Capitalists, Incubators/Accelerators and Technology Consortia in the external ecosystem in order to deliver business value to Wipro, its partners and customers.

 “Microsoft Accelerator #CoInnovate program bridges the gap between corporates and startups. Connecting startups to corporates and crafting a win-win relationship is a critical need of the ecosystem today. The partnership with Wipro allows us to leverage our combined strengths and market reach to provide a whole new level of market access for our startups.” said Bala Girisaballa, CEO-In-Residence, Microsoft Accelerator. Bala mentioned that many of the portfolio startups, including CustomerXPS, CloudCherry, Zing HR, Altizon System and iBOT have seen great traction from Microsoft’s ISV Program and the accelerator’s corporate partnerships.

Commenting on the alliance, K.R. Sanjiv, Chief Technology Officer, Wipro Limited said, “Wipro has built strong connects in the global startup ecosystem, over the last three years, as part of our focus on building new open innovation capabilities. We are confident that our partnership with Microsoft Accelerator will be an important enabler in developing critical solutions for our customers, harnessing both the innovation taking place within Wipro and the external ecosystem.”

Through this partnership, enterprises stand to gain from access to the innovative technology solutions emerging from some of the best technology startups in the country. In addition, they will get a robust technology solution backed by the reliable delivery and support platform provided by Microsoft and Wipro.

Highlights from Think Next 2016

13 startups, Whodat, Betaout, MovenSync, Transaction Analysts, AllizHealth, Uncanny Vision, Meddiff, FarEye, Epictions, Germin8, Talview, Faircent and Surukam, graduated from the accelerator’s ninth cohort and were introduced to an audience of more than 550 corporates, investors, thought leaders, and Microsoft management who partnered to push the collaborative innovation. 

The event also had Microsoft leaders, Judson Althoff (Executive Vice President, Worldwide Commercial Business, Microsoft Corporation) and Tzahi ‘Zack’ Weisfeld (General Manager, Microsoft Accelerator) addressing the audience on developments in the global technology and startup ecosystem. At the Think Next Panel - Transforming Tomorrow Together, Althoff, along with Aftab Mathur (Director, Temasek) and K.R. Sanjiv (Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Wipro Limited) and Balaji Suryanarayana (Co-founder, CustomerXPS) discussed the significance of enterprise-startup partnerships in the process of digital transformation. Microsoft also hosted the third edition of ‘All India Accelerators & Incubators Meet’ bringing together 35+ accelerators and incubation partners to drive greater impact to enable and empower the startups.

At the Think Next Panel, an impressive panel of speakers - Sharad Sharma from industry think tank iSPIRT, VCs Shekhar Kirani, (Accel Partners) and Samir Kumar (Inventus Capital), serial entrepreneur, K Ganesh, and Microsoft Accelerator alum, Aditya Sood, Sr. Director Engineering and Products, Nutanix deliberated on one of the most critical questions in the startup ecosystem – Why Go Global? and talked about the potential of India as a market for growth. Before the main event, Microsoft presented a highly curated set of startups to a select audience of investors, CMOs and Ecommerce businesses in a VC Speed Dating and two Market Access Programs.

Bala also mentioned that Microsoft Accelerator is currently accepting applications for its 10^th cohort, which is scheduled to start in February 2017. 

Karnataka Awards Tech-25 Startups Funds Upto Rs 50 Lakh at ITbiz

Here is the list of 25 Startup - Karnataka Top startup’s Tech-25 Awards at ITE.biz 2016 in 5 Categories

Category - Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology and Life Sciences

1.      OmiX Research and Diagnostics Laboratories Private Limited is into developing platform for molecular testing of pathogens, outside of laboratory settings. Their platform is currently used in the diagnosis and management of infectious diseases, food testing, water and environmental testing.      

2.      Yostra Labs Private Limited is a healthcare technology firm pioneering smart innovations to make healthcare more effective, affordable and sustainable for the cost sensitive developing market.

3.      (Osteo3d) df3d Creations Pvt Ltd is into design and 3d printing of medical models for surgical planning & surgical guides. They also offer cloud based platforms for designs and software in 3d printing to enable businesses.

4.      Theramyt Novobiologics Pvt Ltd develops novel bio-betters, bio-similars and identify new biological entities (NBEs), to improve patient access to cost-effective, regulatory-compliant therapies. Their drug designing and platform technology aims to deliver novel therapies for disease areas such as oncology, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes and metabolic disorders.

5.   Bugworks Research India Pvt Ltd strong inter-disciplinary team with competencies in Entrepreneurship, Mathematics, Engineering, IT, Biochemistry, Microbiology, Molecular Biology, Pharmacology and Medicinal Chemistry aims to discover novel biopharmaceutical assets for the treatment of Anti-microbial Resistance (AMR).  

Category - AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Games and Comics)

6.      Holy Cow Productions is an independent game development studio providing services in 2D & 3D Art Production, Game programming & Game Design.

7.      Digital Jalebi is a young and multidisciplinary team of Interaction Designers, New Media Artists, Programmers, Computer & Electronics Engineers, Digital Jalebi aims at transforming spaces into more communicable and enjoyable opportunities.

8.      VedAtma Animation Studios provides solutions for design and production requirements of animation & visual effects in diverse fields of entertainment, medical, e-learning, architecture, engineering & niche areas like finance, logistics & social causes.

9.      Fraggingmonk Technologies Pvt Limited  has put up LXG with the aim of providing users with the most powerful Gaming machines in India.

Category - IT / ITES

10.  Exabit Systems Private Limited ("eXabit") is a specialized in Agricultural Product development. They offer High Quality, On-Time and Cost-efficient Solution for both Pre-Harvest & Post-Harvest Agri Business segments.

11.  YaraGo Software Pvt Ltd is focused in providing business solutions in Enterprise Mobility solutions, Product Engineering and Cloud Computing.

12.  Stat Decision Labs is a provider for Integrated Data Mining & Mobility solutions that helps organizations anticipate business opportunities, empower action and drive impact. 

13.  Aissel Technologies Pvt Ltd enterprise-class software solutions cater to the business intelligence needs of leading Pharmaceutical and Biotech companies. KOL Management Suite is their flagship product that enables customers to integrate, manage and monitor their KOL development and management initiatives.

14.  Cooey Technologies Pvt Ltd is an end-to-end health monitoring IOT platform that intends to collect, store, analyze and provide insights of vital signs for patients.

15.  Element42 Management Solutions Pvt Ltd provides cutting edge technology solutions in IOT space. The ePaper takes a leap ahead in bringing cutting edge technology and making it usable in daily life. They are also focused on research & innovation.

16.  5C Network (India) Pvt Ltd with the support of the Centre for e-Governance, Government of Karnataka worked on and implemented the TeleICU pilot for the Government by connecting Tumkur District Hospital to Columbia Asia Hospital in Yeshwanthpur, Bangalore, where intensivists used the platform to support Tumkur hospitals and nurses in managing the ICU. Their efforts were rewarded when TeleICU was inaugurated by Shri. Pranab Mukherjee, the President of India.

Category - ESDM (Electronic System Design and Manufacturing)

17.  Sensesemi Technologies Pvt Ltd provides the state of art “smart engineering products”, by developing a line of unique smart innovative products to manage chronic diseases and to maintain a healthy life.

18.  Cardiac Design Labs Pvt Ltd, has introduced revolutionary MIRCaM which enables hospitals to do advanced cardiac diagnosis including alerts, diagnosis and reporting On-The-Go using Mobile Applications at an affordable cost using notifications on all platforms.

19.  Green Robot Machinery Private Limited aims to bring in advance robotic technology for cotton picking. The machine under design, mimics the human behavior in cotton picking. RoboMac will provide solutions through the use of technologies such as Robotics, Machine Vision and Internet of Things.

20.  Evobi Automations Pvt Ltd is powered by the innovative Bibox platform working on the principles of design thinking and challenge based learning, enabling students with creative, analytical, scientific and design thinking methods.

21.  Personal Air Quality Systems Pvt Ltd provides context aware IOT solutions from secured real time monitoring wearable gadgets to individuals, Smart Homes. Smart Offices, Smart cities and Community. The gadget enables customers to monitor the inhaled air quality on their Smart Phones and get the secured personalized environment for their comfort and health. 

Category – Social Inclusions

22.  Jayalaxmi Agrotech Pvt Ltd, has developed several crops specific mobile applications for agriculture, horticulture and animal husbandry in English and regional languages. Their mobile Applications are built to deliver information while breaking literacy barrier. With a core focus to bring Mobility, Analytics and Cloud (MAC) together into the hands of farmers.   

23.  i-exist Technology Solutions Pvt Ltd has developed “Samwad”, an intuitive and interactive solution where the communication is two way, adaptable, individualized and also gives customer control, ensures continuous financial literacy across all Socio-Economic demography.

24.  NubeSol Technologies Pvt Ltd intends to realize its vision by investing into adoption of Advanced Technologies in agriculture and Technology Innovations that are affordable by farming community, effective use of Agriculture Mechanization and undertake R&D in partnership with relevant stakeholders.

25.  Gamatics India Pvt. Ltd. owns and operates an online platform for providing e-commerce and analytics-based solutions for sportspersons and sports industry. 

Govt Initiates Startup Karnataka Top Tech-25 Awards at ITE.biz 2016

As per the Global Startup Ecosystem Ranking Report 2015, is home to approximately 3,100 to 4,900 active tech startups and has achieved the second highest growth rate for exit volume and VC investment among the top 20. As a result, moved up four positions to #15 in 2015, advancing from #19 in the 2012 ranking. As per this report, is the only Indian city to be ranked within the best twenty startup eco systems across the world.

Though the State had pioneered several initiatives to promote startups in the past couple of years, the Karnataka Startup Policy, announced last November 2015, was the country’s first Multi-Sector Startup Policy with a vision to create a world-class startup ecosystem in the State through strategic investments and policy interventions, leveraging the robust innovation climate in Bengaluru. The policy was brought out with the vision that innovation needs to be promoted across sectors from agriculture to aerospace and that it needs to be nurtured across the state including in tier 2 cities.   

Under the Policy, the Department of IT, BT and SnT, the nodal implementation department, is executing various initiatives. The Karnataka Startup Cell has been established in KBITS and is acting as a one stop shop that enables easy flow of information and assistance to needy startups. The Karnataka Startup Cell is targeting to support 20,000 startups during the policy period, of which 6,000 are expected to be product startups. The cell has already registered 2000+ startups and is aiming to assist startups with the various initiatives available under the policy like

·  Startup Booster Kit

·  Idea to PoC funding

·  Incubation facility at subsidized cost

·  Venture Funding through state supported funds e.g. Semiconductior Venture Fund, Animation Fund, Biotech Fund and Venture Funds supported by the upcoming State Fund of Funds

·  Networking with mentors, industry leaders and investors

·  Incentives and concessions under the policy

In the above background, the Government of Karnataka, has launched for the first time, Startup Karnataka Top Tech-25 Awards 2016 to recognise promising startups of Karnataka on Day Three, the 30^th of November 2016, of the state’s premier IT event,  ITE.biz 2016.

These awards are being given in five categories namely IT/ITES, ESDM(Electronic System Design and Manufacturing), AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Games and Comics), Biotechnology, Pharma & Life Sciences and Social Inclusions.

In response to the public call for applications, 100+ nominations were received under all categories.  A jury panel comprising representatives from Government, Industry Experts etc selected the awardees. Deloitte India facilitated the process of selection

IIA to Host Natcon 2016 in Bengaluru from December 1-3, 2016

The Indian Institute of Architects (IIA), Karnataka Chapter will host NATCON 2016 at The Lalit Ashok, Bengaluru from, December 1-3, 2016. IIA is also celebrating its 100^th year in India. Over 1,000 including some prominent speakers including Rahul Mehrotra, Prof of Urban Planning, Harvard University; Alfredo Brillembourg, Chair of Architecture and Urban Design, ETH Zurich, Neelkanth Chhaya, Former Dean of Faculty of Architecture, CEPT University among others are expected to participate over the next three days.

NATCON will commence with the inaugural session on December 1, 2016 and Suresh Heblikar, Kannada filmmaker, director and also a well known environmentalist will inaugurate the event.

IIA NATCON 2016 is intended to provoke architects and our industry partners to think outside of what is termed as a ‘Global City’, and to think instead of an ‘Indian City’ that still aspires towards knowledge, creativity, and good living.

This year’s event will debate on the on the "Indian City” - India is urbanising rapidly and the future lies in the success with which the country urbanises. IIA NATCON 2016 is intended to provoke architects and our industry partners to think at a fundamental level on what the Indian city should be, and to act as an agent of positive change. Against the backdrop of rapid urbanisation, IIA NATCON 2016 will champion on the idea of the Indian City to set course for the future of our urban conglomerations.

Throughout time, architecture has persisted as one of the most profoundly important reflections of culture. Whether we consider monumental structures or modern icons, we see built spaces reflecting the story of time, and how that iteration of culture wished to project itself to the future. Architecture also persists through our infrastructure from bridges to public spaces and even the very layout of our cities themselves. In this sense, architects are the arbiters of our future history and are central to our experience of being human.

The antecedents of contemporary architecture and architectural education in India go back about 200 years and the colonization of the country. That decisive, but problematic encounter with the West set into motion the process of modernisation. In this sense the modernisation ideals are alien to India since they were introduced through the agency of colonisation. But they have become indigenous in the sense that they have been adopted and adapted by the intellectual elites, who in turn, have endeavoured to diffuse them to society at large through state-directed interventionist policies, particularly during the last sixty years after Independence.

For Indian architecture, the path is promising, but there are caveats. Recent events, taken together, point to a complex picture where opportunities coexist with obstacles. Architects must ‘simultaneously and with an open mind engage with research, practice, collaboration and advocacy if they are serious about converting opportunities to meaningful change’. As much as there are numerous bright possibilities in India, the promise is entangled with paradox. Much of the future of Indian architecture will depend on how architects and society navigate these challenges.

Tier II, III Cities Contribute Rs 4000 Crore to IT Export in Karnataka

IT companies in tier 2 cities of Karnataka have made exemplary performance during the last fiscal to register total export value of Rs 4,000 crore, said Priyank Kharge, Minister for IT and Tourism, Government  of Karnataka.

At a press conference as part of the BengaluruITE.Biz 2016, the minister said this performance comes at a time when the IT growth is sliding throughout the country. "Our IT hubs in tier 2 cities like Mangaluru, Hubballi, Dharwad and Mysuru have contributed around 5% to 10% of total exports of the state," he said.

Kharge said the states' total IT export stood at Rs 1.25 lakh crore, out of India's total IT exports of Rs 3 lakh crore. "We want further policy intervention to boost our export from tier 2 cities so that these place also can provide employment and centres of innovation along with Bengaluru," he said. When pointed out the Economic Survey findings that there is a steep decline of 30% in IT export output, he said that is really an eye opener and the government is seriously looking at the issue.

"IT sector is going through a paradigm shift where the cost arbitrage of the IT services sector is coming to an end. IT companies are looking at value addition with artificial intelligence, automation and data analytics technologies. We are also looking at other areas like robotics, nanotechnology and data security to further excel in IT space," he said.

Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) established four technology parks in Karnataka. "It is great to know that STPI tech parks are performing very well in the state. We are really working with our plans to make deeper impacts," said STPI Director General Omkar Rai.

Agencies

GE to Set Up Digital Technology Centre in Bangalore; Plans to Hire 1,000 Over Next 3 Years

By Manu Sharma

General Electric (GE), the American multinational conglomerate corporation has announced the launch of their Digital Technology Centre in Bangalore. Jim Fowler, Global Chief Information Officer (CIO) will launch the new centre on November 30, 2016 and will be located at the Prestige Shantiniketan at Whitefield.

In a Fireside Chat on ‘Industrial Digital Transformation’ session in association with Nasscom, conducted by C.P. Gurnani Chairman, Nasscom and MD and CEO, Tech Mahindra. Fowler says, “Despite being a global company, GE opted for Bangalore looking at the high quality of talent in offers. We short listed Bangalore over San Francisco, Paris and several other locations in Asia.”

The on-going BengaluruITE.biz is currently happening at the Bangalore Palace grounds and has attracted a large number of global corporates.

The new centre will be GE's game plan to invest $1 billion globally in digital technologies, as the company is gearing up for digital transformation with Predix Platform. "The next industrial revolution is about the connection of enterprise data and machine data and models that predict future outcomes," he said.

GE is expected to hire over 1,000 techies over the next three years. “We will focus our operations on Internet of Things (IoT) and industrial internet,” he adds.  

GE has made this city its second home with the John F. Welch Technology Centre (JFWTC), named after the former CEO of GE, located at in Whitefield, Bangalore.  The JFWTC is General Electric's (GE) first and largest integrated, multidisciplinary research and development center outside the US. The team has more than 5,000 engineers and scientists working at the JFWTC Bangalore.

Priyank Kharge, Minister for IT, BT and Tourism, earlier speaking to the media highlighted the fact that this year’s ITE.biz is expected to be of a bigger scale and scope compared to the past with more global players taking part actively.

He stressed that our endeavour is to bring all stakeholders-policy makers, Industry and academia together to celebrate the wonderful technology ecosystem that Karnataka has, and to strive to retain our position of leadership through strategic investment of resources on people, places and technologies.

Karnataka Owned Keonics Unveils Rural Wi-Fi in 11 Gram Panchayats

Karnataka government today launched rural Wi-Fi services in 11 gram panchayats, with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah saying such a digital inclusion will give village-level entrepreneurs ready access to online market place for their products and services.

The gram panchayats benefitting from the Wi-Fi initiative include two each in Mysuru, Tumkuru, Gadag, Ballari and Kalburgi and one in Bagalkot district. The rural population in these gram panchayats can make use of the services by buying concessional Wi-Fi vouchers.

At the inauguration of Bengaluru ITE.Biz 2016, an annual IT event, Siddaramaiah said with "digital inclusion becoming the most important parameter of growth and economic development", it is the intention of the government to see that the last mile connectivity is provided in all villages.

People can access the wi-fi by buying concessional vouchers. The state-owned Keonics is implementing the project. "For this we will be banking on the availability of National Optic Fibre Network up to the Gram Panchayat level," he added.

The gram panchayats benefitting from the Wi-Fi initiative include two each in Mysuru, Tumkuru, Gadag, Ballari and Kalburgi and one in Bagalkot district. The rural population in these gram panchayats can make use of the services by buying concessional Wi-Fi vouchers.

The impact of digital inclusion will be manifold which would enable village-level entrepreneurs ready access to online market place and have opportunity to explore new markets for their products and services, he said.