TechStars, a global start-up incubator network, is finally all-set to make its debut in India. It will be launching new start-up programmes over the coming weeks to tap the country’s growing start-up ecosystem.
It has also entered into a joint venture (JV) with Bengaluru-based ANSR which provides infrastructure for enterprises to build and manage in-house or external accelerators. Commenting on this, Lalit Ahuja, CEO and founder of ANSR, said,
ANSR is very excited to partner with Techstars to launch Techstars India. We believe that this is an event of national importance and a huge validation of India’s position as a leading global hub for entrepreneurial activity.
The Indian operations of the company has been officially named as Techstars India. The fully aligned partnership aims to connect India’s entrepreneurs and corporate leaders with the Techstars network.
The company said that Techstars India will explore numerous entrepreneurial opportunities in India such as Techstars Mentorship-Driven Accelerator Programs and Techstars Corporate Innovation Partnerships.
It is currently in the process of hiring a team in India which will oversee all local operations. Before bringing its various programmes to the country, Techstars will be appointing a country head.
Commenting on its India launch, David Brown, co-founder of Techstars, said,
We are looking at a number of different opportunities from India and we’ll likely execute on some or all of them. And that includes the city model, which is the original Techstars Boulder model, which includes the corporate programme, it involves more top-of-the-funnel activities like Startup Week and Startup Weekend and it involves corporates who want to plug into the start-up ecosystem to the benefit of both parties.
Techstars was founded in Colorado in 2006 by David Cohen, David Brown, Brad Feld and Jared Polis. It operates in countries such as Australia, Canada, Israel and France, and across the US.
In past decade, it has accepted over 1,000 early-stage ventures globally into its programs, which have collectively raised over $3.8 billion in funding. Some of the notable companies that have graduated from its accelerator include Digital Ocean, Localytics, SendGrid, Contently, among others.
Accelerators and incubators typically help entrepreneurs and early-stage ventures to turn promising, disruptive ideas into sustainable businesses. It provides office space, mentoring and seed funding for about 3-6 months.
Techstars has run 133 Techstars Startup Weekends throughout India, building startup entrepreneurial networks in tier-one metro cities like Delhi – NCR, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata.