Minister Priyank Kharge unveils two flagships startup programs ELEVATE 2024 and KAN; Launches official Bengaluru Tech Summit Event App

Highlights:

• KAN: Karnataka Acceleration Network to provide mentorship, market access, and funding opportunities to 302 growth-stage startups over 6 cohorts in 3 years

• ELEVATE 2024: Application open to Elevate 2024; grand in aid seed fun scheme to empower startups

• BENGALURU TECH SUMMIT 2024: Event app launched to offer registered delegates, exhibitors, and speakers, an immersive and streamlined experience throughout the summit.

 Bengaluru : The Department of Electronics, IT and Bt, Government of Karnataka launches two flagship programs ELEVATE 2024 and KAN (Karnataka Accelerator Network). Elevate 2024 is a grant- in-aid seed fund scheme designed to empower early-stage startups in the state. KAN is an acceleration network that provides mentorship, market access, and funding opportunities for growth-stage startups across the state of Karnataka, with a focus on regions beyond Bengaluru. Both schemes were officially unveiled by Shri Priyank Kharge, Hon’ble Minister for the Departments of Electronics, IT and Bt, and Rural Development & Panchayat Raj, Government of Karnataka, today. The Minister also unveiled the event app for the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2024 during the press conference. The app is available for download on both Android and iOS platforms. It is is designed to offer registered delegates, exhibitors, and speakers, an immersive and streamlined experience throughout the summit.

ELEVATE 2024

Elevate 2024 underscores Karnataka’s commitment to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship. It provides grants of up to INR 50 lakhs per startup, along with extensive support, including incubation, expert mentorship, incentives, and access to venture capital networks.The scheme is a gateway for availing various benefits under the Karnataka Startup Policy 2022-27, such as incentive reimbursements for Patent Costs, Marketing Costs, GST, and Quality Certification Costs, Subsidised incubation with GoK supported sector specific Centers of Excellence and TBIs across the state. Participation in Global Innovation Alliance (GIA) – Market Access Program (MAP), Preferential Market Access (PMA), and the Karnataka Acceleration Network (KAN), along with numerous other supportive schemes designed to foster growth and innovation. The Department actively encourages startups working in emerging technologies such as DeepTech, AI, ML, Robotics, Blockchain, 5G, IoT, SpaceTech, and CyberSecurity to apply for ELEVATE 2024. Sector-specific Centers of Excellence in these areas will provide incubation, expert guidance, and mentoring to selected startups. The application window for ELEVATE 2024 will be open from 29th October 2024, 09:00 AM to 29th November 2024, 05:00 PM via the official portal: www.missionstartupkarnataka.org.

The Karnataka Accelerator Network (KAN)

The Karnataka Accelerator Network (KAN) is an accelerator program for growth-stage startups. The program entails mentor and mentee accelerators running joint cohorts, through shared network, resources and pedagogy, of startups from Bengaluru and Beyond Bengaluru. A total of 302 startups are likely to be benefited from the program over 6 cohorts in 3 years. The mentor accelerators identified from Bengaluru are DERBI, GINSERV and Jain Launchpad, while the mentee incubators from the clusters include SJCE-STEP from Mysuru, SHINE foundation from Mangaluru and UAS from Dharwad.KDEM, is the implementation partner of KITS, Department of Electronics, IT, BT and S&T, Government of Karnataka to set up KAN.

At the launch of both the schemes, Shri Priyank Kharge, Hon’ble Minister for the Departments of Electronics, IT and Bt, and Rural Development & Panchayat Raj, Government of Karnataka emphasized the state’s commitment to innovation and entrepreneurship. He remarked, “Karnataka has long been a leader in fostering a vibrant startup ecosystem, both ELEVATE and KAN are specifically crafted to provide a structured pathway for growth. Bengaluru is home to 45 unicorns out of the 112 in the country, with a total valuation of $161 billion. Our goal is to break into the top three rankings in the world. We are confident that ELEVATE and KAN together will empower startups to tackle funding challenges, scale their operations, and solidify Karnataka’s reputation as a leading hub for innovation and entrepreneurship.”

With Elevate to date, we have funded a total of 983 startups since the inception of ELEVATE in 2016 with a committed grant of INR 224.06 Crores. Notably, Karnataka is the first state in the nation to implement such a comprehensive scheme that delivers essential funding to promising startups.”

“The Karnataka Accelerator Network is a transformative initiative designed to nurture a vibrant startup ecosystem beyond Bengaluru. By fostering collaboration between mentor and mentee accelerators, we aim to empower 302 startups over the next three years, providing them with the mentorship, market access, and funding they need to thrive. This program underscores our commitment to driving innovation and entrepreneurship across Karnataka, ensuring that every region can contribute to our state’s economic growth.” He added.

BENGALURU TECH SUMMIT 2024 EVENT APP

The much-anticipated Bengaluru Tech Summit 2024 (BTS 2024) is scheduled from 19-21 November, 2024 at the iconic Bangalore Palace. This year the event has taken a leap forward in enhancing the event experience for delegates with the launch of its official BTS 2024 Event App. The app is now available for download on both Android and iOS platforms. It is designed to offer registered delegates, exhibitors, and speakers, an immersive and streamlined experience throughout the summit.

Key Features of the BTS 2024 Event App:

• Personalized Event Schedules: Attendees can Create custom agendas with reminders for key sessions and events
• Speaker Profiles & Conference Agenda: Stay up-to-date with the full conference schedule & speaker profile
• Exhibition Details & Exhibitor Profiles: Discover the companies behind the newest tech solutions on display.
• Networking & B2B Matching: Connect with industry experts via the Interlinx B2B Partnering tool.
• E-Visiting Card Exchange: Effortlessly exchange digital business cards.
• Real-time Updates & Announcements: Receive real-time updates on sessions, speaker changes, or special events during BTS 2024.
• Engaging Quizzes & Live Polls: Participate in pop quizzes with leaderboards & interactive polls for feedback.
• My Briefcase: Store and organize all digital documents collected at the event.

“The BTS 2024 Event App is a game-changer for how attendees interact with the summit,” said Dr Ekroop Caur IAS, Secretarty, Department of Electronics, IT, Bt, and S&T, Govt. of Karnataka. “We aim to provide a highly engaging and smooth experience for all our participants, and this app ensures that they have all the information and tools they need at their fingertips.” she concluded.