Indian Chamber Of Commerce’s Start-O-Vation To Put A Spotlight On Startups’ Role In India’s Transformation

The Indian Chamber of Commerce is joining hands with Invest India, the national investment promotion agency, for the fourth edition of the Start-O-Vation summit, set for October 13, 2023, at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi. The event promises a fusion of policymakers, entrepreneurs, and investors, aiming to boost the Indian startup ecosystem.

Since its inception in 2015, Start-O-Vation has been pivotal in connecting budding entrepreneurs with industry stalwarts. Participants had the opportunity to showcase their skills, ideas and potential contributions to India’s economy through startup pitching events.

This year’s theme is based on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 2015 speech “I see startups, technology and innovation as exciting and effective instruments for India’s Transformation.” 

Given the current entrepreneurial landscape, the focus is tilting towards technology and product innovation rather than merely consumer-centric ventures. The government’s Startup India initiative has been instrumental in nurturing entrepreneurship, spurring innovation, and amplifying employment opportunities.

Start-O-Vation will bring together a diverse lot of 200+ attendees, including founders, venture capitalists, state government representatives, financial institutions and policymakers.

The event will host series of panel discussions featuring speakers such as — Padmashri Ajai Chowdhry, cofounder of HCL; Commodore Amit Rastogi (Retired), chairman of the National Research Development Corporation, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India; Bhawna Agarwal, country head of HPE; Subhradeep Guha, managing director of Google; and serial entrepreneur Mukesh Bansal (also founded fashion ecommerce Myntra and fitness startup Cultfit). The event will host panel discussions and startup pitching events. 

While Invest India remains the principal partner of the event, the Indian Chamber of Commerce has also partnered with the Assam, Meghalaya and Uttar Pradesh governments.

Some of the themes for the sessions will include — ‘Ideas to Invoice Success Stories’ and ‘The Role of Indian Startups in Achieving Mission $5 Tn GDP. 

Beyond networking, the summit provides a stage for startups from sectors like edtech, agritech, industry 4.0, defense, electric vehicles, hydrogen and drones to showcase their technology and business models, demonstrating their commitment to India’s growth. To date, 180 startup founders have presented their business models to industry veterans across previous editions of Start-O-Vation.

Home to nearly 1 lakh government recognised startups and one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, India’s ambition to achieve a $5 Tn economy by 2025 hinges on nurturing startups with disruptive models and technology, which are projected to contribute 5-10% to the nation’s GDP growth by 2030.

In 2016, the government launched the Startup India initiative to foster the country’s startup ecosystem by introducing schemes like the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme and the Fund of Funds for startups. To expand its support, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) introduced the ‘National Incubator Capacity Building Programme’ in March 2023, to enable sustainable growth for incubators.