US-based corporations Google, Microsoft, Verisign have backed a $10m initiative to create 10,000 start-ups in India.
India’s National Association of Software & Services (Nasscom) is at the heart of the idea, which will incubate, fund and support 10,000 technology start-ups in India over the next 10 years.
The programme will focus on fostering entrepreneurship, building entrepreneurial capabilities at scale and providing robust early stage support through incubation, mentorship and angel funding.
The programme, 10,000 Start-ups, will bring together key stakeholders including start-up Incubators, accelerators, angel investors, venture capitalists, start-up support groups and technology corporations to support entrepreneurs at early stages of their venture.
One of the so-called pillars of the programme is to evangelize and create awareness about technology entrepreneurship as a preferred career option. India has an organized workforce of 30 million people of which 3 million are IT professional, according to Nasscom.
Angel partners include Chennai Angels, Harvard Angels, Hyderabad Angels, Indian Angel Network, Mumbai Angels, Silicon Valley Bank. Accelerators in the programme include 91Springboards, IAN Incubator, Kyron, Microsoft Accelerator, Tlabs, The Hatch, The Morpheus, and Venture Nursery
KK Natarajan, chairman of Nasscom, said: “We have received an overwhelming response for the 10,000 Start-ups program with over 2,000 start-up applications in the last 20 days. Our goal is to help these start-ups scale up their business and also globally position India as `the innovative start-up destination’. The Silicon valley roadshow planned by 10,000 Start-ups will be an important first step in that direction.”