Accelerators and incubators in India: who they back and when they take applications

Accelerator, incubator, fellowship, competition: what the words mean

The labels get used loosely, so judge a programme by three things instead: does it take equity, does it write a cheque, and does it run in fixed cohorts. This is how the programmes in our catalogue behave under each label. For how many there are in India, by city, stage and sector, see startup accelerators and incubators in India.

• Accelerator. Fixed cohorts and, usually, a cheque in exchange for equity or a convertible note such as an iSAFE or a SAFE. The corporate accelerators are the exception: they take no equity and give engineering help and customer access instead.
• Incubator. Usually tied to a university, a state government or a cause, and often in person. Most take no equity, or state no figure for it. Many take applications on a rolling basis and offer workspace, labs, connections and a route to government grants.
• Fellowship. The widest label. Some back people before there is a company: Founder Institute takes 4% for a structured programme with no investment. Others, like NASSCOM DeepTech Club and Marico Innovation Foundation, are equity-free cohorts for companies at seed or Series A.
• Competition. A prize, a grant or matched money at the end. The India competitions we list, such as ONDC Build for Bharat, run once a year.
• Credits programme. Cloud or hardware credits, no equity, always open. Useful, but not funding.

At a glance: programmes that back Indian startups

A cross-section of the India programmes in our catalogue, chosen to cover every type. Cheque sizes are as each programme describes them. "Not stated" means our catalogue has no equity figure for that programme, so ask before you assume it is free.

The programmes, by type

VC-run and corporate accelerators

Peak XV Surge offers up to $3M with heavy founder support, and joining effectively commits you to the Peak XV platform. Listed alumni include Khatabook, Plum and Scaler. Accel Atoms, Accel India’s pre-seed programme at around $500k to $1M, has weighted recent cohorts to AI and global SaaS built from India.

100X.VC writes ₹25 lakh on standard iSAFE terms and decides fast, which makes it a reasonable first institutional cheque to try (apply on its site). Listed alumni include Zippee and BlissClub. Blume Founders Fund writes a first cheque for teams before a conventional seed round is possible.

Some programmes we file as accelerators are angel networks that help you fill a round. Venture Catalysts (typically ₹1 to 5 Cr, syndicated) lists BharatPe and Beardo among its alumni, and AH! Ventures and WE Founder Circle syndicate early rounds across their members. See also our list of angel investors and syndicates.

Global programmes that run in India work the same way. Antler backs people before companies and will take a solo founder with no product. Entrepreneur First puts in around $250k for roughly 10%, plus a stipend, and helps technical individuals find a co-founder.

Google for Startups Accelerator India is for companies with a live product and real users (listed alumni: Khabri, Bikayi), and its AI First track is for companies where AI is the core of the product. Cisco LaunchPad suits B2B infrastructure companies that want Cisco customer introductions.

University and research park incubators

CIIE.CO at IIM Ahmedabad is an approved incubator for several central schemes, which makes it one of the practical routes to SISFS money. NSRCEL at IIM Bangalore runs many targeted programmes, several of them equity-free, including cohorts for women founders.

For deep tech, look at the IIT incubators. The IIT Madras Incubation Cell offers lab access and a record of taking research to product (listed alumni: Ather Energy, Detect Technologies). SINE at IIT Bombay backs ventures with an IIT connection or a genuine research core, with grant access through DST schemes (listed alumni: ideaForge). T-Hub in Hyderabad is an innovation campus whose value is corporate and government connections and a route to Telangana state schemes.

State startup missions

State programmes take no equity, but check where you must be registered first.

• Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM): idea grant up to ₹5L and seed loan up to ₹25L, plus incubation. Needs a Kerala-registered entity.
• StartupTN (TANSIM): a seed grant and access to TANFUND, its investor platform. Needs a Tamil Nadu presence.
• Telangana State Innovation Cell: grant and incubation support through state programmes, closely linked to T-Hub. For idea and pre-seed companies.
• K-tech Innovation Hub (Karnataka): the route to the Elevate grant of up to ₹50L, plus incubation and lab access. Needs a Karnataka-registered entity.
• Maharashtra State Innovation Society (MSInS): grants through the Maharashtra Startup Week, announced every year, and incubation schemes. The startup week awards work orders with government departments: a customer rather than a cheque.

For the grants themselves, with amounts and who can apply, see startup grants in India.

Impact and sector incubators

Villgro backs health, agriculture and climate ventures, often with grant plus equity, and stays engaged for the long term. Social Alpha runs challenges with grant funding attached for science and technology ventures that solve social and environmental problems. Upaya Social Ventures backs companies that create jobs for people in extreme poverty and judges them on jobs as much as on returns.

Sector programmes are narrower. RKVY-RAFTAAR funds agriculture ventures through partner agri-incubators. The Qualcomm Design in India Challenge gives hardware and semiconductor design companies an equity-free grant and lab access. ONDC Build for Bharat is for companies building on the ONDC network. The Artha Venture Challenge matches up to ₹50L only if you raise a matching amount, so it complements an angel round rather than replacing one.

Credits programmes are not accelerators

• AWS Activate: up to $100k in AWS credits, the tier depending on your investors. The base tier is self-serve; the highest tiers need an introduction from an affiliated accelerator or VC.
• Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub: up to $150k in Azure credits plus OpenAI and GitHub access, with no referral needed at entry level.
• NVIDIA Inception: free to join, with hardware discounts, cloud credits and engineering support. Worth it if you train or serve models.

All three are global, take no equity and are always open. Apply alongside everything else, but do not count credits as funding when you plan your runway.

How to choose the right programme

• Stage fit. 100X.VC, Antler, Blume Founders Fund and The Campus Fund take idea and pre-seed companies. Google’s India accelerator, Cisco LaunchPad and NASSCOM DeepTech Club want seed or Series A. Applying outside the range wastes an application.
• Sector fit. Read what each programme says it backs, not just its tags. The IIT incubators and the Qualcomm challenge suit deep tech and hardware; Villgro and Social Alpha want a social or environmental problem.
• Equity against what you get. Founder Institute takes 4% with no investment and Techstars Bengaluru 5% for its cheque, while Google’s India accelerator, NASSCOM 10,000 Startups and the state missions take none. Give equity only for something you cannot get free: a cheque, a network that fills your next round, or a lab.
• Location and format. The IIT incubators, T-Hub, KSUM, K-tech and the Atal Incubation Centres are in person. 100X.VC and Blume Founders Fund run remotely.
• Who you are. The Campus Fund invests only in companies founded by current students or recent graduates of Indian colleges, at around ₹50L to 2 Cr.

How to apply well

1. 1Shortlist three to six programmes that match your stage, sector and location. Drop any where you would have to argue that you fit.
2. 2Check the current window on each programme’s own site. Our catalogue records the pattern (rolling, two cohorts a year, annual), not this year’s dates.
3. 3Know what you would sign: the instrument (equity, SAFE, iSAFE or a convertible note) and the percentage, so an offer does not surprise you.
4. 4Have a short, current deck ready. Our guide to the pitch deck investors expect covers it slide by slide.
5. 5Show progress, not plans: what changed in the last three months. At the idea stage, show the customer conversations you have had.
6. 6Ask two founders who went through the programme what the support was like in practice.
7. 7Apply to the always-open credits programmes now, and plan the cohort programmes around their windows.

Incubators are also the route to government seed money

Some government money reaches founders through incubators rather than directly. The Atal Incubation Centres are a national network of government-funded incubators, and most are approved incubators for central schemes, which makes them the practical route to the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) and similar money. They take applications on a rolling basis, centre by centre, through aim.gov.in. CIIE.CO and NSRCEL are recognised incubators for central schemes too.

If seed money without giving up equity is what you want, read our guide to the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme, then our guide to government grants you can apply to directly.