~50% of the cohort come from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities in India.

• 1 in 3 apps from the cohort have a woman founder at the helm.
• Cohort’s main sectors span Education, Health, Social, Agriculture, and Gaming.

Local developers and startups continue to power India’s rise as an innovation hub for the world with creative solutions for many daily needs and complex challenges. Aiming to support the growth of this ecosystem, MeitY Startup Hub, an initiative of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), and Google today announced training and development support to 100 Indian early to mid-stage startups as part of Appscale Academy’s Class of 2023. 

A growth and development program by MeitY Startup Hub and Google, the goal of the Appscale Academy is to help early to mid-stage Indian startups build high-quality apps and games, and help them grow into successful global businesses.The 100 startups were chosen from over 950 applications following an in-depth selection process that took into account their creative ideas and innovation, product quality, product scalability, and talent diversity.

The cohort’s main sectors span Education, Health, Social, Agriculture, and Gaming. Representing the talent diversity emerging among India’s startup and developer ecosystem, ~50% of the cohort comes from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, including Varanasi, Ernakulam, Surat, Dehradun, Allahabad, and many others. 37% of the cohort have a woman founder at the helm.

The cohort includes a diverse range of creative startups solving for India’s critical needs, including Enguru (live learning platform), BabyG (parenting and baby development app), Louie Voice Control (helping people operate other apps using their voice), Dhenoo (knowledge platform for dairy farmers), GeeCom India (ecommerce opportunities for farmers), EyeCan (helping the visually impaired with virtual assistance), Neend (mindfulness app that’s helping people sleep better), Glii (Queer dating app),ProjectHero (networking platform for construction workers), Kurukshetra (strategy game inspired by Indian mythology), ZenOnco Cancer Care (app for cancer patients and caregivers), and many more.

At the launch, Mr. Akash Tripathi, IAS, CEO, MyGov; Joint Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology,said, “The ongoing local tech revolution is fueling the country's economic growth and driving socio economic transformation on a global scale. India is the world’s largest startup hub in the world, with small and emerging towns and cities accounting for nearly 50% of recognized startups. It’s great to see Google and MeitY’s partnership through MetiY Startup Hub add value and support this startup ecosystem through programs such as Appscale Academy.”

Jeet Vijay, Chief Executive Officer, MeitY Startup Hub,added, “India stands tall worldwide when it comes to innovation and startups. We are a thriving economy with immense growth opportunities across sectors, including agritech, fintech, healthtech, and more. It’s great to see our local innovators capitalize on this opportunity and make a meaningful impact with their businesses. Google did an incredible job of supporting the startups in the first cohort and we look forward to working with them once again.”

Aditya Swamy, Director, Play Partnerships, Google Play, said, "The growth of our startups are inextricably linked with India’s emergence as a global innovation hub and it's critical that these innovators are supported with training and development that can help them power their success. Last year, we were thrilled to see our first cohort adapt learnings from the program to improve their product experience and grow their user base. We look forward to supporting a fresh cohort of 100 startups in scaling their app businesses. I would like to thank MeitY Startup Hub for partnering us on this vision."

As part of the 6-month program, 100 startups will be trained through a customized curriculum designed to help them drive high-quality apps for a global market, including sessions on UX design, business model and monetization strategies, international expansion best practices, and data safety and security practices. The startups will receive access to virtual instructor-led webinars, self-learning material, and mentorship sessions with leading local and global industry professionals. Select startups will also get an opportunity to pitch to leading venture capitalists. 

Check out Appscale Academy’s Class of 2023 and the program details here.