ELEVATE NXT 2026 Deeptech Grant-in-Aid Program — pitch deck format & template

What this deck has to do

Funding on offer

up to ₹1 crore

• Grant-in-aid of up to ₹1 crore, released against milestones
• Open to startups registered anywhere in India
• Applications 13 Oct to 13 Nov 2026, 5:00 PM IST
• Anonymous qualification round: Pitch Deck 1 carries no company name, logo or founder names
• Priority sectors include Quantum, Generative AI, Space, Semiconductors, Robotics, Energy & Climate and more; other DeepTech sectors can apply

Where your deck actually goes

Your deck is not read once. These are the stages ELEVATE NXT 2026 Deeptech Grant-in-Aid Program puts it through, and each has a different reader — which is why a deck that clears the first screen can still fail at the committee.

1. 1

   Online ApplicationYou

   Apply on the ELEVATE portal: company and founder details, a 200-word DeepTech justification, your TRL (3 to 8), the two pitch decks and all mandatory documents.

2. 2

   DeepTech Qualification ReviewProgramme

   Two jury members review the anonymous Pitch Deck 1 and your declared TRL. At least one must agree you are DeepTech; otherwise you are out, and the decision is final.

3. 3

   In-Person Pitch (Round 1)You

   Pitch your business model to the jury. A score of at least 60 out of 100 is needed to reach the Grand Finale.

4. 4

   Grand FinaleYou

   Final pitch. The final score is 40% Round 1 and 60% Grand Finale.

5. 5

   Winner Selection & GrantProgramme

   Winners are approved by the ELEVATE Evaluation Committee and receive milestone-based grant-in-aid of up to ₹1 crore. Winners registered outside Karnataka must move their registered office to Karnataka within 4 months of results.

Slide-by-slide: what to put in a ELEVATE NXT 2026 Deeptech Grant-in-Aid Program deck

1. 1.Title & one-line positioning

   Company name, a single sentence a non-specialist understands, and your contact details. Reviewers read dozens of decks in a sitting — make the category obvious in the first five seconds.

2. 2.Problem

   Who has this problem, how often, and what it costs them today. Quantify it with a source rather than an adjective.

   This program's screening explicitly weighs market size, so anchor the problem in an addressable number you can defend, not a global market headline.

3. 3.Solution & product

   What you built, shown rather than described — a screenshot, a photo of the device, a short demo frame. Keep the mechanism legible to a non-specialist reviewer.

   A working prototype is part of this program's eligibility, so show the actual artefact on this slide. A rendering or mock-up reads as not-yet-eligible.

4. 4.Technology & differentiation

   What is genuinely hard about this, and why a well-funded competitor cannot copy it in a quarter. IP, data advantage, or a technical moat.

5. 5.Traction & validation

   Whatever you actually have: pilots, letters of intent, users, revenue, clinical or field validation. Real small numbers beat impressive vague ones.

6. 6.Market & go-to-market

   Your addressable market, built bottom-up, and the first channel you will actually use to reach it.

7. 7.Team

   Why this team, for this problem. Name the relevant domain depth and the gaps you know you have.

8. 8.Use of funds & the ask

   The amount you are asking for, broken into the milestones it buys. Tie every line to something the reviewer can check later.

   This program funds up to ₹1 crore. Ask inside that band and show the milestones it buys — an ask above the published ceiling signals you have not read the guidelines.

9. 9.Milestones & roadmap

   What the next 12–18 months look like, with dated, checkable milestones rather than themes.

What gets decks rejected here

Ignoring the published format

ELEVATE NXT 2026 Deeptech Grant-in-Aid Program publishes a template, and reviewers score against the sections they asked for. Restructuring it into your investor deck makes their job harder and reads as though you did not open the file. Fill in their format; keep your own deck for investors.

An ask that ignores the published band

This programme funds up to ₹1 crore. An ask above that ceiling is one of the fastest screening-out signals there is, because it says you did not read the guidelines — and an ask with no milestone breakdown is nearly as bad, since the committee cannot check what the money buys.

A deck written for the wrong reader

Government and institutional programmes are not VCs. They are assessing feasibility, national or sectoral relevance and your ability to execute a funded plan, not just upside. A deck that leads with hockey-stick projections and thin technical substance performs worse here than one that leads with the problem, the evidence and a credible plan.

Numbers that disagree with each other

The figure on your ask slide, the total in your budget sheet and the amount on the application form must match exactly. Reviewers cross-check them, and a mismatch reads as carelessness on the one document where carelessness is least forgivable.

Leaving eligibility to inference

Screening is a filtering exercise before it is a judging one. State your eligibility explicitly and early rather than making a reviewer infer it.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an official pitch deck format for ELEVATE NXT 2026 Deeptech Grant-in-Aid Program?

Yes. ELEVATE NXT 2026 Deeptech Grant-in-Aid Program publishes its own pitch deck template, which you can download on this page with a free Startup Grants India account. Where a program publishes a format, use it as-is — reviewers score against the sections they asked for, and a restructured deck makes their job harder.

How many slides should a ELEVATE NXT 2026 Deeptech Grant-in-Aid Program pitch deck be?

If the program's own template sets a slide count, follow it exactly. Where it does not, 10–12 slides is the working norm for an early-stage application deck — enough to cover problem, solution, technology, traction, team and the ask without padding.

How much funding can I ask for in a ELEVATE NXT 2026 Deeptech Grant-in-Aid Program deck?

ELEVATE NXT 2026 Deeptech Grant-in-Aid Program funds up to ₹1 crore. Your ask slide should sit inside that band and break the amount into milestones. An ask above the published ceiling is one of the fastest ways to get screened out.

How is a ELEVATE NXT 2026 Deeptech Grant-in-Aid Program pitch deck evaluated?

Scored out of 100: Depth of research and development efforts (20), Strength of foundation and technical evaluation (20), Clarity of commercialisation strategy and business model (20), Potential socio-economic effect (20), Experience and expertise of the founding team (10), and Budgetary allocation and grant utilisation plan (10). Round 1 needs at least 60 to reach the Grand Finale. The final score…

Do I need to pay to download the template?

No. The template is free — you only need a free Startup Grants India account so we can keep the download available and tell you when this program's next cycle opens.