Startup Grants & Funding for Equity-Free Startups

IIM Kashipur FIED invites Uttarakhand-based Agri-Startups for the RKVY-RABI Programme 2026, offering structured training, expert mentorship, incubation, and Grant-in-Aid up to ₹25 Lakhs.

A national challenge supporting climate-smart agricultural innovations for smallholder farmers in India, offering prizes, mentoring, market access, and opportunities for acceleration and significant follow-on funding.

A global prize by Wellcome and Nature for groundbreaking interventions in mental health science, offering up to ₹9.52 crore for a winner and ₹2.38 crore for finalists, along with significant visibility and support.

An early-stage fellowship program offering a monthly stipend and incubation support for individual innovators in Karnataka to develop ideas into prototypes.

Startup League 2026 is India's national DeepTech startup funding program by Startup Stairs, offering access to a ₹10 crore equity-free funding pool and investor connections.

India's largest hackathon on CCTV integration and AI video analytics by Gujarat Police, offering a ₹51 lakh prize pool to build real-world public safety solutions.

IDFC FIRST Bank and IIM Calcutta Innovation Park support 16 impact-driven startups building sustainable environmental solutions with grants up to ₹25 lakhs and 9 months of structured incubation.

An accelerator program supporting revenue-generating startups with scalable solutions that create measurable social and environmental impact, offering ₹20-25 Lakh grant support.

Google Gemini's student innovation challenge — reimagine one part of your city and win a share of ₹1 crore across 10 winners.

A national challenge inviting DPIIT-recognized startups to innovate solutions for street vendors in areas like financial management, sustainable packaging, and climate-resilient infrastructure, with grants up to ₹20 lakh and pilot opportunities.

The Entrepreneurship-in-Residence (EiR) Programme by IPTIF supports early-stage innovators developing sustainable, affordable, climate-responsive, and technology-driven solutions for housing and construction with a monthly grant and incubation support.

A global challenge prize offering up to £6.25 million (approx. ₹65.6 crore) to multi-disciplinary teams developing innovative solutions to improve outcomes for people affected by snakebite in high-burden settings.

PIEDS (BITS Pilani) × Aditya Birla Capital Foundation flagship for women-led startups from Tier 2/3 cities — up to ₹15 lakh funding, deadline 16 Sep 2026.

A global online hackathon hosted by Rice University focused on urban sustainability — ₹16.28 lakh prize pool.

A major global prize championing new interventions for anxiety, depression, and psychosis, offering up to US$1,000,000 (approx. ₹8.33 crore) to accelerate impact and policy prioritization.

ImpactNest 3.0 is a startup program by IIML EIC and BHARAT IMPACT offering up to ₹2.5 lakh in grant funding, mentorship, and market access for impact-driven ventures.

The MIDC Innovation Grand Challenge 2026 invites students, startups and innovators to put forward ready-to-implement solutions for pressing sustainability and infrastructure challenges in MIDC's industrial estates.

Grants of up to ₹50 lakh from C-CAMP and TANUH (IISc) for Indian startups building AI solutions for non-communicable diseases, from idea to deployment.

The iDEX Open Challenge invites Indian startups, innovators, and MSMEs to propose cutting-edge technologies and products for the defence and aerospace sectors, offering grants up to ₹1.5 crore and direct engagement with the military.

A global online hackathon by RevenueCat with a ₹3.95 crore prize pool — open to developers building mobile apps and games.

The AI for Transformative Social Impact Grant from Rao Family Trust (RAFT) offers up to INR 50 lakhs to organizations developing AI-native solutions for major social challenges in India.

Microsoft × FITT IIT Delhi zero-equity grant up to ₹30 lakh for AI startups ready to scale a local pilot nationally — IIT Delhi & Microsoft ecosystem, market validation and Demo Days.