AIC-BIMTECH

Khoj is where AIC-BIMTECH's own pipeline starts. It is run online, it is open to entrepreneurs at any stage, and it is aimed at people who have a business idea but are not sure what to do next. It is the only programme on the centre's site that states an equity position, and that position is that it takes none. When we last checked, the page said applications were being prepared and the form would open shortly.

What you get

• Help turning an idea into a business plan you can act on
• How to actually set a company up
• Sessions with subject-matter experts on each part of a business
• Introductions to the centre's experts and mentors
• Incubatee benefits, a glossary and sample documents
• Co-working, charged separately

Who can apply

• Aspiring entrepreneurs and anyone with a business idea; the centre says entrepreneurs at any stage can register
• No incorporation, sector or student requirement is stated

How selection works: apply, then screening, then shortlisting, then Khoj, then incubation.

How to apply: through the apply button on the programmes page when it opens. In the meantime, ask at team@aicbimtech.com.

Prarambh is the second step in AIC-BIMTECH's own pipeline, for startups that have come through Khoj. Be aware that the centre's programmes page has not finished writing it up: the text where Prarambh's description should be is an unfinished editing note, so the only real description anywhere on the site is the one-line card on the homepage, which calls it an eight-week incubation covering mentoring, market strategy and early-stage acceleration. It publishes no eligibility, no fee and no equity position. When we last checked, the page said applications were being prepared.

What you get

• The same list the centre gives for all four of its in-house programmes: business-plan help, company formation, expert sessions, mentor introductions, incubatee benefits and sample documents
• Co-working, charged separately

Who can apply

• Startups that have completed Khoj; nothing further is stated

How to apply: through the apply button on the programmes page when it opens. Given how thin the published detail is, ask what the eight weeks actually involve, and what it costs, before committing.

Gurukul is AIC-BIMTECH's accelerator for startups that already have customers and want to get to self-sustainability. The work is on strengthening sales, tightening operations and opening new markets through partnerships, with investor exposure and one-to-one mentoring alongside. B2B introductions come through the centre's collaborations with local conglomerates, professional associations and government agencies. When we last checked, the page said applications were being prepared.

What you get

• Sales strengthening and operations support
• Market expansion through new networks and partnerships
• One-to-one mentoring
• Exposure to investors
• B2B connections through corporate, association and government collaborations
• Co-working, charged separately

Who can apply

• Startups past MVP or at an advanced product stage
• Revenue must already be coming in
• The company must be registered as a private limited
• DPIIT recognition is required by the time of final selection
• Sector agnostic — all sectors are eligible

How selection works: apply, screening, then shortlisting.

How to apply: through the apply button on the programmes page when it opens, or ask at team@aicbimtech.com. Neither a fee nor an equity position is published, so get both in writing.

Udaan is described as a standalone funding programme: the centre's team works to give founders as much exposure to the investor community as it can, across several venture capital funds. It is the least documented of the four in-house programmes — no eligibility, no stage, no duration, no fee and no equity position is published, and the funds are not named. When we last checked, the page said applications were being prepared.

What you get

• Introductions to venture capital funds and wider investor exposure
• The centre's standard list of business-plan, expert-session and mentor benefits
• Co-working, charged separately

How to apply: through the apply button on the programmes page when it opens. Ask at team@aicbimtech.com which funds are involved before you plan around it.

GENESIS is the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology's programme for startups in Tier-II and Tier-III cities, and in October 2024 the MeitY Startup Hub selected AIC-BIMTECH as one of its implementing agencies. The Entrepreneur in Residence track is for founders validating an idea: structured incubation, mentorship and capacity building, with milestone-based financial support that goes only to DPIIT-registered startups. The first cohort is complete — the centre names Green Gum, Milk Express, Spurti Express and Accilives as its members — and the page now offers a waitlist for the next one.

What you get

• Structured incubation and scale-up mentorship
• Access to facilities, testing and technical guidance to validate a prototype
• Mentoring from industry experts, founders and technology leaders
• Introductions to investors, corporates and global forums
• Milestone-based financial support for DPIIT-registered startups

Who can apply

• Indian citizens aged 18 or over, working on this full time
• Students, aspiring entrepreneurs and DPIIT-recognised founders
• An idea at ideation or validation stage, with innovation, scalability and regional impact
• A company registered as a private limited or an LLP

How to apply: through the application form linked from the centre's GENESIS page. That form is closed between cohorts; join the waitlist on the page, or ask at team@aicbimtech.com.

This is the second GENESIS component AIC-BIMTECH runs. It backs startups with a market-ready product to run a real pilot with a corporate, a public-sector undertaking or a large enterprise, so they come out with commercial traction rather than a demo. The centre frames it around electronics design and manufacturing, artificial intelligence and IT, and deep-tech and digital transformation. The first cohort is closed, with a waitlist for the next.

What you get

• Financial support for the pilot deployment and the validation work around it
• Strategic mentorship from industry experts and ecosystem partners
• Introductions to corporates, investors and government agencies
• Founder development sessions and technical support

Who can apply

• DPIIT-recognised, registered as a private limited company or an LLP
• A functional prototype or MVP ready to deploy
• A viable business and commercialisation plan
• A pilot work order or purchase order already in hand from an eligible buyer
• A full-time founder or co-founder actively involved
• Startups previously supported under TIDE 2.0 or SAMRIDH are not eligible

How to apply: through the application form linked from the pilot funding page. It is closed between cohorts; join the waitlist there, or ask at team@aicbimtech.com.

The third GENESIS component matches money you have already raised from an institutional investor, rupee for rupee up to a ceiling, to help a startup outside the metros scale. It is explicitly equity-based support, not a grant, so treat it as an investment round rather than a subsidy. The first cohort is complete and the page offers a waitlist.

What you get

• Matching investment on a one-to-one basis against eligible external investment you have raised
• Support delivered as equity participation

Who can apply

• Registered as a private limited company in India
• At least 51 percent Indian ownership
• Headquartered in a Tier-II or Tier-III city
• A valid DPIIT recognition certificate
• A market-ready product with commercialisation potential; granted patents are preferred
• No live legal disputes
• Startups previously supported under TIDE 2.0 scale-up or SAMRIDH are not eligible

How to apply: join the waitlist on the matching fund page, or write to team@aicbimtech.com. The page's own apply button currently only scrolls to that waitlist.

SAMRIDH is the electronics ministry's accelerator for product startups that are already growing, and AIC-BIMTECH has been selected by the MeitY Startup Hub as an implementing agency for it. The programme runs for six months and is built around refining the value proposition, speeding up market adoption and getting investor-ready. Investment comes through the centre's own investor and venture partner network, with MeitY Startup Hub matching it on the same terms, using convertible instruments. The current cohort is complete and the page offers a waitlist.

What you get

• Investor connect and fundraising support
• Mentorship from industry leaders, founders and domain experts
• Startup clinics and pitch-readiness workshops
• Customer and corporate market access
• International market exposure and ecosystem connections
• Go-to-market and scaling support

Who can apply

• Growth-stage and scale-up-stage technology startups
• Themes named include fintech, insurtech, agritech, blockchain, edtech, sustainability, supply chain, AR and VR, health tech, big data, biotechnology and IT-enabled solutions with socio-economic impact

How to apply: join the waitlist on the SAMRIDH page, or write to team@aicbimtech.com.

AIC-BIMTECH was picked by Startup India and Invest India in 2021 as one of the incubators disbursing the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme, the DPIIT programme that funds proof of concept, prototyping, product trials and market entry. The centre says it evaluated a very large volume of applications and backed 61 startups through the scheme. Its page now shows applications closed.

What you get

• Grant support for proof of concept and prototyping, and investment support for commercialisation and scaling
• Investment delivered through convertible debentures
• Mentorship, infrastructure and incubation support through the recognised incubator

Who can apply

• DPIIT-recognised startups incorporated within the last two years
• You must not have taken more than a limited amount of support under other government schemes
• Sector agnostic

How selection works: shortlisted startups may be invited to an evaluation and pitching session with the incubator.

How to apply: get DPIIT recognition, create a profile on the national seed fund portal, then apply to a recognised incubator with your business details, innovation overview and funding requirement. Watch the centre's page for its next window.

StartInUP is the Uttar Pradesh government's startup scheme, and AIC-BIMTECH is one of the incubators a founder can choose as their partner when applying. This was the only route on the centre's site shown as open when we last checked. The state scheme carries its own support, and the centre handles the incubation side and helps with the paperwork.

What you get

• A monthly sustenance allowance for eligible founders
• Prototype grant support and seed capital assistance, plus support for branding and outreach
• Reimbursement for filing Indian and international patents
• Incubation and infrastructure access, and ecosystem guidance
• Reimbursement for taking part in national and international events
• Extra support for startups founded or co-founded by women, divyangjan and transgender founders, and for startups based in the Purvanchal or Bundelkhand regions

Who can apply

• Startups at early and growth stages applying through the Uttar Pradesh portal; eligibility is set by the state scheme

How to apply: go to the StartInUP portal, complete the startup application, choose Atal Incubation Centre - BIMTECH as your incubation partner, and submit it for evaluation. Questions go to team@aicbimtech.com.

The Ministry of MSME's Idea Hackathon is a national competition that funds ideas and puts them into incubation through approved host institutes. AIC-BIMTECH describes its own role here as an ecosystem enabler rather than an approved host institute, and points applicants at the ministry's portal to pick one. Registration for this edition is closed and the entries are with the ministry.

What you get

• Financial assistance per approved idea
• Prototype development support
• Incubation and mentoring through an approved host institute
• Access to startup ecosystem networks

Who can apply

• Indian citizens aged 18 to 60
• Students, innovators, startups and entrepreneurs, applying under one of three categories: MSME, student, or others
• Students need a valid student ID for the current financial year, and everyone needs government-issued identity proof
• Themes named are low-carbon and sustainable technologies, cyber defence and surveillance, Industry 4.0 and 5.0 for MSMEs, coastal and hilly area sustainability, and smart and resilient supply chains

How to apply: through the ministry's national innovation portal, selecting a host institute and a category, then submitting your idea.

Seed Spark is an online entrepreneurship course from Stanford Graduate School of Business and Stanford Seed. AIC-BIMTECH hosts it locally and reviews applications alongside the Seed Spark team. It is a certified, sector-agnostic course for founders with a working product, taught over a series of steps from identifying the customer problem through to pitching, ending in a competition and certification. It carries a course fee and takes five to eight hours a week. One caution: the cohort dates printed on the page are old and contradict each other, and its apply buttons do not lead anywhere, so confirm the next intake by email before planning around it.

What you get

• A structured course taking you from customer problem to a tested prototype, a go-to-market plan, a profit model and a pitch
• Mentoring, fundraising guidance and networking
• Certification and entry to the Seed Spark network

Who can apply

• A founder or co-founder working on this full time
• A prototype or MVP already built
• A registered business with clean financial records
• A working website; a LinkedIn presence helps
• Actively looking to grow or raise
• A revenue ceiling applies — check the current figure with the centre

How selection works: applications are reviewed by AIC-BIMTECH with the Seed Spark team, and eligibility and readiness are checked before final selection.

How to apply: write to team@aicbimtech.com to ask about the next intake.