AIC-NIFIE Incubation Foundation for Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Pick the right route

• You have an idea or a lab proof of concept, and no company yet: the Spark pre-incubation programme is the route built for you.
• You have a registered company or LLP and a working prototype: the physical incubation call is the route to apply for.
• You need a remote programme because you cannot take physical space: ask about virtual incubation.

How applications work

• The incubation call is applied for through the form linked from its announcement page. Scan the QR code there or open the link directly.
• Submit your startup details with your pitch deck through that form.
• For questions before you apply, write to AIC-NIFIE@iimmumbai.ac.in.
• The Spark and virtual programmes publish no form or intake date, so the email address is the route to ask.

How selection works

• Startups present their proposal to a selection committee.
• Selected startups sign an agreement with AIC-NIFIE and IIM Mumbai and submit the required documents.
• Funding for selected projects is decided on merit, looking at novelty, feasibility, scaling and commercial viability.

What reviewers look for

• A product that is at proof-of-concept, lab-demonstration or prototype stage.
• Patents or copyrights, which the call says are preferred.
• Novelty, feasibility, scaling potential and commercial viability, which the call names as its merit criteria.

AIC-NIFIE is a technology business incubator run from inside the Indian Institute of Management Mumbai (IIM Mumbai) in Powai, Mumbai. It is a Section 8 company that administers the incubator and describes its aim as start-to-scale support for technology-based entrepreneurship.

The site says it turns research activity into new ventures. It also names the Atal Incubation Centre and NITI Aayog among its supporters, alongside IIM Mumbai.

How the programmes work

There are three routes. The Spark pre-incubation programme is for founders with an idea, or a lab proof of concept, who need a worked business plan. It covers idea validation, technology assessment, customer discovery, business model and value proposition work, and developing a proof of concept. Its duration is one year to begin with, and it can be extended on request for a further year.

Physical incubation is the full office-based route. Selected companies get structured mentoring, access to third-party service providers, funding support, hands-on guidance and access to a network of co-founders, mentors, investors and service providers. It also runs for one year initially, with the option of a further year on request.

Virtual incubation is for startups that do not get physical space at the incubator. It offers remote support on the same subjects: advice, referrals, mentoring, and help with grants and funding schemes.

Who can apply

The incubation call is open to startups from any sector. Its eligibility rules are that the startup must be registered as a Private Limited Company or LLP, and that the product must be at proof-of-concept, lab-demonstration or prototype stage. Patents or copyrights are preferred, and the call sets a limit on how much the startup may have raised before applying.

The site does not state a fee or an equity term for any of its three routes, so ask before assuming either way.

The Spark programme sets different rules. It is open to founders who have recently formed a legal entity in India, and to founders who have not formed one yet. A founder without a company should check which route fits before applying.

Facilities and support

Physical incubation includes air-conditioned, closed-cabin office space intended for startup companies, with electrical power connections and free wireless internet. The internet runs on an IIM Mumbai leased circuit.

Support covers mentoring for business planning, guidance on applying for grants, and access to patent attorneys and patent filing organisations. Founders also get access to company formation organisations. The site lists chartered accountants and company secretary firms among its expert third-party services.

The site also runs expert lecture sessions for founders. Past sessions covered fundraising, startup legal essentials, intellectual property in funding and marketing for early-stage teams.

Scale

The inauguration announcement says 14 startups were already onboard. It does not give a date for that figure.

Who runs it

The incubator has a board of directors and a group of external board members, all named on the site. The board oversees the incubator, and the site lists the external members separately from the IIM Mumbai members. Prof. Manoj K. Tiwari, Director of IIM Mumbai, appears in the announcement of the incubator's inauguration.

Getting in touch

All enquiries go to AIC-NIFIE@iimmumbai.ac.in, the address shown on every page of the site. Read the incubation call in full before you apply, because it lists the documents and the signed agreement that a selected startup must provide.

Locations

The incubator's office is on the fourth floor of the IRC building on the IIM Mumbai campus, Vihar Lake Road, Powai, Mumbai. The campus also supplies the office internet through a leased circuit.