Incubation at AIIRF

AIIRF's core offer is residency at its centre on the Annamalai University Engineering Campus. There is no cohort and no intake window — the registration form is simply open, and the foundation assesses applications as they arrive.

What you get

• Access to AIIRF's own equipment: FDM and DLP 3D printers, a LiDAR 3D scanner, an AR/VR workbench, an electronics bench and a mechanical bench, plus a brushless DC motor test rig and an electric two-wheeler chassis dynamometer.
• Access to Annamalai University's laboratories for research and development, and testing and product certification through the host institution.
• Fully furnished co-working desks with internet, available at a rental charge.
• Mentoring through the Mentor Connect programme, matching you with domain experts.
• Help generating seed funding and applying for government innovation grants, including the Tamil Nadu innovation voucher route.
• Company incorporation, Startup India and DPIIT recognition, and intellectual property filing support.
• The option to hire an Annamalai University student as an intern for your project.
• Market linkage through workshops, interface meetings, conferences and investor interactions, and product showcase slots at national and international expos.

Who can apply

• Students and research scholars at Annamalai University.
• Founders from outside the university — individuals, small MSMEs, rural self-help groups and women entrepreneur aspirants. You do not need a university connection.
• Ventures in smart and advanced manufacturing, life sciences, or water and environment technologies. AIIRF says it is not limited to those and can also support agriculture, electronics, artificial intelligence, internet of things, e-commerce, information and communication technology and financial applications.
• You can apply before you incorporate — the form accepts unregistered organisations — but a certificate of incorporation is on the document list.

How selection works: AIIRF does not publish this. Its form refers to a company being approved for incubation, but names no committee, criteria or timeline. Ask.

How to apply: Complete the incubatee registration form on the AIIRF website — not the short enquiry form the home page's apply button points to. You will need a certificate of incorporation, a business plan on AIIRF's own slide template, founder and co-founder resumes, a passport photo, a one-page product and company profile, and a pitch deck. The form ends with a declaration that you accept the incubation agreement, including the monthly incubation services cost, once approved.