Vel Tech Technology Business Incubator (Vel Tech TBI)

Incubation is the base programme every funding route here sits on top of. The incubator names two stages, pre-incubation and post-incubation, and describes eight ways to engage with it, of which the first is joining as a startup incubatee. Its homepage states there are no charges for incubation. Machine time in the thrust-area facilities is described separately as available at subsidised rates.

What you get

• Space, mentoring, networking and training
• Access to the e-waste and plastic waste recycling facility, the Manufacturing Centre of Excellence, the electronics manufacturing line, 3D printing, the non-destructive testing facility and the AI centre, at subsidised rates
• Training covering technology, innovation, GST, finance, e-commerce, digital transformation, bio-incubation and product management
• Partner offers including Google Cloud and AWS credits, Zoho apps, an Effitrac mini-ERP, Paytm, RBL Bank, IDFC First Bank and Bank of Baroda, YNOS Venture Engine, MathWorks and a Stanford Seed Spark cohort place
• A route into the five funding schemes the incubator runs

Who can apply

• Technology startups and innovators; the published incubatee list includes companies registered outside Tamil Nadu, and nothing on the incubator's pages limits intake to Vel Tech students, staff or alumni

How selection works: through the incubator's own selection process. Its NIDHI PRAYAS terms state that a grantee must be registered on the pre-incubation or incubation programme for the whole duration of the grant, after going through that process.

How to apply: fill the incubation application form on the incubator's site, or write to incubation@veltechtbi.com. The form asks for the promoter's details, the founder's PAN, the company name, registration number and date, type of company, sector, domain expertise and work experience, and says to mark anything not yet applicable as NA.

NIDHI PRAYAS exists to turn an idea into a working prototype, and Vel Tech TBI has run it as a PRAYAS centre since 2018. The incubator's page marks the Year 5 call as closed and publishes no next date, so treat this as between intakes and check before applying. Selected innovators get grant support, keep their own IP, and use the Vel Tech DST PRAYAS Shala fab lab.

What you get

• Grant support to build a prototype from an idea
• IP stays with the innovator or the startup
• Access to the PRAYAS Shala fab lab and the incubator's workshops
• A place on the incubator's pre-incubation or incubation programme for the length of the grant

Who can apply

• An Indian citizen with government-approved proof of nationality, at least 18 on the date of application
• An individual innovator, or a team that agrees who the lead innovator is
• A startup founder or co-founder, where the startup is incorporated in India, at least 51 per cent held by Indian citizens, not more than seven years from incorporation, and under a stated turnover cap in every year since inception
• Someone in employment or study at an R&D organisation or academic institution, with an NOC giving permission to apply, time to do the work, and IP vesting with the innovator
• Priority areas are manufacturing, agriculture, healthcare, clean-tech, energy, water and IoT. Pure software development, e-commerce, service solutions and app-based solutions are excluded, as is funding research or a student internship inside an institution.
• Not open to anyone already supported once under NIDHI PRAYAS, anyone supported under NIDHI-EIR in parallel, anyone employed with another incubator or PRAYAS centre, mentors active with the PRAYAS centre, the faculty in charge of the centre, or members of its programme management committee

How selection works: applicants must own the know-how and the IP, and show a roadmap towards commercialisation. Preference goes to innovators who have bootstrapped or hold a co-investment commitment, to women innovators and to young innovators. Selected grantees then go through the incubator's own selection process for the incubation place.

How to apply: contact the NIDHI PRAYAS manager at nidhiprayas@veltech.edu.in.

The Seed Support System is the step after incubation rather than a way in. It funds startups already sitting inside the incubator, to build prototypes, test markets and launch. Vel Tech TBI has run DST seed support since 2015. No dated call is published, so ask the seed support lead where the current round stands.

What you get

• Seed funding to build prototypes, test markets and launch products
• Mentors, domain experts and business advisory
• Infrastructure, technical facilities and co-working space inside the incubator
• Help with branding, customer outreach and go-to-market
• Introductions to investor networks, industry bodies and government schemes

Who can apply

• A company registered in India, preferably DPIIT-recognised or having applied for DPIIT recognition
• At least three months of association with the incubator on its resident or virtual incubation programme
• A demonstrated unique selling proposition, validated through customer interaction and market feedback
• Not an Indian subsidiary of a multinational or foreign corporation. OCI and PIO holders count as Indian citizens.
• Indian promoters holding at least 51 per cent of the equity

How selection works: preference goes to startups that have not already received funding from a central or state government agency.

How to apply: contact the Seed Support System lead at veltechtbi@veltech.edu.in.

Vel Tech TBI states that it is an approved TIDE 2.0 centre under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, through MeitY Startup Hub. There are two routes and one startup may apply for only one of them. The EiR route validates an idea into a proof of concept; the Grant route takes a proof of concept to a prototype or MVP. Both run twelve months, and the Grant can stretch to eighteen with committee approval. No current intake date is published.

What you get

• EiR route: a fellowship to validate and develop an idea into a proof of concept, over twelve months, with mentors, networks and other founders around you
• Grant route: support to take a proof of concept to a prototype or MVP, with product development help, technical experts and mentoring
• Infrastructure, co-working space, lab and workshop facilities, utilities, pre-incubation services and networking
• Introductions to angel and venture investors

Who can apply

• EiR: graduation completed by the date you accept the position; an Indian citizen with government-approved proof of nationality; under 35; willing to be a physical incubatee for the whole idea-development period; must register your own company within three months of acceptance
• Grant: an Indian citizen with government-approved proof of nationality; under 35; an individual innovator or a startup less than two years old at the date of application; if not yet a company, willing to incorporate within two months of acceptance
• Both routes cover ICT startups using emerging technologies such as IoT, AI, blockchain and robotics, in healthcare, education, agriculture, financial inclusion including digital payments, infrastructure and transportation, environment and clean tech, clean energy, and other emerging areas
• Neither route is meant as a stop-gap between jobs or during studies, and the terms say so

How selection works: preference goes to women entrepreneurs, to ideas with a granted, published or provisional patent, and to well-structured dedicated teams working on the innovation.

How to apply: write to incubation@veltechtbi.com or mshtide@veltech.edu.in.

The Startup India Seed Fund Scheme is DPIIT's seed fund, disbursed to startups through incubators it has selected. Vel Tech TBI has run it since 2021, with a senior manager and an inbox of its own, and publishes a seed fund application guide. Money comes in two forms, grant and convertible debenture, and covers proof of concept through commercialisation. No dated call is published, so ask before you build an application.

What you get

• Financial assistance for proof of concept, prototype development, product trials, market entry and commercialisation, as grant and as convertible debenture
• Strategic partner offerings including Google Cloud credits, Zoho apps, bank accounts with RBL, Bank of Baroda and DBS, Paytm, Resileo Labs, YNOS Venture Engine, Effitrac, Stanford Seed Spark, Wadhwani Foundation and MathWorks
• Marketing, training and workshops with Sri Ramachandra Hospital and Kauvery Hospital

Who can apply

• A startup recognised by DPIIT, incorporated not more than two years ago at the time of application
• A business idea for a product or service with market fit, viable commercialisation and scope to scale
• Technology in the core product, service, business model, distribution model or methodology
• Not having taken more than a stated ceiling of monetary support under any other central or state government scheme. Prize money, subsidised working space, a founder monthly allowance, lab access and prototyping access do not count against it.
• Indian promoters holding at least 51 per cent at the time of application

How selection works: preference goes to startups solving problems in social impact, waste management, water management, financial inclusion, education, agriculture, food processing, biotechnology, healthcare, energy, mobility, defence, space, railways, oil and gas, and textiles.

How to apply: contact the SISFS senior manager at sisfs@veltech.edu.in. The incubator's page also links a seed fund application guide.

The Innovation Voucher Programme is run by the Entrepreneurship Development and Innovation Institute of Tamil Nadu, with Vel Tech TBI as its knowledge partner. Two vouchers are available: one for early ideation and prototype work, one for commercialisation. The incubator's page announces the 2024-25 round and gives no closing date, so confirm the round is live before applying.

What you get

• Voucher A, for early-stage ideation and prototype development: feasibility studies, design research and market analysis
• Voucher B, for commercialisation: product testing, certification, prototyping and IP filing
• The incubator's own technical help as knowledge partner

Who can apply

• Tamil Nadu-based manufacturing MSMEs
• A CIBIL score of 750 or above
• Willing to co-finance as per the programme's norms
• No prior contract with the knowledge partner
• Focus sectors are agritech, healthtech, deep tech, waste management, engineering, energy and nano-tech

How to apply: send your willingness to incubation@veltechtbi.com or mshtide@veltech.edu.in, and register on EDII-TN's own portal.