THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) is launching a two-year structured incubation program for startups stitching together various government schemes available for startups. Startups will benefit from curated industry participation and mentoring, national and international exposure programmes, access to government grants and funding, and investor networking opportunities.
The program will kick off in Thiruvananthapuram in the first week of January. Startups should apply through the KSUM website by December 10 for this program. Shortlisted startups will be notified through mail by December 16. Final selection pitch will be held in Thiruvananthapuram on December 21.
Induction Program for the selected startups will be held from January 8 to 12. The subsequent months will have Sector Connect programs, Demo Days and other networking and community events. Every three month, the performance of the startups will be assessed, based on which, they will be provided idea, product and growth acceleration. “Startups are expected to graduate in 9-12 months. But startups that have longer development and sales cycles can continue in the program for up to 2 years.” said Ashok Panjikaran, Manager at KSUM.
The KSUM, a nodal agency of the Kerala government for entrepreneurship development and incubation activities in the state, is in advanced talks with a few global incubators and accelerators to run this program in Thiruvananthapuram. Similar programs will be launched in partnership with reputed startup ecosystem enablers in Kochi and Kozhikode subsequent to this program. Startups incubated through this program will be able to work from KSUM’s co-working spaces, which includes both plug and play desks and cabins, in Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Calicut.
Startups, registered as a Pvt. Ltd. company or a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP), can attend the program. If any of the selected startups have not registered their companies, they would be required to do so before January 31 next year and KSUM will facilitate necessary assistance for this.
The core team of a startup should have more than one founder. Single-member teams that get selected will be expected to add more founders with complementing skills within the first few months of the program.
For more details, visit: https://startupmission.kerala.gov.in/incubation
