DPIIT, Avaana set jury for deep tech challenge as 12 startups vie for support

DPIIT and Avaana Capital have picked 12 startups from more than 800 applications for the final stage of their Deep Tech Innovation Challenge, setting up a jury review that will test whether early technologies can find a route to commercial deployment.

The finalists, working across clean energy, health technology, manufacturing, artificial intelligence and space, will present to the Grand Jury on August 27. The 2025–26 challenge will conclude on September 11 at Vanijya Bhavan in Delhi, where the winners will be announced.

DPIIT and Avaana said the jury brings together leaders from government, industry, academia and investment. It is chaired by S Ramann, chairperson of the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority and former chairman of SIDBI. The panel includes DPIIT Additional Secretary Ateesh Kumar Singh, BIRAC Managing Director Dhananjay Tiwary, Maruti Suzuki India chief executive Hisashi Takeuchi, IDFC FIRST Bank chief executive V Vaidyanathan, former TCS chief executive Rajesh Gopinathan and Ather Energy cofounder Tarun Mehta. Anjali Bansal, partner at Avaana Capital, is the jury convener.

A wider test for frontier technologies

Singh said indigenous technology capacity in critical sectors was central to the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision. “By connecting breakthrough innovation with policy, industry, academia, and capital, the Grand Challenge helps advance India’s ambition to become a global hub for deep tech,” he said.

The finalists reflect the range of technologies seeking that support. ABX3 PV is developing lightweight solar modules for space and mobility applications, while CTRL+Z Energies is working on zinc ion energy storage as an alternative to lithium-ion batteries. Beyond Renewables focuses on recovering materials from retired solar panels.

In manufacturing and industrial technology, Maapan Labs is building spatial digital twins for aerospace environments, ThinkMetal is advancing metal additive manufacturing, PlasmaZen is developing real time manufacturing metrology, and Nirixense Technologies is working on structural health monitoring. BioLOCKEY Healthworks and SenseHealth are developing cancer screening and non-invasive disease screening tools, respectively. Paar Autonomy is building onboard artificial intelligence for unmanned systems, while Pramatra Space is targeting satellite quantum communications and Reeyam Engineering is developing high altitude platform station UAVs.

Bansal said the applicant pool demonstrated the breadth of Indian deep tech. “The depth and diversity of this year’s applicant pool reinforces our conviction in the world class deep tech being built from India, for the world,” she said.

Winners will receive equity free monetary awards, mentorship, industry pilot opportunities and access to follow on funding. The programme says its earlier editions have enabled about ₹2.5 crore in grants, with previous winners including CarbonStrong, Green Aero Propulsion and Nabhdrishti Aerospace progressing after the challenge.