IIT Madras' Incubation Cell incubates 511 deep-tech startups with a combined value of ₹53,000 crore in 12 years

The Indian Institute of Technology, IIT Madras’ Incubation Cell (IITMIC), has crossed a landmark milestone by incubating more than 500 deep-tech startups since its inception 12 years ago. To date, IITMIC has incubated a total of 511 startups, with a combined valuation exceeding ₹53,000 crore based on their most recent Venture Capital funding rounds, and generating over 11,000 direct jobs, a statement from IIT Madras said.

IITMIC-supported startups are building deep intellectual property in some of the hardest sectors — ranging from orbital launch vehicles with reusable propulsion systems and organ-on-chip platforms to electric mobility (from e-scooters to flying taxis), underwater robotics, quantum security, semiconductor, climate-tech and advanced AI products.

"The IITMIC today is incubating over 100 new startups annually - a significant leap from earlier annual averages of 60 per year. While the innovation and pre-incubation ecosystem within the IIT-Madras campus continues to generate a strong pipeline of innovative/IP-led startups, founded largely by students, faculty and alumni of IIT-Madras (accounting for 39% of our current portfolio), we also actively onboard high-potential startups from across India (61% of our current portfolio). This reflects the maturity of the IITM ecosystem and the confidence it inspires among deep-tech founders nationwide to build, scale and thrive”, Dr. Tamaswati Ghosh, Chief Executive Officer, IITMIC, said.  

“As we mark this 500-startup milestone in our 13th year, IITMIC has already produced two unicorns, one IPO, and several companies poised to cross the billion-dollar valuation threshold or prepare for public listings in the near future. These successes are emerging from some of the hardest sectors, reinforcing the depth of our innovation model, and the support ecosystem of the larger IITM community in India and beyond, who are directly or indirectly providing the needed advantage to our startups”, he added.

In FY 2024-25, the incubator achieved a historic milestone of incubating 100+ new deep tech startups under its “Startup Shatam” mission in the financial year 2024-25, and continues to screen more than 100 new startup applications every month in the current financial year.  

IITMIC continues to provide lifecycle support to its startups, enabling them to validate core science and technology, build MVPs rapidly, conduct early industry pilots, strengthen governance, and gain early and sustained access to smart capital and strategic partners. These companies also benefit from IIT Madras’ strong institutional backbone and its global linkages, particularly in the US, Middle East, East Africa and ASEAN regions.