Startups must be legally registered in India, have at least a Minimum Viable Product (MVP), and be seeking investment up to ₹5 crore.

Your pitch deck and contact information will be shared with our strategic partner (Startup India). We also share this information internally and with our jury members. Please refer to the jury section to learn more about the jury members.

An internal committee from startup India will select the startups based on their applications and pitch decks. Startups with a WildCard can bypass the first round of this two-step process. At each pre-event, one startup from each category will be selected by the jury to advance to the finals in Bangalore.

The pre-events will take place offline in four cities in India:

- North Region: Delhi
- South Region: Hyderabad
- East Region: Assam
- West Region: Ahmedabad

A maximum of 12 startups will pitch at each pre-event for a chance to enter the finals in Bangalore.

Each startup will be allocated 3 minutes to pitch, followed by 2 minutes of Q&A with the jury.

The jury at all events consists of industry experts and seasoned entrepreneurs.

The winners of the pre-events will get the chance to pitch at the finals in Bangalore and will also receive prizes from our local partners.

The pre-events will include up to twelve startup pitches and a winner announcement, with short breaks in between. The finale will feature a fireside chat and the pitch competition. Each pre-event will last approximately three hours, and the finale will last about four hours. An exact schedule will be provided prior to the events. All events will conclude with a networking session.

The finals will be held in Bangalore. The exact venue will be announced soon.

The jury will evaluate based on the following criteria: idea, problem, market need, traction, competitive advantage, business plan, team, and the pitch presentation itself.

The winner of the Grand Finale will receive a 1 Crore prize in investment. This will either be in exchange for equity based on the most recent funding round or a convertible note, depending on the company’s size and funding status. They will also gain global exposure through media coverage and additional prizes from selected sponsors.

Yes, the entire event series is conducted in English, so all pitches must be in English.

Yes, you can submit a more detailed pitch deck during the application process and provide additional supporting documents. For the live pitches at the pre-events, you will be asked to submit a leaner/shorter pitch deck at a later stage.