The Society for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (SINE), IIT Bombay’s technology business incubator, plans to support 1,000 startups over the next 10 years. This is a big jump from the 245 it has helped over the past 20 years. To reach this goal, SINE will launch a Rs 100-crore venture capital fund.
The fund will focus on deep tech startups in key areas such as biotech, space, defence, and sustainability. IIT Bombay alumni are expected to back the fund. SINE has a strong track record.
It has supported 245 startups with an 80% survival rate. “SINE has incubated startups that have generated over 300 intellectual properties across critical sectors like ICT, healthcare, cleantech, and industrials. Several of these startups have grown into industry-leading companies,” said Santosh J.
Gharpure, Professor-in-Charge, SINE. The incubator has produced successful startups such as Gupshup, IdeaForge, ImmunoACT, Zeus Numerix, Sedemac, Atomberg, and SAFE Security.
SINE to support deep tech startups
It has also supported ventures in clean energy, agritech, and mobility. Together, these startups have raised $942 million and are valued at $3.56 billion. “To have a scalable impact, India needs to go from supporting 100 startups per million population to 1,000.
By leading the way, SINE hopes to emerge as an innovation and entrepreneurship powerhouse, focusing on democratizing entrepreneurship and providing quality access to coaching, capital, and connections to customers and the ecosystem,” said Shaji Varghese, CEO, SINE. SINE will celebrate its 20th anniversary by hosting ‘Innovation Nation: Leveraging India’s Talent and Entrepreneurial Spirit in the Era of Disruptive Technologies’ on November 28 and 29. The event will bring together thought leaders and policymakers to discuss India’s entrepreneurial potential.
SINE currently works with central ministries and corporates across IT, auto, and BFSI sectors. It offers resources like prototype labs, funding access, and high-end facilities at IIT Bombay. Its current startups, including Haystack Analytics (genomics), SustLabs (energy tech), and Inspecity (space tech), show SINE’s focus on supporting groundbreaking solutions for societal challenges.
“IIT Bombay has invested Rs 500 crore to create a world-class research facility, supporting R&D activities in emerging areas such as space, quantum computing, and electric mobility, among others. This will create a strong pipeline for SINE in the form of research ideas that have the potential to become bankable ventures,” said Professor Milind Atrey, Deputy Director (Academics, Research and Translation), IIT Bombay.
