AlgoBharat and Telangana's T-Hub introduce a startup lab program for Web3 startups

Startups selected for the program will have the opportunity to access pre-seed funding from the Algorand Foundation.

Published: Feb 20, 2024 05:45:47 PM IST

Updated: Feb 20, 2024 05:52:57 PM IST

Startups that achieve significant milestones during the program will have the opportunity to receive pre-seed funding from the Algorand Foundation through its India fund. Image: Shutterstock

Algorand Foundation's initiative for India, AlgoBharat, recently unveiled its Algorand Startup Lab program in collaboration with T-Hub, the Telangana government-led tech incubator, with the aim of nurturing Web3 startups in India. This will be a year-long initiative that will provide support, including technical and business mentorship, as well as access to pre-seed funding, to twenty chosen startups as they progress towards achieving product-market fit.

The application process for the Startup Lab program is currently underway nationwide, with the deadline set for March 15, 2024. Following the closure of applications, the selected startups will be announced on March 18, with the program scheduled to commence on March 22 at T-Hub's innovation center in Hyderabad.

Web3 startups specialising in leveraging blockchain technology to bolster transparency and inclusivity across sectors like healthcare, supply chain, sustainability, financial inclusion, and agriculture are encouraged to join.

Startups that achieve significant milestones during the program will have the opportunity to receive pre-seed funding from the Algorand Foundation through its India fund.

Algorand Foundation will focus on providing technical and solution architecting support through mentors from its global team, while T-Hub will offer project management resources, business mentoring, and strategic guidance, along with introductions to potential corporate partners for product pilot testing.

The initiative follows the success of Algorand's Creating Impact Pitch Competition, which gave way to the Algorand Impact Summit in Delhi in December 2023. Staci Warden, CEO of the Algorand Foundation, is bullish on the Indian web3 landscape and has highlighted their ongoing developer-centric focus.

“We’ve seen that developers care about the quality of the protocol more than they care about how easy it is to build on the protocol,” said Staci at the Impact Summit. “And so we at the Foundation have made this our number one priority for 2023. And again, for 2024, to make the technology easy for developers. ”

Anil Kakani, VP and India Country Head at Algorand Foundation, expressed enthusiasm about the program and said, “We are looking forward to kickstarting the Algorand Startup Lab program for our Web3 startups in India at the world’s innovation hub and startup ecosystem.” With the T-Hub, “we see excitement from young developers to be working on a project that's somehow positively beneficial for our country.”

Dilip Chenoy, Chairman of the Bharat Web3 Association, called the initiative “a truly unique initiative aimed at nurturing and fostering the delicate Web3 ecosystem in India.” He added, “We really need more such initiatives across the country to push Web3 to greater heights, and we laud T-Hub as well as the Emerging Technologies Wing of the Government of Telangana for all they are doing for the sector.”

Shashank is the founder of yMedia. He ventured into crypto in 2013 and is an ETH maximalist.

Twitter: @bhardwajshash