Startup Odisha to feature on CII’s Corporate-Startup Connect Platform CII ICONN

In an effort to provide startups in Odisha with a strong corporate connection, Startup Odisha has reached an agreement with the Confederation of Indian Industry - Centre of Excellence for Innovation, Entrepreneurship & Startups (CII- CIES) whereby Startup Odisha will feature on CII ICONN Platform, a one of its kind, industry led platform for the startup ecosystem to catalyse collaboration between corporates, startups and other key players of the startup ecosystem. This arrangement allows Odisha Startups to showcase their leading innovations to Industry leaders, foster collaboration with Corporates, and work in close consonance with other stakeholders of the Startup Ecosystem and fast track their growth to a global scale.

A Letter of Intent (LoI) to this effect was shared between Startup Odisha Executive Chairman Dr. Omkar Rai and Chairman CII-CIES Mr. Kris Gopalakrishnan at CII Startup Summit in New Delhi on Wednesday.  CII ICONN platform will provide Startup Odisha with a pavilion for Startups from O-Hub (the Incubation Centre), help it organize exclusive sessions to promote services offered by Startup Odisha, organize startup pitch presentation sessions, have discussion sessions for startups, and enable participation in Corporate Accelerator Programs etc.

Speaking at the inaugural session of the CII Startup Summit in New Delhi on Wednesday, Startup Odisha Executive Chairman Dr. Omkar Rai said that Startup Odisha is trying to bring excellence, inculcate best practices, and give wide exposure to the Startup ecosystem in Odisha to make it dynamic and vibrant. “Our startup Policy is best-in-class and is currently under revision, we are making it more futuristic so that we can meet the emerging challenges and needs, and the startup ecosystem of Odisha is able to position itself among the top three startup ecosystems in the country by 2025 as envisioned by Hon’ble CM of Odisha Shri Naveen Patnaik Ji,” said Dr. Omkar Rai.

He further emphasized the importance of having a strong rural innovation ecosystem and Startup ecosystem in tier-II & tier-III cities, one that is well-connected with corporates and unicorns.

Present on the occasion were Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Union Minister of State for Entrepreneurship, Skill Development, Electronics & Technology; Mr. Kris Gopalakrishnan, Chairman CII CIES & co-founder Infosys; Ms. Aastha Grover, Head, Startup India; Ms. Anu Sriram, Chairperson, CII Women in Innovation Steering Committee; Mr. CK Ranganathan, Chairman, CII Startupreneur Awards 2022 and Chairman and Managing Director CavinKare Pvt Ltd;  Dr. Chintan Vaishnav, Mission Director, Atal Innovation Mission; and other dignitaries.

Startup Odisha has over 1600 startups from across various sectors registered with it and out of which over 40 percent are women-led.

Working on the vision of Hon’ble Chief Minister Shri Naveen Patnaik on a mission mode, Startup Odisha is pulling all stops to make its place among the top three startup ecosystems in the country by 2025 and be a 5000+ strong startup ecosystem by then.

Of late, several key initiatives undertaken by Startup Odisha are spurring the culture of startup, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the State and are futuristic. The one that deserves special mention is the proposed setting up of a Draper Startup House in Odisha. Bitcoin billionaire investor Tim Draper, known for his early bets in breakthrough tech companies also backs startups in a big way. ‘Draper Startup House’ supports startup entrepreneurs across the world, with a vision and mission to one million entrepreneurs by 2030.

Also, Startup Odisha has engaged with SIDBI and would be utilizing its expertise and resources to provide a fillip to the startup ecosystem in Odisha and have a resilient management apparatus with financial management as one of the facets. Startup Odisha would work in tandem with SIDBI to foster growth verticals for the startup ecosystem in Odisha.

Also, the proposed Centre of Excellence (CoEs) at O-Hub, the Incubation space that sprawls over 4 lakh square feet would propel the growth of startups, including the new-age ones, and promotes innovation with best-in-class facilities at par with global standards. It is also pertinent to mention about Fund-of-Funds or Odisha Startup Growth Fund that Startup Odisha banks upon for fostering the growth of startups in the state. The corpus has been growing exorbitantly since its inception which shows the increasing trust of investors in the potential and scalability of startups in Odisha.