GSF Accelerator shortlists 5 startups for funding

GSF Accelerator, a part of the Global Super Angel Forum, has shortlisted five startups as its inaugural batch of finalists. Founded by former Reliance Entertainment president Rajesh Sawhney in  October, GSF Accelerator was launched with 15 startups.

At the GSF 2012 held in Gurgaon, the finalists were announced after due diligence by the super angels.

GSF Accelerator has got backing from 30 leading entrepreneurs including Naveen Tewari, CEO and founder of InMobi,

Avnish Bajaj, founder of venture fund Matrix Partners and the Indian auction site Bazee.com (which was later acquired by eBay), Sharad Sanghi, founder of Netmagic, and Atsushi San of Softbank. It is also being backed by VC funds including Kae Capital, Blume Ventures, Dave McClure's 500 Startups and Seedcamp of Europe.

The finalists, picked from a total of 15 startups (see full list here), will now pitch to the investors for funding. A look at tahe finalists:

Little Eye Labs: This startup is focussed on mobile app developers. Positioning it as B2D (business to

developers), Bangalore-based Little Eye Labs enables easy visualisations of the inner workings of a mobile app. This happens without changing the code or integration. The company calls it a CT scanner for Android apps.

Hacker Earth: It is a platform that enables companies to find right programming talent by putting real-world programming problems for coders. The engineering managers can create online programming tests across several programming languages and platforms and filter candidates based on results. An applicant's code is compiled, tested and evaluated using a range of metrics to help companies.

SharedCab: SharedCab aims to reduce the traffic on road as well as solve the commuting woes of citizens. Its technology matches routes and brings together travellers on a common route in real time.

Zapr: Zapr is a mobile app that aims to monetise by making TV ad viewing interactive. The viewers get points for checking in the ads they are watching, and earn them reward points.

Pokkt: It brings together two of the biggest drivers of digital business in India "the online services sector and the e-commerce players – to provide value to the end-customer. Pokkt.com is a transactional advertising platform that rewards customers with exclusive offers from online/offline retailers in return for sharing information with advertisers.

The funding process would ideally be completed before the year end, Sawhney informed.

Sawhney said it is not the end of the road for the 10 companies that didn't make it. "We will still help them to raise funds from elsewhere," he added.

(Edited by Prem Udayabhanu)