Microsoft selects 54 startups from Tier 2 cities for accelerator programme

Microsoft has selected 54 startups from five Indian states -- Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Kerala, and Telangana -- for the fifth edition of ‘Highway to a Hundred Unicorns’, the Redmond-headquartered technology giant’s initiative for startups.

The top startups selected win Azure credits and a host of business and technology benefits, the company said in a statement.

The competition received over 530 applications. Microsoft revealed that the top three startups from each state will gain access to a year-long mentorship programme and a two-day founder boot camp.

The top three startups from each state are Spider G, Greenovative Energy, and Bharat Agri from Maharashtra; Rapidor, Genrobotic Innovation and Clap Research from Kerala; Locanix, Byte Prophecy, and Matrubharti from Gujrat; Wholesalebox, Bix42, and Dealshare from Rajasthan; and Eyedentify Systems, WeSecureApp and EasyCommute from Telangana.

Two startups, Wholesalebox and Rapidor, are among the participating startups in the programme that have received recent fresh funding from one of the participating investors, the statement added.

The Highway to a Hundred Unicorns is Microsoft’s initiative for startups which works closely with local governments to strengthen the startup ecosystem in each state. The company also said that over 150 innovators and entrepreneurs were engaged with Microsoft experts, industry stalwarts and ecosystem stakeholders, including members of the state government.

“The entrepreneurial energy of startups is rising well beyond the known metropolitan hubs and is remarkably high in tier 2 cities, despite the obvious challenges. Through Highway to a Hundred Unicorns, we’ve been able to reach some highly promising innovators from each of the five states. In the next phase of our journey, we look forward to engaging with more startups and accelerating their growth and providing them with Microsoft’s platform to go global,” said  Lathika Pai, country head, Microsoft for Startups - MENA and SAARC.

Microsoft for Startups is aimed at helping entrepreneurs build and scale their companies, by leveraging the cloud platform, enterprise sales team and partner ecosystem.

Earlier in the month, Swiss technology company Luxoft had announced a collaboration with Microsoft to accelerate the delivery of connected vehicle solutions and mobility experiences. Stockholm-based networking giant Ericsson and Microsoft had joined hands to accelerate delivery of connected car services, last year in December.