Government invites startups to build AR, VR software for India’s planetariums

The Indian government is inviting startups and tech entrepreneurs to build indigenous software for planetariums in the country. The government announced a challenge, called the Planetarium Innovation Challenge, which will be managed by MyGov, a citizen engagement platform under the MeitY. Startups and tech entrepreneurs are being invited to build augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality (MR) software that can be deployed in planetariums.

Registrations for the challenge are open till October 10, 2021 and the first, second and third prize winners will get cash prizes of Rs 5 lakh, Rs 3 lakh and Rs 2 lakh, respectively. “In addition to that the winners and participants will get the opportunity to meet peers in the field and get to know the latest advancement in the ecosystem,” the government said in a press release. 

“Some planetariums in India use outdated technology with no O.E.M. support available. At the same time, it has been observed that planetariums worldwide are making use of the latest technology (A.R., V.R. and M.R.) and making their planetarium systems mobile,” MyGov’s website for the challenge says. 

The challenge will have three stages and will require applicants to create a working prototype of their product. Three of the participants will be chosen for the prizes, based on their prototypes. “Selected participants may get a chance of a lifetime to deploy a fully functioning product based on their working prototype at planetariums,” the MyGov website said. The intellectual property rights will remain with the applicants. 

The Planetarium Innovation Challenge comes after challenges like the government’s Aatmanirbhar App Innovation Challenge last year, which was announced shortly after the government’s ban on Chinese apps. A second leg of this challenge, with a larger prize pool, was announced last month under the Amrit Mahotsav App Innovation Challenge, 2021.