IIT Madras Organises Fourth Annual GDC Event Promoting Entrepreneurship Among Academics

IIT Madras: The fourth Annual GDC Symposium, themed ‘Igniting the Entrepreneurial Spirit in Academia,’ was held at IIT Madras. The event focused on exploring the challenges that hinder the emphasis on developing an entrepreneurial mindset within academic circles in current policies and programs. Check details here  

IIT Madras Organises Fourth Annual GDC Event

The Gopalakrishnan-Deshpande Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (GDC) at IIT Madras conducted its fourth Annual GDC Symposium, centred on the theme ‘Igniting the Entrepreneurial Spirit in Academia’. The symposium addressed the barriers hindering the development of an entrepreneurial mindset in academia through policies and programs. The event brought together a group of scientists, policymakers, entrepreneurs, and investors, and was attended by faculty, researchers, students, and entrepreneurs.

GDC's track record of deep tech startups, originating from local STEM research and tackling India's major socio-economic issues, demonstrates the potential for a 10X scale-up to significantly impact the nation. The Annual Symposium aims to discuss strategies for achieving this through government and industry support, policy enhancements, and a shift in universities' approach to innovation and entrepreneurship.

Delivering the Keynote Address, Dr. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, said, “The Anusandhan National Research Foundation (NRF) Bill has been approved by the Indian Parliament. The DST is the nodal Ministry and we are in the process of operationalizing the ANRF. This ANRF has been our Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision to upscale our R&D and innovation ecosystem infrastructure in the country. The Mission Governing Board of ANRF is going to be directly chaired by our Hon’ble Prime Minister. DST currently funds basic R&D research through SERB, which will get subsumed into the ANRF. The ANRF will be the primary body for funding R&D Programs, Technology Development Programs, incubation, start-ups and innovation programs in the country. It will be a professionally-managed body with a full-time CEO.”

Further, Dr. Abhay Karandikar said, “Another area where DST is taking lead role is geospatial data. The Government of India has liberalized the Geospatial data access. As part of the Geospatial Data Policy, we are now welcoming the participation of the private sector in this area. We will be setting up a 'Geospatial Data Exchange and have a universal geospatial interface where the industries can access and share the data. There is big opportunity in terms of Geospatial Data Science and Geospatial Computing.”

GDC has collaborated with about 100 STEM institutions and incubators, supporting and guiding over 375 start-ups. Notably, more than 120 start-ups nurtured through GDC's programs have gone to market with their innovations, with many securing external funding exceeding Rs. 100 crores. The centre has been funded by grants from three illustrious alumni of IIT Madras - Dr. Gururaj Deshpande, Mrs. Jaishree Deshpande and Mr. ‘Kris’ Gopalakrishnan.

Established in 2017 at IIT Madras, the GDC aims to promote innovation in STEM universities across India. It focuses on transforming scientific research into marketable solutions through deep tech startups. GDC's interaction with over 375 deep-tech startups has revealed a key obstacle: the lack of certain skills among academics and scientists, contributing to the low commercialization rate of research in India.

To overcome the lack of an entrepreneurial mindset amongst academics, there is a need to vigorously promote and support entrepreneurship training in STEM institutions through policies, schemes, incentives, and financing. Over the past six years, GDC has launched its I-NDUCT, I-NCUBATE, I-NSPIRE, and I-GNITE programs, which have trained over 1,200 academic researchers seeking to establish 350+ start-ups. 

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