(An initiative of BiT MESRA – Kolkata Chapter)
May 6: We are all aware of the Indian Start-Up Ecosystem having a boom time with record levels of Fundings, Success Stories and the highest no of Unicorns ever. Indian Start Ups raised $8.4 bn in Q1, 2022, a 22% growth YOY and India ranks 4th globally with as many as 96 unicorns (startups with valuations of 1 billion $ or more) – only behind The US, China and UK.
As the Entrepreneurship Journey becomes the preferred option for many young
Entrepreneurs rather than a stop-gap or fall-back option, there is one Incubation/Acceleration Program – BiT by Bit which caught our attention and is worth mentioning. Although this program is only for BiTians, we are sure the Alumnus of other Premier Institutions will soon start something similar and the Start-Up ecosystem will get a great boost.
What is BiT by BiT?
BIT is one of the premier Engineering Colleges in India and has one of the most prestigious & renowned Alumni spread across the world in different geographies and excelling in various domains. This is an attempt for aggregating the versatile talent pool of the BIT Alumnus and channelising the same to provide support to young BITians who are seriously considering Entrepreneurship as a preferred option. This is an opportunity to extend all required customised support to such BITians by providing them overall Mentorship, Technology Support, Market Connects, Access to Seed Funding and guiding them in the journey from Ideation Stage to Pre-Series A and beyond so that a commercially viable, technology-enabled, in long term a sustainable and exponentially scalable business venture is created. Hence it is an engagement of BIT by BIT.
Our Virtual Incubation & Acceleration
The engagement is Virtual and the interested BITians can contact the organizers at [email protected] and provide the required information as per a prescribed format. Based on the response, a customized program is developed for them and Mentors are assigned from the Alumnus Pool in the geography of their choice so that whenever required, a face to face interaction can be held at a mutually convenient place. An agreement is then entered and monthly/quarterly/six-monthly/ yearly milestones are mutually agreed upon and monitored.
All services are available on a pro bono basis and only when the venture achieves break-even stage, the entrepreneurs/founders need to share 5% revenue with a fund created for Angel Investing in BIT Startups.
Details entailed with every engagement
Every start-up involved with this program entails the following services and programs by default.
Mentoring by BiT Alumnus- Domain Champions in various fields based on the start-up requirements.
Structured Customised Incubator program.
Connections to Angel Investors, and VC Funds.
Market Outreach Initiatives.
Who can apply?
Start-Ups which fulfil the following criteria are eligible to apply:
BITians of any Batch, of any Branch in any location (Mesra/Pilani/Sindri/Goa/Dubai etc), can apply.
The Entrepreneurship Journey should be a preferred option and not a stop-gap or fallback option.
A Private Limited Company should be the legal entity.
The Founders must have developed a “Proof Of Concept”.
A team that has bootstrapped the venture so far is a must with at least two people on board: one Technical and the other from a Business Development background.
A clean Cap Structure is required in which Founders have 80% and more equity.
We care for you!
The organizers fully understand and appreciate that the Entrepreneurship Journey being undertaken is going to be a long, arduous and lonely one. There will be stretches in this journey in which the Start-Ups need help to stay positive and rebound from any temporary setbacks. The program also helps in creating a Positivity Zone through a unique YouTube Channel in which relevant content is musically presented to enhance positivity and instil the spirit of I-Can. Participants of the program can re-energize and reboot by their active participation in the Positivity Zone.
Vijay Singh
