Azooka Labs is one such start-up that was incubated by the Society for Innovation and Development at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc.) in Bengaluru.
Society for Innovation and Development (SID), Chief Executive Officer, Prof. B. Gurumurthy said that the funding currently received by deep science ventures launched by startups in India is insufficient due to lack of understanding across the science and technology spectrum. Institute of Science (IISc.), Bangalore.
Deep science start-ups were problem-oriented and map to at least one of the Sustainable Development Goals, he said.
“Support for such ventures is inadequate. One reason is the lack of understanding of the underlying science and technology which tends to be diverse and complex,” he said.
Pro. According to Gurumurthy, Honeywell’s CSR grants have helped nine start-ups and three EIRs (entrepreneurs in residence) in various sectors such as energy, water, medtech and packaging materials.
Honeywell Hometown Solutions India Foundation (HHSIF), the philanthropic arm of Honeywell, in partnership with SID, has funded and incubated 30 start-ups since 2019. These start-ups are focused on finding solutions in the fields of biotechnology, healthcare and nanotechnology with the potential to provide advanced scientific solutions to some of the most pressing needs in healthcare and the environment.
These include Ajuka Labs, HealthSec Precision Medicine, Equine Biotech, Protein Design, Siamaf Healthcare, Mimic Medical Simulation, PathShodh Healthcare, Theranoutilus and OpenWater, which focus on topics ranging from highly advanced healthcare to sustainability.
Interestingly, most of these startups are either led by women or have teams from underprivileged communities.
HHSIF Director Pooja Thakran said, “Deep science start-ups are the engines of innovation, and they are critical to shaping the future. By supporting these start-ups, Honeywell seeks to harness the immense potential of the research ecosystem and supporting the development of solutions through premier research institutes such as IISc in India. By funding these start-ups, we are fostering the next generation of game-changing technologies that will enable some of the world’s Will address the most pressing health and environmental challenges.