Inaugural Edition of "Tech E Summit: Unfolding the Momentum of Investors and Startups", 3rd and 4th August 2023, Bengaluru
The Bengal Chamber of Commerce & Industry (BCC&I) is deeply connected with the tech industry with vibrant initiatives, which over the years, bring together technology providers, users, academia, startups, incubators, policy makers and the other stakeholders of technology to share applications, disseminate knowledge on cutting edge technologies, network and exchange dialogues for collaborations.
The Chamber is spreading its footprints across various States in this Country covering areas in which it may create value for its members and industry constituents thereby also contributing to the vibrant business ecosystem in such regions and States, which are leading our Nation's global leadership in various verticals.
The Chamber set its foot in Technology Capital –Bengaluru, curating “Tech-E Summit” focusing on “Unfolding the Momentum of Investors and Startups”. BCC&I and Infinity Group presented this progarmme, on 3rd and 4th August 2023 at Welcomhotel by ITC Hotels, Richmond Road, Bengaluru, in association with Bandhan Konnagar, a CSR implementing organization of Bandhan Bank Ltd. and was supported by Atal Innovation Mission. Ra Red FM Bengaluru was the dio Partner.
Shri Babul Supriyo, Hon’ble Minister-in-Charge, Information Technology and Electronics Department, Government of West Bengal travelled to Bengaluru to showcase promising Startups from Bengal and connect them with Venture Capitalists (VCs) and also bridge the technology business between Bengal and Karnataka.
Government of Karnataka was represented by:
- Dr. E.V. Ramana Reddy, IAS - Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Electronics Information Technology Biotechnology and Science & Technology.
- Mr. Sanjeev Kumar Gupta, CEO, Karnataka Digital Economy Mission
The VCs and Angel Investors were from Kolkata, Bengaluru and Mumbai. The programme also created a forum for Startups and Entrepreneurs from Bengal and Karnataka to discuss possible areas of collaborations and connect with the Investors.
Following the programme, the Chamber received collaboration offers from various entities including banks and legal firms for supporting technology Startup Ecosystem.
Curtain Raiser, 3rd August 2023- Evening:
On the eve of 3rd August 2023; we organized a special Pitching Session for Bengal based Startups , in presence of Shri Babul Supriyo, Hon’ble Minister-in-Charge, Information Technology and Electronics Department, Government of West Bengal, along with Mr. Subir Chakraborty, President, BCC&I and Managing Director & CEO, Exide Industries Ltd. and a dynamic assembly of VCs and Angel Investors-
- Mr. C N Raghupathi, Founder Director, Manipal Innovation Leadership and Entrepreneurship School
- Mr. Deepak Daftari, Mentor, IT Entrepreneurs and eCommerce Committee, BCC&I; Mentor, WEBEL-BCC&I Tech Incubation Centre and Director & CEO, DD Web Vision Pvt Ltd.
- Mr. Anirudh A Damani, Managing Partner, Artha Venture Fund
- Mr. Anil Joshi, Managing Partner, Unicorn India Venture
- Mr. Mohit Gulati, Founder, ITI Growth Opportunities Fund
- Ms. Pushpalatha M.S., Founder & CEO; Co-Founder & Director- Operations, GarbhaGudi Group of Companies; Advisor, Iron Lady Community (Angel Investor)
- Mr. Sousthav Chakraborty, General Partner - SprintVC, Salil Chakrabarty Innovation Fund
- Mr Manoj Kumar Agarwal, Founder and Managing Partner, Seafund.
| “Congratulations to The Bengal Chamber of Commerce & Industry on being successful to bring together the VCs and Startups from Bengal origin under one roof.” Addressing the Startups, Hon’ble Minister-in-Charge said, “They gave you an opportunity to create something being an entrepreneur and the traditional fear of failure out of the doorway. I am very happy to see the young minds being courageous to create something and are ready to fail. This is an opportunity for everyone to at least make a mark on the VCs here this evening.” - Shri Babul Supriyo, Hon’ble Minister-in-Charge, Information Technology and Electronics Department, Government of West Bengal said in the Curtain Raiser, 3rd August, Tech-E-Summit 2023. |
In total, 8 select potential Startups from Bengal showcased their innovations during the Accelerated Pitching Session.
The Startups from Bengal:
WEBEL-BCC&I Tech Incubation Centre:
Agri-Tech Startups:
- Mr. Arjun Dutta, Founder, Greenlife IQ Ponics
- Mr. Muralidhar Seelam, Founder, Kheti Samajh
- Mr. Arijit Das, Founder, Schoppen Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
Deep-Tech(cyber-security, blockchain/ML)
- Mr. Souvik Haldar, Founder, Defiant Decentratech LLP
3D Printing/Engineering, Manufacturing & Services (Academic +B2B)
- Mr. Ishan Bajpai, CEO, SLAM App
NASSCOM:
Blockchain based services
- Mr. Ayon Hazra, Founder, Borlaug Web Services
AI/ML
- Mr. Dipan Roy, Mind Web Ventures
HR Tech
- Mr. Praveen Kumar, Founder, Upraised
The pitching session was moderated by Mr. Kalyan Kar, Co-founder Prediqt Business Solutions Private Limited. Mr Kar remarked:
| “Today we witnessed the prospect of Startups even if it is not there yet in terms of acquiring VC funds. I earnestly thank The Bengal Chamber of Commerce & Industry to have given these people the platform so relevant and crucial to showcase their innovations in front of the VCs present here today. Those who have not received positive feedback, please note the views VCs shared today and try to amend those in the plan as advised, as you have just received the direct feedback from the market you want to tap into.” |
|---|
The session was followed by networking dinner at Chowman Indiranagar, hosted by our Hospitality Partner- “Chowman.”
4th August 2023:
Session Highlights:
- What the investors look into
- Growth Blueprint for Startups
- Role of incubators in the success of startups
- Tech Entrepreneurs: Stories of Home-Grown Entrepreneurship Ventures with International Footprints
- Technology Research and Opportunities for Start Up
Esteemed Speakers joined from different parts of the country to participate in the Tech E Summit 2023. The Chamber was delighted to arrange this summit by inviting relevant stakeholders.
Precursor Session: “What the investors look into?”
The perspective of a Startup is very well known to any investor or the large corporates. But on the contrary, the same is unclear in the case of an investor. Startups usually struggle to understand the to-dos and not-to-dos during an investor’s pitch. The idea behind this session was to address the dilemma in the Startup community regarding what investors look into in a startup for a potential investment.
The precursor session started with a discussion on “What the investors look into?”. The session was moderated by Mr. C.N. Raghupati, Founder Director, Manipal Innovation Leadership and Entrepreneurship School. The key intakes from the precursor session were that the investors firstly look into the passion for the work. Secondly, whether the person gives importance to other people’s ideas and finally, to identify whether the problem is unique and has a big enough market size to become a global company in future. Technology start ups are expected to have strong foundation of the related technologies.
The discussions were led by :-
- Mr. Anirudh A Damani
- Mr. Anil Joshi
- Mr. Deepak Daftari
- Mr. Mohit Gulati
- Mr. Harinarayan Sharma, CEO, Manipal Foundation/ Sr. VP. MEMG, Manipal Education and Medical Group (MEMG);
| The Summit Address was made during the Precursor Session by Shri Babul Supriyo.He quoted “Youth is wasted on the young.” Shri Babul Supriyo invited the young generation. who were present at the Summit to come to Kolkata and to invest their minds. He highlighted the advantages of Bengal and assured that his Department would 24*7 to provide necessary assistance to those who would be investing in technology sector in Bengal. |
Inaugural Session:
The Inaugural session was commenced with the formal Welcome Address by Mr. Subir Chakraborty, President, The Bengal Chamber and Managing Director & CEO, Exide Industries Ltd. The discussions revolved around Startups, innovations and stories of Entrepreneurs. BCC&I had created an ecosystem for the Startups through their own incubation center,aWEBEL-BCC&I Tech Incubation Centre, which is under the partnership with the Government of West Bengal. The session continued with felicitation to Dr. E.V. Ramana Reddy, IAS - Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Electronics Information Technology Biotechnology and Science & Technology, Government of Karnataka and Mr. Sanjeev Kumar Gupta, CEO, Karnataka Digital Economy Mission.
| Start-ups are the torch bearers of innovation and creativity. They bring fresh ideas, disruptive technologies and novel solutions to the market. In today's rapidly evolving world, embracing digital transformation is no longer an option but a necessity. We need to support start-ups that are at the forefront of technological advancements and help traditional businesses adapt to the digital age. While work from home during the pandemic fueled the growth of digital businesses in India, it also resulted in a long unicorn list, as reported by Invest India. Thriving digital payments ecosystem, large smartphone user base and digital-first business models have come together to attract investors. Tech companies, which have become household brands, are contributing to the unicorn boom in India, as smartphone penetration and digitization of commerce in every aspect of life has increased manifold during the pandemic. Besides fintech, e-commerce grocery, SaaS and marketplace players are contributing the most to the unicorn universe.Today, from being backend technology centres, India’s business environment has become the launchpad for various strategic initiatives including IP creation, building competencies around emerging technologies, to drive innovation for emerging global markets. Additionally, India’s demographic dividend in terms of its youth population is a key contributing factor that is expected to propel this growth for global players entering India.- said by Mr. Subir Chakraborty. |
Mr. Arnab Basu, Senior Vice President, and Chairperson, IT Committee, BCC&I and Advisory Leader, PwC India; Mr. Ravindra Chamaria, Group Chairman, Infinity Infotech Parks Limited and Mr. Toshihiro Mizutani, Director General, Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), Bengaluru. The Session Moderation and Conclusion was by Dr. Chiranjib Bhattacharya, Chairperson, IT Entrepreneurs and eCommerce Committee; Co-Chairperson, IT Committee, The Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Chief Executive Officer & Director, Wizertech Informatics Pvt. Ltd.
Fireside Chat on “Growth Blueprint for Startups”
It was a special session with Mr. Gaurav Singh Kushwaha, Founder & CEO, BlueStone.com moderated by Mr. Arnab Basu., The discussions revolved around comprehensive and adaptable strategy that considers various aspects of the business. The Speakers mainly focused on identifying the target audience and understand their demographics, behaviors, and preferences. To continuously gather feedback from customers and iterate on the product or service has to be the primary concern of an entrepreneur.
Panel Discussion on “Camels, Tigers and Unicorns”
The idea behind the session was to get the notion of large companies on their take for acquiring startups and how the startup ecosystem is adding value to the large companies and vice versa. The title of the session is taken form the book called, “Camels, Tigers & Unicorns: Rethinking Science & Technology- enabled innovation by Shri Uday Phadke and Shri Shailendra Vyakarnam. Camels are internally resourced firms, tigers are funded by angels and VCs, and unicorns take huge high-risk investments based on the hope that a sustainable business model will emerge.
The session focused on entrepreneurs who have led successful ventures to talk about growth, challenge of scale, and importance of infrastructure. The discussions also revolved around how resolution of governance, legal and financial issues can create a conducive ecosystem for the startups. The significance of supply chain integrity to transform businesses enabled by technology across sectors was also highlighted.
The session was moderated by Mr. S. Radhakrishnan, Executive Director & President, Infinity Infotech Parks Limited and Former President, BCC&I
The panelists included -
- Mr. Dipankar Mukherjee, Head-Marketing and Sales, mjunction services limited (TATA & SAIL joint Venture Company)
- Mr. Sankar Ghosh, Managing Director and Africa & APAC Lead – Technology Solutions, Accenture
- Mr. Rudra Shankar Roy, Leader in Supply Chain, Process Automation, Strategy Consulting & Transformation, Thought Leader & Honorary Board Member and Adjunct Faculty
- Mr. Shantamay Chatterjee, Vice President, BandhanKonnagar
- Mr. Subrata Mukherjee, Chief Operating Officer, Adamas Tech Consulting
Special Session with IDEAS- Technology Innovation Hub by Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) on Lab to Market- Technology Research and Opportunities for Start Up
The session focused upon the Technology Innovation Hub set up by Indian Statistical Institute as IDEAS – technology innovation hub. This hub is formed as part of a government initiative - National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber Physical System (ICPS).
Mr. Charanpreet Singh, Co-Founder and Director, Praxis Business School Foundation moderated this session.
The Session featured:
- Prof Dipti Prasad Mukherjee, Deputy Director, Indian Statistical Institute
- Mr. Agnimitra Biswas, CEO, IDEAS-Technology Innovation Hub
- Mr. Ritabrata Bhaumik, CTO, ftCash and AI start-up Founder
- Prof. B. S. DayaSagar, Head, Indian Statistical Institute, Bangalore Center
Mr Agnimitra Biswas made a presentation to introduce IDEAS to the venture capitalists and the potential startup players.
Tech Entrepreneurs: Stories of Home-Grown Entrepreneurship Ventures with International Footprints
The session on Stories of Home-Grown Entrepreneurship Ventures with International Footprints aim was to bring together successful entrepreneurs from Bengal and share their success stories to the larger audience and additionally share their views on how the budding startups may approach their upcoming steps in the market and what could be avoided with reference to the instances from their past experiences and retrospect.
The entrepreneurs shared their insights on how they have managed to make their ventures successful and discussed strategies which helped them to stay relevant in the startup industry.
The session was moderated by Mr. Aninda Chatterjee, VP (Finance) & CFO, mjunction services limited and Co-Chairperson, IT Entrepreneurs and eCommerce Committee, BCC&I.
The discussion was led by-
- Ms. Minal Bhagat, Director, Ensonic Computech Pvt Ltd.
- Mr. Sarbajit Das, Founder & CEO, Sun-Dew Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
- Mr. Mukul Gupta, CEO, Capital Numbers Infotech Pvt. Ltd.
- Mr. Tanmoy Banerjee, Director, RT Network Solutions Pvt Ltd
- Dr. Chiranjib Bhattacharya
The discussion was followed by a vibrant interactive session.
EVENT GALLERY