Meta launches startup accelerator with India’s IT ministry to reinforce its hold in the metaverse

SNEAK PEEK

  • Meta Platforms shows interest in India’s booming startup ecosystem to strengthen its bet on the metaverse.
  • A collaboration has happened with the startup hub of the Indian IT Ministry.
  • A grant of $25,000 will be given to each startup.

Meta Platforms has collaborated with the startup community of the Indian IT Ministry for the launch of an accelerator and to expand  innovation in leading technologies like virtual reality and augmented reality.

MeitY Startup Hub and XR Startup Program will work with a total of 40 early-stage startups to support them in research and development besides developing products and services. 

The program is backed by Meta’s $50 million XR Programs as well as Research Fund. 80 startups will be chosen to attend a bootcamp and will be helped in terms of discovering customers, forming relationships and generating funds.

According to Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, the program aims to motivate technology advancement in smaller cities and towns.

Meta has partnered with CBSE or Central Board of Secondary Education for the launch of a certified curriculum based on digital safety & online security as well as augmented reality for both educators and students.  

Four Indian institutions including IIT Delhi will implement the program. A grand challenge will be organized for advancement in sectors like entertainment, education, climate action, healthcare, agritech, sustainability and tourism.

Joel Kaplan, VP of Global Policy at Meta, said that India has a major role in terms of defining future technologies. 

Global discussions based on deploying technology to deliver economic possibilities and improved results are based on decisions and investment that are made in India. It is significantly important that an ecosystem is created that assists India’s tech innovators and startups to lay the foundations of the metaverse.

This is not the first time when Meta has shown interest in Indian startups. It supports three startups which include successful names like Unacademy and Meesho. 

Ajit Mohan, VP and MD of Facebook India, said:

India’s rapid tech adoption combined with a vast pool of tech talent puts the country in a vantage position for shaping the future of the internet.

Mohan also said that the partnership with MeitY Startup Hub is exciting and they believe the XR Startup Program to serve as a catalyst and discover the utilization of immersive technology in sectors such as healthcare, tourism, education and agritech worldwide.