Entrepreneurship Cell, IIT Kanpur, began the Nationals of its flagship startup pitching competition, UpStart 2025, in Delhi NCR. The event was organised at The Hunch Circle, Huda City Centre in Gurugram, and witnessed the participation of up to 23 selected startups, along with prominent investors and Venture Capital firms. Designed to support, accelerate, and empower Indian startups, the Delhi-NCR edition of UpStart 2025 will also be followed by editions in three more Indian cities in Hyderabad (November 1), Bengaluru (November 8), and Mumbai (December 6), before the finals at the IIT Kanpur campus on January 25, 2026.
The UpStart 2025 Delhi-NCR edition saw participation from startups at diverse stages of development, from ideation to growth stages. The event was attended by delegates and investors from GMR Group, Inflection Point Ventures, IAN Group, Finvolve, GrowX Ventures and others, providing the participating startups with a unique networking opportunity, honing entrepreneurs' skills and nurturing their ideas. An innovative pitching competition, the event further witnessed attendance by startup mentors and innovation leaders across domains such as fintech, health tech, deep tech, Web3, and cybersecurity, among others. The selected startups from the event would receive the opportunity for a specialised four-week intensive mentorship program led by industry veterans, equipping them with the guidance and strategies required for scaling ahead of the finals in January 2026.
Sharing their insights on the inaugural national event, the Entrepreneurship Cell team shared, “As India's startup ecosystem booms, more entrepreneurs are now looking for mentorship and essential funding to transform their ideas into profitable businesses. The Delhi-NCR edition of UpStart 2025 was full of innovative ideas, and IIT Kanpur is delighted to extend our assistance with resources, guidance and visibility. We are hoping for similar conviction and determination in the next locations.”
The Delhi-NCR event of UpStart also marks the beginning of the nationwide 2025 edition, following the immense success in 2024. The 2024 edition of the event witnessed over INR 2 crore of on-spot funding, participation from prominent investors and Venture Capital firms, and 15 exciting startups. With an extended edition of the event in 2025, the vision remains to contribute to the development of the country's startup ecosystem, empowering numerous entrepreneurs and driving ahead India's business success on a grander scale.
About IIT Kanpur's Entrepreneurship Cell
Entrepreneurship Cell, IIT Kanpur, is a student-driven body committed to fostering innovation and entrepreneurial thinking among youth. By bridging the gap between student innovators, industry experts, investors, and incubators, E-Cell helps ideas transform into impactful startups. Its mission is to create a generation that is innovative, risk-taking, socially responsible, and driven to turn bright ideas into successful ventures.
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