Apply on www.f6s.com/powerstart by 21 Dec 2014

in partnership with supported by

smart transportation

smart manufacturing smart

buildings

smart agriculture

smart renewables

india’s first startup accelerator for cleanweb ideas Bangalore | January-March 2015

Why cleanweb? Cleanweb is an exciting area that has emerged at the intersection of cleantech and information communication technology (ICT). Driven by innovative business models and recent advances in areas like big data, cloud computing, mobile communication, sensing and internet of things, a

new breed of successful Cleanweb startups like Nest (acquired by Google for $3.2 billion), Opower (successful IPO early this year), Lyft and OnFarm (first startup to be crowdfunded through AgFunder) is enabling smarter and more efficient use of energy and other resources in everything from our homes and cars, to our factories and farms. Elsewhere, companies like SolarCity ($5.18 market cap), Clean Power Finance and Mosaic are combining smart ICT

solutions with financial innovations to significantly reduce the cost and risk of generating and consuming renewable energy. The impact can be significant. For e.g., by some estimates, ICT-driven solutions alone have the potential to reduce installed solar PV costs by 75%.

India is a leader in the ICT space, accounting for 10% of all global software developers. There is also a strong ICT startup ecosystem in the country with many success stories emerging in recent years. Using currently available infrastructure and talent, India can easily host a vibrant cleanweb startup community that bridges the gap between ICT and cleantech. PowerStart will help create this community and seed companies that could be at its forefront.

For some additional reading on cleanweb:

Inventing the cleanweb (Sunil Paul & Nick Allen, MIT The Review) Some thoughts on cleanweb business models (Rob Day, Greentech Media) Why cleanweb will beat (and better) cleantech (The Cleanweb Initiative, Slideshare)

Bangalore + Partners Bangalore is the champion of India’s startup ecosystem, with that city hosting a thriving ICT talent pool and a vibrant startup ecosystem. We’ve also got on board an exciting group of partners from the city to help us, including TechHub Bangalore, which will be co-hosting PowerStart along with us. We’ve also partnered with US-based Cleanweb Initiative, to help create awareness about opportunities in the cleanweb space in India, beyond PowerStart itself.

Other partners on board include EMBARQ, Cisco Systems, Amazon Web Services and Langoor, among others; these partners will be providing various kinds of in-kind support to the program.

PowerStart in 100 words PowerStart is a startup accelerator for cleanweb startups. It is a joint initiative

by Infuse Ventures, CIIE and ADB, with other strategic partners. PowerStart will be based in Bangalore and is 2 months long (Feb-March 2015). The aim is to

find teams of committed entrepreneurs, brainstorm exciting cleanweb opportunities and create investible startups. Two PowerStart companies will

each receive a seed investment of INR 25 lacs from Infuse to pilot their business plans. Individuals & teams working on cleanweb solutions or are

committed to building awesome cleanweb ventures are welcome to join us.

Apply here by 21 December 2014

Focus themes

Program outline & timeline

28 March | Demo Day Each of the teams will present a prototype / minimum viable product along with a business plan. After a comprehensive evaluation of the presenting team, Infuse Ventures will announce two teams in which it will make a seed investment commitment of Rs. 25 lac each. In order for teams to qualify for this investment, a registered company has to have been set up and there needs to be a core team of full-time individuals working with it (both of which should ideally have happened prior to Demo Day).

30 Jan – 01 Feb | Ideation Bootcamp 3 day workshop at TechHub during which teams will ideate over

exciting cleanweb opportunities in the above themes. Teams will work with the Infuse Team & other invited experts / mentors.

Teams will be assisted in converting their ideas into viable cleantech business opportunities, with clear understanding of the

problem being tackled, potential customers being targeted and monetization / scaling opportunities. Teams will also create a ‘booster plan’ for the 2 month duration of the program, with

specific targets and milestones, such that they are ready for the ‘pitch’ during the Demo Day. Teams will be paired with specific

mentors with domain, business & technical expertise.

Fortnightly Meetups There will be 3 meetups at which the

teams will discuss and review the progress that they’ve made on their

stated targets (as per the booster plan). There will also be talks /

workshops by experts that will be helpful to the teams in their journey.

April onwards March 2015 Feb 2015 Jan 2015 Dec 2014 Nov 2014

25/26 Nov Launch of online applications: www.f6s.com/powerstart

21 Dec Close of online

applications

06 Dec Info session

Bangalore (venue & time TBD)

Following Demo Day On successful due diligence, Infuse

will make the committed seed investment, and the investee will be supported by the Infuse team

to accelerate and reach a stage where it can receive further

follow-on investment.

How can renewable energy be made more affordable, accessible and dependable through the use of ICT? Can ICT-based solutions be combined with financial innovation to create smarter solutions to increase the uptake of renewable energy?

How can buildings and homes be made more efficient in terms of the amount of energy, water, etc., consumed & the waste generated while increasing productivity and comfort? Can great quality

scalable & profitable businesses be built in these spaces?

Can current transport systems be made smarter w.r.t. efficiency, costs, energy, etc.? Can vehicles & people be ‘connected’ to make transport smarter? Can sharing economy-based solutions (such as ride sharing, route planning, carpooling, etc.) help?

Manufacturing in now becoming more IT-driven, making factories and manufacturing units more efficient, sustainable & “smart.” Trends include: additive manufacturing, high speed assembly systems, machine-to-

machine learning, shared inventories, big data analytics, etc.

How can farms & farmers be made smarter to increase yields while ensuring more efficient / sustainable utilization of resources? Trends include: weather monitoring, climate simulation, farm management, crop yield monitoring, GPS- & GNSS-enabled data analytics, etc.

smart renewables

smart transportation

smart agriculture

smart manufacturing

smart buildings

Who can apply? Cleanweb startups/teams already working in any of

the above five relevant areas (renewables, agriculture, buildings, transportation or manufacturing)

Aspiring teams/individuals having experience in any of the above areas or ICT & related areas

Before you apply Teams that are already working on solutions in any of the themes would be given priority: a

working prototype/demo is not compulsory, but some work towards this is desirable. Teams/Individuals from non-ICT backgrounds (such as sales, marketing, financing, legal,

design, etc.) can also apply but may need to team up with others during PowerStart. Experience in cleantech / renewable energy is not compulsory, but some understanding of

this sector and its needs (atleast in the above thematic areas) would be desirable. Applicants need to either have set up a team, or be committed towards setting up a

company, either over the course of the program or immediately after it. Only teams that can demonstrate this commitment will be selected, and only teams that have set up companies will be considered for funding from Infuse.

Individuals that are already employed are encouraged to apply. However, teams that successfully raise funding are expected to have full-time co-founders.

We also expect the teams to be willing to learn and gain from the experience and networks of each PowerStart partner and mentors. Our mentors shall be spending substantial amount of their personal and professional time in supporting you and therefore it is of utmost importance that you treat them with respect and value their time.

Teams need to be present physically for both the Ideation Bootcamp as well as the meetups, both of which will take place at TechHub.

Participants will need to support their own travel and lodging.

Infuse Ventures

Infuse Ventures is an India-focused early stage venture capital fund set up and managed by CIIE. Created through a unique public-private-academia collaboration, CIIE and Infuse have been playing an active role in developing a strong ecosystem for cleantech entrepreneurs and have already supported several aspiring cleantech entrepreneurs through their past initiatives. Infuse’s portfolio ventures in

the space include Ecolibrium Energy (smart grid / energy optimization), Surya Power Magic (solar powered irrigation systems), Revive (eWaste management solutions), REConnect (renewables trading

marketplace), TESSOL (thermal energy storage solutions for cold chain industry) and Altizon (cloud-connected platform for connected devices). Read more: www.ciieindia.org | www.infuseventures.in

Get in touch!

Mohsin Bin Latheef Manager – Cleantech Ecosystem Dev., Infuse Ventures,

Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship (CIIE)

Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad - 380 015, Gujarat, India

Tel.: +91-79-6632-4234, 4233

mohsin@iimahd.ernet.in

APPLY ON F6S www.f6s.com/powerstart

BY 21st DEC 2014