Ten Indian start-ups showcased their innovations to global investors from the UAE and around the world at the third session of the ‘Elevate’ pitching series held on Sunday in Dubai. Gracing the occasion was Dr. Aman Puri, Consul General of India in Dubai, and Mr. Duncan Mulima, Consul General of Zambia in Dubai. The Indian start-up ecosystem currently has over 57,000 start-ups from 628 districts across all 28 states and eight Union Territories, registered with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and it is expanding even further.

Elevate pitching session series is a key initiative of The India Pavilion in order to display unconventional solutions created by 500 Indian start-ups over the course of five months at the Innovation Hub bus stationed outside the India Pavilion. The objective is to facilitate innovators and start-ups to get adequate exposure and attract B2B connects at the global stage.

The spirit of innovation and technology is an initiative that has seen significant support from Dr. Aman Puri, who said, “Innovation is the key to growing India’s international trade at an exponential rate and achieving a competitive edge globally. Indian entrepreneurs are working on disruptive technologies to infuse growth in every sector.” India is the country which in 2021 is amongst the top 3 creators of unicorns in the world. Amidst the extreme challenges posed by the global pandemic, 35 new unicorns came into existence in India, taking the total number of unicorns to 72.

Contesting start-ups represented their innovative capabilities in sectors such as lifestyle, mobility, agriculture, healthcare, IT Solutions, education, app-based solutions, sustainability, and many more. The finalists included, – Kregzo, a holistic start-up ecosystem provider; Swiss Newater India Pvt Ltd, providing green solutions for good hygiene and infection prevention; Store 2 Door, e-commerce support technology solution providers; Shopvite, offering smart shopping solutions; Goals101, a Transaction Behavioural Intelligence (TBI) company; ECOWARE, India’s largest sustainable food packaging company; LogisEye, logistics service providers; Hamples, new-age Digital Sampling Platform; Sentient Labs, advanced marine robotics solutions; and ioLetics, smart retail solutions & digitalization company.

Elevate series provide start-ups the opportunity to gain knowledge about the global sectoral trends, best practices followed around the world, get mentoring from sector experts, and a networking platform to interact with fellow new-age entrepreneurs, innovators and investors. The first Elevate session saw 10 start-ups across sectors from the States of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala, pitching their ideas to over 15 investors, while the second session observed 13 start-ups from Telangana presenting their ideas.

An interesting panel discussion is in the pipeline and will be held on December 15 for India-based unicorns to discuss how technology is driving the innovative start-up ecosystem.

The event was attended by many eminent dignitaries like S Venkatesh, MD, MCA, R Lakshmanan, Senior partner, MCA, Hari Padmanabhan, Chairman, Themepro Technologies Pvt. Ltd, Eugene Mayne, CEO, Tristar, Abhishek Sharma, CEO, Foundation Holdings, Vinod Nayar, CSO, BDC Holdings, Ankur Roy, Director, DEI Global, Sumit Puri, Chief Growth officer, Rishika Gupta, Gulf Islamic Investments, Anil K Nahar, Financial Advisor, Hanumanta K Mannen, Founder-CEO, Master Fincorp, Garima Vijyavargiya, Chief Manager, Bank of Baroda, Mahesh Ramakrishnan, Vice President, Wealth Management, Deutsche Bank, Bahawan Enterprises, Parana Wellness, Shwek Sharma, GM Marketing, X Factor Marketing, Atish Andrade, Manager, EMEA, BYJU’S, Sai Narain, Regional Head, EMEA, HSBC, and other representatives of financial institutions and family offices.