Qualcomm Announces Ten Finalists of Design In India Challenge

Qualcomm India has announced the top ten finalists for the Qualcomm Design in India Challenge 2019 that saw participation from Fintech, MedTech, IoT and Smart-Infra start-ups. 

The finalists were selected through a jury selection process in May 2019 at Bengaluru. Each of the finalists will receive a prize money of $10,000 and access to the Qualcomm Innovation Lab to transform their ideas and concepts into working prototypes. 

The Qualcomm Design in India Challenge 2019 is the continuation of Qualcomm India’s initiative to provide support to Indian design houses and product companies for innovation and invention. The Qualcomm Design in India Challenge 2019 aims to provide support to the domestic hardware ecosystem of India. 

Benefits offered to the start-up finalists, apart from the prize money, are:

* Patent Filing Incentives: Qualcomm India will reimburse each start-up an amount of $2,500 for a full utility patent application for up to two patents, filed with either the USPTO or India PTO, related to the idea/concept/product submitted as part of the contest and during the incubation phase of the program. 

* Access to Accelerator Program Services: Qualcomm India will offer accelerator services to all start-ups at no additional cost through a 3rd party vendor, including diagnostic assessments and workshop interventions on scaling parameters like operations, customers, competition, product, financials, team and investments. Monthly one-on-one mentoring sessions from subject matter experts is provided to interested start-ups for each scaling parameter.

* Govt. connects: Opportunity to connect with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and/or the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade. in person. 

Speaking on the occasion, Rajen Vagadia, Vice President, Qualcomm India Private Limited and President, Qualcomm India & SAARC, said, “This is the fourth year of Qualcomm Design in India Challenge and it has become one of India’s longest running wireless hardware start-up incubation programs. The challenge continues to spur research and development for products targeted at both domestic and export market in areas of robotics, wearables, machine learning, smart homes, smart cities, agri-tech, medical-tech, and fin-tech. Innovation is what we strive for, and through Qualcomm Design in India Challenge 2019 we continue to positively impact the product design ecosystem, that will contribute to enabling India achieve its Digital India and Made In India visions.” 

Ramesh Abhishek, Secretary (IPP), Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), said “In recent years, India has seen a tremendous growth in the startup ecosystem. Initiatives like the Qualcomm Design in India Challenge are helping create a conducive environment for tech startups and enabling a Design in India ecosystem. Congratulations to all the finalists, I am thrilled to witness the innovative solutions showcased through this program and I look forward to seeing more Indian startups at the forefront of driving the global digital revolution”

These top ten companies will start incubation at the Qualcomm Innovation Lab starting in July 2019. At the end of the incubation period, expected by March 2020, one winner and two runners up will receive a prize money of $100,000, $75,000 and $50,000, respectively.

The ten shortlisted companies of the Qualcomm Design in India Challenge 2019 are:

1. Adapt Ideations Pvt. Ltd. - KELVIN - A high sensitivity asset tracker and monitor

2. Antariksh Waste Ventures Pvt. Ltd. - Digitizing waste management eco-system in India by providing fill levels across bins to city admins, local clean-up alerts to citizens, skill development for sanitation workers, task-equipment and people management features for sanitation supervisors and waste mapping & delivery services for enabling the growing recycling industry

3. Arcapsis Techno-solutions Pvt. Ltd. - Xpert Inhaler - COPD & Asthma Medication Adherence supporting device, which connects inhaler with smartphone and gives customized alerts, real-time reports, etc. in order to enhance medication adherence and hence help in preventing asthma flare-ups

4. Biodesign Innovation Labs Pvt. Ltd. - A mechanical ventilation and auto-resuscitation device as an alternative to prolonged manual ventilation using self-inflating bags for patients with respiratory illness

5. Blackfrog Technologies Pvt. Ltd. - Sanjivani - A portable active (battery powered) cooling device that will provide a platform for delivery of vaccines and all other biologicals like blood, tissue, culture which are required to be kept strictly between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius for 8 hours

6. Detect Technologies Pvt. Ltd. - An automated micro category UAV for Elevator Shaft Inspection during routine maintenance schedule and emergency situations 

7. Elear Solutions Tech Pvt. Ltd. - Delivering a P2P platform COCO to consumers via the reinvented smart home switchboard

8. Grinntech Motors and Services Pvt. Ltd.- Battery Management solutions

9. Health Arx Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (BeatO) - A smartphone based multi-vital monitoring ecosystem which will allow users to track their Blood Glucose, Haemoglobin, Lipid etc data on a regular basis on their own

10. Ubifly Technologies Pvt. Ltd. - Integration of onboard electronics for command, controls and communication of long-range drones