SIIC at IIT Kanpur marked a milestone in India’s innovation ecosystem with the first edition of FUEL 2025 (Funding, Upscaling, Enabling Leaders), a premier investor–startup conclave. The event at SIIC’s Noida Innovation Hub brought together high potential startups, venture capitalists, angel networks, corporates and policymakers under one roof, as IIT Kanpur’s mission to accelerate the journey from lab to market ready ventures.
Building an Investor–Innovation Bridge
Inaugurated by Prof. Manindra Agrawal, Director of IIT Kanpur, FUEL 2025 highlighted IIT Kanpur’s growing role in India’s startup ecosystem. Agrawal spoke about IIT Kanpur’s commitment to innovation aligned with Startup India and announced plans for special funds for student and faculty led ventures.
The Chief Guest, Shri Devesh Chaturvedi, Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, spoke about the transformative power of agri-tech and how digitization initiatives like Digital Agriculture Mission and Digital Crop Survey are opening up opportunities for innovation in farming technologies, mechanization and post harvest solutions.
Rahul Garg, Founder & CEO of Moglix added an entrepreneurial perspective: “Capital will follow if you are passionate about the problem, execute well and build with resilience,” he said, setting the tone for budding founders.
Startup Showcase: Deep Tech to Agri-Tech
IIT Kanpur FUEL 2025 was a launchpad for 20 SIIC incubated startups across sectors like clean energy, defence & aerospace, healthcare, medtech, agritech, deep tech and cybersecurity. Each team had 15 minute one on one pitching sessions with investors, making the interactions focused and action oriented.
Highlights:
- Chimertech with advanced veterinary diagnostic kits.
- Prescience Insilico showcasing physics based AI models for pharma and FMCG R&D.
- Apeiro Energy presenting vertical axis wind turbines.
- Adiabatic with lithium ion battery upcycling solutions.
- Aerosys Aviation and Maraal Aerospace showcasing advanced drones and solar UAVs.
- Acquafront Infrastructure launching scalable floating solar beams and self adjusting jetties.
This diversity showed the breadth of SIIC, from grassroots agritech to frontier aerospace.
Funding and Partnerships
A key feature of FUEL 2025 was infusion of strategic capital into SIIC startups.
- SIDBI’s SEED Equity Support (S4SIIC) gave INR 1 crore to Lenek Technologies, INR 96 lakh to ScaNxt Scientific Technologies and INR 50 lakh to Voltworks.
- EXIM Bank’s Ubharte Sitaare Programme Seed Fund was launched to further strengthen early stage equity support.
Two MoUs were also signed:
- SIIC–Samved VC: for leadership mentoring, consulting and digitization initiatives.
- SIIC–Council for Start-up India (CSI): to combine IIT Kanpur’s research base with CSI’s startup outreach.
Strengthening SIIC’s Position
Anurag Singh, CEO of SIIC IIT Kanpur, noted the centre’s growth trajectory: “With more than 497 companies, 224 women-led ventures, and a combined valuation exceeding INR 11,640 crore, our ecosystem offers world-class infrastructure, faculty support, and investor access. Our journey has only just begun, and we’re determined to set new benchmarks for startup success.”
The event concluded with closed-door investor–founder meetings, solidifying the foundation for future collaborations and follow-on funding.
Why It Matters
FUEL 2025 is more than an incubator showcase—it signals India’s maturing startup-investor landscape. Unlike traditional demo days, the event curated direct capital access, structured partnerships, and government alignment, particularly in high-growth areas like agritech, deep tech, and clean energy.
This model reflects a shift in India’s innovation financing ecosystem, where public–private synergies and institutional incubators like IIT Kanpur’s SIIC are becoming powerful engines of economic transformation. If replicated at scale, such platforms could accelerate India’s journey towards a USD 10 trillion economy powered by indigenous innovation.
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