Amazon, the world’s biggest online retailer, aims to scale up Indian innovations globally.
Amazon Launchpad, an online marketplace for young ventures, on Tuesday unveiled a multi-level challenge for Indian start-ups in collaboration with HAX, the world’s largest hardware accelerator and New York-based crowdfunding company Kickstarter.
Amazon said the winning venture of the challenge called ‘Startup C-Cube’ would get support from the three organisations for its entire ‘concept-to-customer’ process. Based on the scalability of the idea, it would also be provided resources in India as well as Europe and the U.S. The firm would also receive a set of benefits valued at $500,000.
‘Workspace in China’
“This is an opportunity for Indian start-ups to get access to big consumer markets nationally and internationally,” said Sateesh Srinivasan, director and global head of Amazon Launchpad.
In the first phase, HAX will provide the winning company three months’ workspace in Shenzhen, China along with mentoring from a pool of more than 50 international mentors.
It would also provide a ‘go-to-market’ boot camp in San Francisco and investment support of $375,000.
“We expect this unique collaboration will dramatically increase the chances for more start-up teams to do well,” said Alan Clayton, head of entrepreneur development, HAX which has backed top ventures such as Dispatch, a robot-delivery firm and Makeblock Co., a Chinese maker of DIY robotics parts. In the second phase, Kickstarter will help the winning firm in terms of marketing and access to its community of 13 million backers. Heather Corcoran, technology outreach lead at Kickstarter said Indian backers have pledged nearly $5 million to projects on Kickstarter in the last few years. “This has shown us there is a huge appetite for innovation in the region,” said Ms.Corcoran.
“We would love to partner with Amazon,” said Priyank Kharge, IT, BT and Tourism Minister of Karnataka, who is also running various programmes for innovative companies in the State.
Baby Monitor Amazon said it has more than 17,000 unique products listed from around 250 start-ups on its marketplace in India. Gadgets that monitor the sleep and health of babies, voice-based wireless smart remotes to control televisions and air conditioners, and devices that track the safety of children were some of the innovations on display by Indian hardware companies at an Amazon Launchpad event in Bengaluru. “It (Amazon Launchpad) is the best place to get seen. The global audience is our market,” said Sanchi Poovaya, co-founder of artificial intelligence firm Ray IoT, which sells a baby monitor called ‘Raybaby’ that tracks respiration and sleep patterns of a baby from a distance. It alerts parents when the baby experiences variations in respiratory rate. Another firm Sensara showcased ‘Sensy Remote’ a wireless device that converts the phone into a smart remote to control television using an app.
