Having reached
out to over 1000 entrepreneurs across India through the regional rounds held in
4 cities, TechSparks 2011,
India’s biggest startup discovery platform, will showcase the top 20 product
technology startups being built out of the country during the Grand Finale,
scheduled to happen on Friday, 19th August 2011 at IIM Bangalore.
TechSparks 2011,
an initiative undertaken by YourStory.in, India’s leading online platform for
startups and entrepreneurs, is being presented by Intel in association with
Google, Amazon Web Services, IBM, National Instruments and Sequoia Capital to
recognize and celebrate high-potential product technology ventures.
The regional
rounds of TechSparks 2011 were been conducted in New Delhi, Pune, Chennai and
Hyderabad during the months of May, June and July 2011 and saw more than 1000
entrepreneurs attending the events to derive inspiration from the stories of
success narrated by people like Rahul Sharma (co-founder, Micromax Mobiles),
VSS Mani (founder, JustDial), Murugavel Janakiraman (founder, BharatMatrimony)
and Phanindra Sama (founder, RedBus).
More than 400
startups registered for the chance to present at the Grand Finale of TechSparks
2011, the culmination of the nation-wide hunt to find the best product tech
companies of India.
In addition to the showcase of the top 20
product tech companies in the form of pitches to a jury consisting on senior
technologists and investors, the TechSparks Grand Finale will also feature the
unveiling of the Tech30 Report, India’s first benchmarking document designed to
turn the spotlight on the 30 product technology startups that India needs to
watch out for, with the stamp of approval from leading VCs and technology
giants. Copies of the Tech30 report will be distributed to all the delegates
attending the TechSparks Grand Finale and will also be shared with
decision-makers across the technology industry, the investment community and
the media fraternity.
The TechSparks
Grand Finale will also feature the 10 most interesting mobile apps to emerge
out of the country in a section titled App4India and the winner of the showcase
will be awarded the Rs.50000/- App4India prize during the event.
Panelists at the
TechSparks Grand Finale include notable industry experts such as Narendra
Bhandari, Director (Asia Pacific), Intel Software & Services Group –
Developer Relations Division,
Shailendra Singh, Managing Director, Sequoia Capital India, Vimal Abraham, Strategy & Marketing, ISV & Developer Relations, IBM India, Jayaram Pillai, Managing Director (India, Russia, Arabia), National Instruments and Shane Owenby, Managing Director (Asia Pacific), Amazon Web Services.
Shailendra Singh, Managing Director, Sequoia Capital India, Vimal Abraham, Strategy & Marketing, ISV & Developer Relations, IBM India, Jayaram Pillai, Managing Director (India, Russia, Arabia), National Instruments and Shane Owenby, Managing Director (Asia Pacific), Amazon Web Services.
The Grand Finale
of TechSparks is expected to be a premier destination for substantive
networking with top technology
corporates, leading investors (VCs & angels), national media and delegates
from US, Europe and China expected to be in attendance. For the presenting companies,
TechSparks will provided the much-needed validation and presence that product
technology companies need, in order to raise investments, acquire customers and
attain scale globally. Check out http://yourstory.in/events/techsparks/grand-finale/
About TechSparks
TechSparks was conceived
and executed for the very first time in 2010 by YourStory.in in association
with Microsoft BizSpark and Canaan Partners. It was created to serve as a launch
pad for startups creating highly innovative technology products and to enable
their journey to national scale.
The first
edition of TechSparks was a phenomenal success, with a number of media houses
touting it to be “the product tech event of the year.” TechSparks 2010 received
more than 208 applications from startups across the country and the startups
who managed to make it to the finals of TechSparks 2010 have since gone on to
acquire a number of customers, obtain funding and get featured in various mainstream
media outlets.
TechSparks 2011
is designed to benefit tech startups and entrepreneurs across three vital areas
– access to investments, market linkages (access to potential partners and
clients) and national media visibility. By enabling substantive opportunities
across these key drivers, TechSparks 2011 aims to support product tech startups
and entrepreneur flag off their successful go-to-market journey.
The 2011 edition
of TechSparks has generated a lot of buzz in social media, with the hashtag
“#tsparks” trending nationally on Twitter during the regional rounds in New
Delhi and Hyderabad, reiterating the presence of a massive virtual audience of
technology enthusiasts for TechSparks across India. Check out http://techsparks.in
About YourStory
YourStory.in is India's first
comprehensive online platform for entrepreneurs. Launched in 2008, it has
emerged as the most followed web platform for entrepreneurs and startups,
having cemented robust partnerships with leading institutions like Intel,
Google, IBM, Amazon, National Instruments, British Council, NASSCOM,
Government of India and Microsoft Bizpark, to name a few.
Widely
trusted, YourStory.in connects with over 4 lakh entrepreneurs and
allied industry professionals on a
monthly basis. YourStory.in has built focussed engagement
opportunities with the community through initiatives like TechSparks (for
product tech entrepreneurs) and Most Popular Entrepreneur Challenge (a
bottoms-up approach of evaluating entrepreneurs). It aims to carry these
successes forward along with other innovations
like Sociopreneurship (for social enterprises). Check out our website
here: http://yourstory.in/
