HYDERABAD: The strict selection process employed in incubating only a handful of start-ups has limited networking and business opportunities for several other budding entrepreneurs in the city. For many of those feeling left out, Association for Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) start-up festival is providing an opportunity to scale up their business along the global lines. For Chandana Suri and two of her colleagues, who recently launched Smart Smarter as a platform that facilitates start-ups to connect with service providers, it’s being present at as many corporate meetings and networking events that counts. Ask them why and they say that after multiple incubators refused to accept them, they are on a constant run to build network through events.
“We did not fit into T-Hub as it is currently dealing mostly with core technology stuff,” she says. “However, since economic models of ASEAN countries are similar, being at an event like this will help us leverage our business to global levels,” adds Sandeep Pandikonda, CEO of Smart Smarter.
Similar sentiments were echoed by Shaheda Nausheen who co-founded Market Galee. “We are still in talks to have our idea on a social cause to be incubated in T- Hub. But nonetheless, we are making sure that we get a boost through these events.” Her firm aims to create a “real-time and transparent” marketplace for farm produce.
Entrepreneurs from ASEAN, meanwhile, are looking to source technological experts from India to collaborate with. “India is known for its wide IT presence and I am looking for people who can work on our chat bots,” says Lim Wei Jie, Director of Foodplus, a Malaysia-based food delivery mobile application. The ASEAN India Hackathon & Start-up Festival has been organised by the Ministry of External Affairs in collaboration with Telangana government and the Indian Chamber of Commerce. The event saw the participation of a 23-member delegation from ASEAN, who interacted with industry experts in the city.
Phase III to be completed by Sept
T-Hub Reactor Phase - II would be completed by September this year, informed Jay Krishnan, CEO of T-Hub Phase I
The facility, located in Raidurgam, will be a bigger place with a capacity to host thrice the capacity
as Phase I