Global Capability Centres, startups, incubators and policymakers join hands to accelerate India's innovation ecosystem and drive the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047

 

THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU

NEW DELHI/BENGALURU, JUNE 30, 2026

In a major push to strengthen India's innovation ecosystem and foster deeper collaboration between industry and startups, the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog, in partnership with the Software Technology Parks of India (STPI), hosted the GCC Conclave on Innovation 2026 in Bengaluru. The conclave brought together leaders from Global Capability Centres (GCCs), technology companies, startups, incubators and policymakers to chart a collaborative roadmap for innovation-led economic growth.

The high-profile event witnessed participation from leading multinational technology and engineering companies, including Intel, IBM, Bosch, Amazon, SAP, Thermo Fisher Scientific, CGI, Shell, Mercedes-Benz, Philips, Morgan Stanley, NVIDIA, Samsung, SanDisk, Wipro and Yahoo, along with representatives from Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs), Atal Incubation Centres (AICs), Atal Community Innovation Centres (ACICs), STPI Centres of Entrepreneurship, the Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM), and other key innovation ecosystem stakeholders.

The conclave aimed to build stronger linkages between India's thriving startup ecosystem and GCCs while creating opportunities for collaboration across AIM's innovation value chain — from nurturing young innovators through Atal Tinkering Labs and supporting startups via incubators to scaling high-potential enterprises through the upcoming Atal Acceleration Centres for Scale-up of Startups (AACESS) initiative.

Addressing the gathering, STPI Director General Arvind Kumar highlighted India's emergence as a global GCC powerhouse, noting that the country now hosts over 2,100 Global Capability Centres generating nearly USD 100 billion in annual revenue. He said STPI, which has been instrumental in developing India's technology infrastructure since 1991, is now taking its partnership with AIM to the next level by connecting its nationwide network of technology parks and entrepreneurship centres with AIM's innovation ecosystem.

He invited GCCs to actively partner with AIM and STPI to co-create frontier technologies, mentor startups, validate innovations and help build globally competitive enterprises that contribute to the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047.

AIM Mission Director Deepak Bagla underscored the pivotal role of GCCs in India's innovation-driven growth story. Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of 'Jai Anusandhan', he said AIM has spent the past decade building a robust innovation pipeline — from more than 10,000 Atal Tinkering Labs in schools to over 100 incubators supporting startups and grassroots innovators.

Bagla said that integrating GCC expertise with AIM's innovation ecosystem would nurture talent, accelerate entrepreneurship, encourage industry adoption of new technologies and create globally competitive enterprises. He urged industry leaders to engage with AIM through mentorship, innovation challenges, pilot projects, market access initiatives and startup-industry partnerships.

STPI Bengaluru Director Dr. Sanjay Tyagi said Bengaluru's vibrant GCC ecosystem provides the ideal platform for creating structured collaborations between industry and innovators. He noted that India's GCCs have evolved beyond cost-efficiency centres into globally recognised hubs for technology development, product engineering and innovation. According to him, closer collaboration between STPI, AIM and GCCs would unlock fresh opportunities for technology commercialisation, startup scale-up and industry-led entrepreneurship.

The conclave featured focused deliberations on four strategic themes: reimagining school innovation through Atal Tinkering Labs; accelerating startups through Atal Incubation Centres and Atal Community Innovation Centres; scaling innovation through the upcoming AACESS Industrial Accelerator Programme; and promoting industry-led innovation via joint accelerator platforms and STPI Centres of Entrepreneurship.

Participants discussed practical avenues for collaboration, including mentorship, technology validation, pilot deployments, challenge-driven innovation programmes, market access and sector-specific accelerator initiatives. A major focus was the forthcoming AACESS Industrial Accelerator Programme, designed to help growth-stage startups gain access to industrial validation, mentorship, pilot opportunities and commercialisation support.

The conclave also explored deeper institutional collaboration between AIM and STPI to leverage their complementary strengths in nurturing innovators, entrepreneurs and technology enterprises across the country.

The event concluded with a strong commitment from industry leaders, government agencies and innovation ecosystem partners to pursue structured collaborations that will accelerate startup growth, promote technology adoption and further strengthen India's position as a leading global innovation and technology hub.