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Microsoft India will collaborate with the Government of India’s national investment promotion and facilitation agency, to support tech startups in the country. As part of this collaboration, the Microsoft for Startups program will work closely with Accelerating Growth of New India’s Innovations (AGNIi Mission), a program of the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India and a Mission under the Prime Minister’s Science, Technology, and Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC) that convenes India’s finest technologies with their potential adopters. 

The AGNIi Mission is executed by Invest India and it  helps startups become enterprise ready. So far, with support from AGNIi Mission, Microsoft has on boarded 11 startups into the Microsoft for Startups program. These startups are :

1. Amplearth Packaging & Systems: Enables latest innovations to help manufacture and manage large-scale sustainable and reusable FMCG packaging.
2. Arishti CyberTech: Enables security and flexibility within enterprise communications, enabling businesses to share sensitive data smoothly.
3. Daybest Research:  Provides smart agricultural intelligence and technology to farmers in India and government institutions.
4. Go Buzzr (Dev BeeTech): An agritech startup offering an IOT Based Smart Beehive Monitoring System that studies the condition of beehives and communicates through the mobile application.
5. Prkruti (Jal Technologies): Provides businesses with an efficient outcome with their wide array of application services including Business Analysis & Documentation, B2B Technology, Software Solutions, ecommerce, Mobile Apps Design, Web-hosting & Website Development and Enterprise Application Integration.
6. Sandbird Research & Development: Provider of a smart electric tiller with which the farmers can sit remotely and operate the vehicle with remote control technologies without any need of a driver.
7. Vasudhaika Software (Kalgudi Digital): Provider of a convergence platform for businesses across agriculture & rural livelihoods by providing a holistic approach that benefits the organizations.
8. Vecmocon Technologies: Contributes to sustainable requirements of society through technology solutions such as smart battery pack, EV cluster, fleet management, operations motor and motor control.
9. Whrrl Fintech Solutions: Empowers farmers, traders and producer companies on blockchain platform in raising working capital to tide over lengthy crop cycles
10. YCLEPT 4E Labs: Provides clean energy, connectivity & local information on the go using eco-friendly smart solutions. It runs on clean energy and can be operated through cloud technology.
11. Yuktix Gidabits: Provides innovations around accurate farm monitoring, solar computing, wireless sensors, IoT for agriculture, harvest quality monitoring and farm risk and health management. 

Under the Microsoft for Startups program, the selected startups will gain  access to benefits, including Azure credits, as well as support for technology and business acceleration, focused on scaling their growth. Startups will be able to utilize Microsoft technology including Azure, GitHub, and M365, allowing them to quickly build and run their businesses. The selected startups will also get personalised technical sessions, content, and mentorship. Moreover, they will be able to leverage Microsoft’s Azure Marketplace, enterprise sales team, and the rapidly growing partner ecosystem to develop and execute their go-to-market strategies. 

Apart from Microsoft for Startups program, the tech giant also conducts its ‘Highway to a Hundred Unicorns’ initiative that works with local governments to strengthen the startup ecosystem in each state. Under the program, last year, the company selected 54 tech startups from five states.

The ‘Microsoft for Agritech Startups’ programme is another such program aimed at specifically bolstering agritech startups in India.