DLabs

What DLabs does

DLabs (legally D-Labs Incubator Association) is the incubation and acceleration arm of the Indian School of Business, operating as a not-for-profit Section 8 Company established in collaboration with the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. Founded in 2015 and headquartered at ISB's Hyderabad campus with an additional location in Mohali, DLabs serves aspiring, early-stage, and growth-stage founders through a portfolio of stage-specific and sector-specific programs. These include pre-incubation (ISPROUTE), incubation (Business Incubation Cohort, Startup India Seed Fund Scheme, Clean Energy Lab), acceleration (Build for Billions, FinChAin, Liftoff Propel, EduRISE, Agri & Food Accelerator, I-HEAL, Envision Social Impact, Jumpstart, Climate Solver), co-working space (I-Work @ ISB), and women-founder programs (I-WIN).

The platform does not develop proprietary technology products; instead it orchestrates a curated set of programs powered by mentor networks (178+ experts), investor connections (500+), corporate co-creation partners (Microsoft, Google, S&P Global, Broadridge, SAP, AWS, CitiusTech), and government stakeholders (DST, Startup India, AIM, RBIH). Notable technical infrastructure is limited to a physical state-of-the-art incubation space at the ISB campus and the dedicated Blockchain Impact Lab, with most knowledge delivery happening through cohort workshops, mentorship sessions, and investor demo days rather than software platforms.

Revenue mechanics are primarily grant- and partnership-driven: DLabs intermediates government seed funding (NIDHI Seed Support, Startup India Seed Fund), receives corporate co-creation contributions for accelerators such as I-HEAL, FinChAin, and Build for Billions, and has begun deploying its own capital (e.g., $500,000 pre-seed into MU20 alongside Aakash Chaudhry). The organization reports over 200 startups supported, 50+ women-led ventures, 100+ startups raising follow-on funding, and portfolio companies collectively raising Rs 2,200+ crore, positioning DLabs as an ecosystem orchestrator rather than a revenue-generating enterprise.

Name

DLabs

Legal name

D-Labs Incubator Association

Website

https://isbdlabs.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

DLabs is the not-for-profit incubation and acceleration arm of the Indian School of Business, supporting aspiring, early-stage, and growth-stage startups across India through sector-specific programs in healthcare, fintech, agritech, edtech, and clean energy, powered by corporate and government partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Hyderabad

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Incubation and Acceleration Services: DLabs is a not-for-profit Section 8 company established by Indian School of Business in collaboration with DST, GoI. It operates as a startup incubator providing mentorship, education, investor connections, and co-working space to entrepreneurs. Revenue is generated through program fees, seed funding management, and partnerships with corporates for co-created innovation programs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

DLabs is the incubation and acceleration arm of the Indian School of Business, operating as a not-for-profit Section 8 company. It runs sector-specific and stage-specific programs (pre-incubation, incubation, and acceleration) for startups, providing mentorship, seed funding assistance, co-working space, regulatory navigation, and investor connections in domains including fintech, healthtech, edtech, agritech, clean energy, and deep tech.

Product overview

DLabs (also referred to as ISB DLabs or I-Venture @ ISB) is the incubation and acceleration arm of the Indian School of Business, operating as a not-for-profit Section 8 Company in collaboration with the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. Rather than a single unified product, DLabs offers a portfolio of sector-specific and stage-specific programs including pre-incubation (ISPROUTE), acceleration (Build for Billions, FinChAin, Liftoff Propel, EduRISE, Agri & Food, I-HEAL, Envision, Jumpstart, Climate Solver), incubation (Startup India Seed Fund, Business Incubation Cohort, Clean Energy Lab), co-working space (I-Work @ ISB), and women-focused programs (I-WIN). These programs collectively support startups from ideation through scale-up with mentorship, funding assistance, regulatory navigation, and investor connections.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ISPROUTE: ISB DLabs' flagship Pre-Incubation program that caters to aspiring entrepreneurs.
• Build for Billions Accelerator
• FinChAin @ ISB
• Liftoff Propel
• EduRISE
• Agri & Food Accelerator
• I-WIN (Women of Innovation)
• Blockchain Impact Lab
• Clean Energy Lab
• Climate Solver Accelerator

Products and services

• ISPROUTE Pre-incubation program that supports aspiring entrepreneurs in validating and shaping early-stage ideas, exclusive to ISB PGP students.
• Build for Billions Accelerator

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 250 startups incubated, with 200+ supported by DLabs
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• CitiusTechcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare IT company powering the I-HEAL (Healthcare Entrepreneurship Acceleration Lab) program, providing mentorship, regulatory navigation, clinical partner access, and go-to-market support for healthtech startups.
• Department of Science and Technology, Government of India (DST)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDST supports DLabs as a not-for-profit Section 8 company established in collaboration with ISB. The NIDHI Seed Support Scheme provides financial assistance to startups for proof of concept, prototype development, and market entry.
• Indian School of Business (ISB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerISB hosts DLabs at its Hyderabad Campus, providing institutional resources, faculty expertise, and network access. Professor Bhagwan Chowdhry serves as Faculty Director of I-Venture @ ISB.
• Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRBIH partnered with DLabs to launch 'Build for Billions' accelerator program bridging financial services and the informal economy.
• Broadridge IndiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBroadridge India collaborated with DLabs to launch FinChAin @ ISB, a global accelerator program for startups working in GenAI, Blockchain, DeFi, and Fintech.
• Wandhwani FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation partnered with DLabs to design Liftoff Propel program supporting MVP-stage startups from T1/T2/T3 cities seeking PMF and business model validation.
• Corporate Partners (S&P Global, Microsoft, Google, SAP, AWS)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partners co-create innovation-led programs with DLabs and identify startups working on solutions addressing specific business challenges. Partners include S&P Global, Microsoft, Google, Broadridge, SAP, Shakti Foundation, AWS, WWF.
• Stakeholder Partners (DST, Startup India, AIM, British Deputy High Commission Hyderabad)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDLabs supported by DST, GoI works with investors, government bodies, foundations and ecosystem enablers including Startup India, AIM ( Atal Innovation Mission), British Deputy High Commission Hyderabad, and state governments.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Brinc: Global accelerator and venture builder operating hardware-IoT and clean energy programs with India presence. Comparable in running sector-specific accelerator cohorts and corporate co-creation, though at a younger stage than DLabs.

Broad incumbents

• Startup India (DPIIT): Government of India's flagship startup program that channels the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme through partner incubators like DLabs. Acts as both an ecosystem enabler and a funding administrator that competes for ecosystem mindshare.
• Atal Innovation Mission (AIM): Government of India flagship innovation and entrepreneurship initiative that oversees a national network of Atal Incubators. DLabs partners with AIM, and AIM plays a broader program design and funding role encompassing many peer incubators across India.
• Y Combinator: The global benchmark for accelerator programs operating cohort-based support for early-stage startups. While based in Silicon Valley, YC competes for high-quality Indian founders and sets the global standard for accelerator model that DLabs' programs aspire to.

Direct peers

• IIIT Hyderabad - Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE): IIIT-H's CIE runs technology-focused incubation and acceleration for early-stage startups, and is a fellow Hyderabad-based academic incubator competing for local founder talent and corporate partnerships.
• SINE (Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, IIT Bombay): Academic-incubator at IIT Bombay offering pre-incubation, incubation, and acceleration for technology startups with seed funding and corporate connects — a near-identical operating model to DLabs from a peer university.
• T-Hub: India's largest startup incubator, also based in Hyderabad and a direct competitor for early-stage startups, corporate innovation partnerships, and government-backed seed programs. Operates as a not-for-profit with similar cohort-based accelerator and corporate co-creation model.
• CIIE.CO at IIM Ahmedabad: IIM Ahmedabad's entrepreneurship center running accelerator programs, seed-stage investing, and corporate innovation partnerships. Closely comparable academic-anchored incubator with sector-agnostic cohorts similar to DLabs.
• Velocity (India Accelerator): Indian accelerator running cohort-based programs for early-stage startups with mentor networks and investor connections — a direct comparable in business model, scale, and target segment to DLabs' acceleration programs.
• NSRCEL (IIT Madras): Indian Institute of Technology Madras's incubation and entrepreneurship center; runs sector-specific accelerator programs, seed funding, and corporate partnerships analogous to DLabs. Competes for the same early-stage founder pool and corporate innovation mandates across India.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dlabs-design-led-incubator
• Xx.com/DLabs_Incubator
• Facebookfacebook.com/dlabs

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments131 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about DLabs