Nirmaan IITM

Name

Nirmaan IITM

Legal name

Nirmaan

Website

https://nirmaan.iitm.ac.in

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Nirmaan IITM is the dedicated pre-incubator at IIT Madras that supports student entrepreneurs through the Pratham and Akshar programs, providing workspace at the Sudha & Shankar Innovation Hub, INR 2-5 lakh seed grants per team, mentorship, prototyping tools, and access to the IITM startup ecosystem.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Startup Pre-Incubation Services

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Venture Studios / Company Builders (FSANAAAH)

Keywords

• Startup pre-incubation
• Student entrepreneurship programs
• Seed funding grants
• University innovation hub
• Startup mentorship services

Headquarters

HQ city

Chennai

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Pre-incubation Program: Nirmaan generates revenue indirectly by providing pre-incubation support to student startups. It does not charge startups for participation; rather, it provides seed grants to teams (INR 2 lakhs in Pratham, INR 5 lakhs in Akshar) and likely retains equity or commercial rights in incubated companies.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Nirmaan operates a dedicated pre-incubator at IIT Madras that supports student entrepreneurs through two sequential 6-month programs: Pratham (foundational training with INR 2 lakhs seed grant for market research and prototyping) and Akshar (MVP development with INR 5 lakhs funding and industry connections). Accepted teams receive workspace at the Sudha & Shankar Innovation Hub, access to machining, characterization, and computing tools, sector-specific mentorship, networking with IITM alumni, and immersive workshops on customer discovery, lean startup, business model canvas, pitching, and design thinking.

Product overview

Nirmaan is a pre-incubator program at IIT Madras operating as a unified platform offering two sequential startup development programs: Pratham (6-month foundational training with ₹2 lakhs seed grant) and Akshar (6-month MVP development phase with ₹5 lakhs funding). The organization supports student entrepreneurs through workspace at the Sudha & Shankar Innovation Hub, advanced tools and computing facilities, sector-specific mentorship, networking with industry experts, and immersive workshops. Complementary media offerings include the Innosphere Podcast on YouTube, Innosphere Magazine (PDF publication), and a Medium blog. The annual Delta Expo serves as a showcase event for participating startups.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pratham Program

Quantifiable outcome

• 267 Cr+ total valuation of startups supported
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• G. Pullaiah College of Engineering and TechnologyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 April 2026G. Pullaiah College of Engineering and Technology in Kurnool signed an MoU with Nirmaan to collaborate on student employment, skill development, and social partnership initiatives. The partnership aims to enhance career prospects and practical skills for engineering college students.
• IIM AhmedabadcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 March 2026IIT Madras announced a partnership with IIM Ahmedabad as part of a broader initiative to set up studio structures for incubating deep tech startups, with a target of supporting 100 startups annually.
• C-CAMP (Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 March 2026IIT Madras partnered with C-CAMP as part of the studio structure initiative for deep tech startup incubation, targeting 100 startups annually.
• NCL (National Chemical Laboratory)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 March 2026IIT Madras partnered with NCL as part of the studio structure initiative for deep tech startup incubation, targeting 100 startups annually.
• BITS PilanicoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 March 2026IIT Madras partnered with BITS Pilani as part of the studio structure initiative for deep tech startup incubation, targeting 100 startups annually.
• Nepali Startups (Individual)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNine Nepali startups received Indian incubation and investment offers through cross-border startup collaboration initiatives between Nepal and India, with Nirmaan/IIT Madras providing incubation support.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• iTIC Incubator, IIT Hyderabad: IIT Hyderabad's technology incubator supporting student and faculty startups with seed funding, workspace and mentoring — directly comparable as a peer IIT campus incubator.
• SINE (Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship), IIT Bombay: IIT Bombay's technology business incubator that supports startups from ideation through scaling with seed capital, mentorship and workspace — structurally analogous to Nirmaan as an IIT-anchored pre-incubation/incubation program targeting student and alumni founders.
• FITT (Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer), IIT Delhi: IIT Delhi's technology transfer and incubation arm, providing seed funding, IP support and mentoring to student and faculty startups — closely comparable to Nirmaan as an IIT-affiliated pre-incubator.
• SIIC (SIDBI Innovation and Incubation Centre), IIT Kanpur: IIT Kanpur's on-campus incubator offering pre-incubation and incubation programs with seed grants and mentorship to student startups — directly comparable in mission, campus embedment and program structure.
• NSRCEL, IIM Bangalore: IIM Bangalore's startup and innovation centre supporting early-stage ventures with mentorship, programs and ecosystem access — comparable to Nirmaan as a top-tier academic-anchored incubator targeting nascent founders.
• CIIE.CO, IIM Ahmedabad: IIM Ahmedabad's startup incubator and innovation hub that nurtures early-stage and student-led ventures — directly comparable in mission and academic embedment, and notably a named Nirmaan/IITM deep-tech studio partner.

Broad incumbents

• T-Hub: India's largest state-backed startup incubator operating in Hyderabad with a broad portfolio mandate across stages — comparable as an Indian incubator serving early-stage founders but at materially larger scale and with a wider sector remit than Nirmaan.
• Villgro: India-based impact-focused incubator and investor backing science and deep-tech startups with seed capital and technical mentoring — comparable in support of deep-tech, IP-generating ventures but operating as a portfolio investor rather than a campus-embedded pre-incubator.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@InnovationEntrepreneurship
• Xx.com/Nirmaan_IITM
• Facebookfacebook.com/nirmaan.iitm
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nirmaan-iitm

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Nirmaan IITM