Kalam Institute of Health Technology

What Kalam Institute of Health Technology does

Kalam Institute of Health Technology (KIHT) is a government-funded research institute established in 2017 under the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, and headquartered within the Andhra Pradesh MedTech Zone (AMTZ) campus in Visakhapatnam. It is registered as a society with 100% financial support from DBT under the National Biopharma Mission and is designated as both the regional hub for Health Technology Assessment (under DHR/MOHFW) and a WHO Collaborating Centre for Health Innovation. The institute was set up to bridge India's academia-industry-government divide in medical devices, where over 75% of devices are imported and government-funded prototypes historically failed to reach commercialization.

KIHT operates four core functional units: the e-Auction Portal (the world's first exclusive online auction platform for medical technology transfer from government-funded labs to manufacturers), the Cell for Health Technology Assessment (CHTA, producing clinical and cost-effectiveness appraisals), the Cell for Market Intelligence & Trade (CMIT, analysing trade data and corporate M&A in the Indian medtech sector), and the World Health Innovation Forum (WHIF, a global annual convening that reached 6,240 attendees from 60 countries in its 2024 edition). Supporting programs include the Innovation Passport at AMTZ, MedTech Hackathons, the EnterpreNari women-entrepreneurship program, an Executive PG Program in Medical Technology delivered with Skill-Lync, the JBI gLOCAL Solution Room, and an HTA Fellowship. Publications include 19 medical-device dossiers, an HTA Compendium, GLOBEX trade data reports, and the International Journal of Health Technology and Innovation.

The business model is primarily grant-funded rather than commercial: DBT provides operating support, dossier sales are priced at INR 10,000 per unit, and the e-Auction portal generates transactional revenue from technology transfers. KIHT serves four primary customer segments — Research & Academic Institutions (IITs, CSIR labs), Medical Device Manufacturers, Healthcare Innovators & Startups, and Government & Policy Makers — with strategic alliances including WHO, JBI/University of Adelaide, AiMED, BIRAC, IFC, PATH, Jhpiego, IIT Guwahati, and BioCubaFarma. The governing body is chaired by the DBT Secretary and includes the Principal Scientific Adviser to GoI and AIMED's Forum Coordinator, embedding KIHT structurally in national science-policy decision-making.

Name

Kalam Institute of Health Technology

Legal name

Kalam Institute of Health Technology

Website

https://kiht.in

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Kalam Institute of Health Technology is India's first dedicated medical technology research institute, funded by the Department of Biotechnology and located in Visakhapatnam. It bridges academia, industry, and government through an e-Auction tech transfer portal, Health Technology Assessment cell, market intelligence division, and the World Health Innovation Forum.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Visakhapatnam

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Government Funding: KIHT receives 100% financial support from the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, established as a registered society under the aegis of the National Biopharma Mission.
2. Dossier Sales: KIHT sells medical device dossiers (technical and market intelligence reports) for INR 10,000 per dossier. Bulk discounts available upon inquiry. Payment accepted via demand draft or online transfer to KIHT's ICICI Bank account.
3. e-Auction Technology Transfer Fees: KIHT facilitates technology transfer through its e-auction portal, enabling manufacturers to bid for innovative medical technologies developed in government-funded research labs. Revenue is generated through the commercialization process.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

KIHT is a government-funded research institute that facilitates focused research on critical medical device components by supporting R&D institutions, industry, policymakers, and knowledge repositories. Its core services include Health Technology Assessment, market intelligence and trade data on medical devices, technology transfer facilitation through the world's first e-auction portal for medical technologies, training and fellowship programs, and publications including medical device dossiers and HTA compendiums.

Product overview

Kalam Institute of Health Technology (KIHT) is a research institute under the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, located at AMTZ Campus in Visakhapatnam. Rather than a single product, KIHT offers a portfolio of interconnected programs: the e-Auction Portal serves as the core technology transfer mechanism; Cell for Health Technology Assessment (CHTA) and Cell for Market Intelligence & Trade (CMIT) provide analytical services; the World Health Innovation Forum (WHIF) is a global event platform; Innovation Passport and EnterpreNari are startup support programs; the Executive PG Program in Medical Technology delivers training; and Medical Device Dossiers and HTA Compendium are publications. Together these offerings facilitate focused R&D, technology transfer, and market access for medical devices in India.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• WHIF: World Health Innovation Forum - a global platform accelerating medical technology innovation and collaboration, uniting innovators, industry leaders, healthcare experts, and policymakers.
• JBI gLOCAL Solution Room

Products and services

• e-Auction Portal for Medical Technology Transfer Online platform that pools medical technologies developed in government-funded research labs and auctions them to industry manufacturers for commercialization, enabling rapid tech transfer from academia to industry.
• Cell for Health Technology Assessment (CHTA) Regional hub of the Department of Health Research (MOHFW) that undertakes Health Technology Assessment to appraise innovative medical devices in terms of their clinical and cost effectiveness, supporting evidence-based policy and procurement decisions.
• Cell for Market Intelligence & Trade (CMIT) Cell that analyzes and provides market and trade-related data on medical devices, including GLOBEX reports, and monitors mergers and acquisitions among corporates in the medical devices industry.
• World Health Innovation Forum (WHIF) Annual global event platform accelerating medical technology innovation and collaboration, bringing together MedTech innovators, industry leaders, healthcare experts, and policymakers from 60+ countries to address critical healthcare challenges.
• Medical Device Dossiers Comprehensive technical and market intelligence dossiers on 19 medical device categories including Anesthesia Workstation, Mammography, Biochemistry Analyzer, Defibrillator, ECMO, Coronary Stents, Infusion Pump, X-ray CT, Hemodialysis Machine, and others. Sold at INR 10,000 per dossier with bulk discounts available.
• Health Technology Assessment Compendium Comprehensive compendium containing health technology assessment data and clinical and cost-effectiveness analyses for medical devices and diagnostics, published by KIHT.
• Executive PG Program in Medical Technology One-year master's level program offered jointly with Skill-Lync, combining 6 months of online courses on medical technology fundamentals with 6 months of hands-on industrial training through internship at AMTZ, designed to bridge skill requirements in the medical devices industry.
• Innovation Passport at AMTZ Unique initiative providing startups, researchers, and enterprises with seamless access to state-of-the-art infrastructure at AMTZ, regulatory support, and expert mentorship for developing, testing, and commercializing cutting-edge medical devices.

Quantifiable outcome

• The Kalam-Raju indigenous cardiac stent reduced stent costs by approximately 75%, demonstrating the impact of focused R&D on affordable healthcare.
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI), University of AdelaidecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 October 2018KIHT was formally inducted as a Joanna Briggs Centre for India for evidence synthesis and knowledge transfer in healthcare. The partnership focuses on improving market access of medical technology through evidence-based approaches and hosts the JBI gLOCAL Solution Room events.
• Novel Patent Services (IPR Academy)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 26 April 2018Launch of Novel IPR Academy through MoU signing with KIHT, aimed at providing intellectual property training and services for biomedical engineers and innovators.
• Department of Health Research (DHR), Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of IndiacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 April 2018KIHT was selected as a regional hub for Health Technology Assessment (HTA) in partnership with DHR. An MoU was signed to work together in the field of HTA for medical devices and diagnostics.
• MedikabazaarminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 29 March 2018MoU signed for showcasing innovative medical technologies ready for industrial manufacturing via KIHT's e-auction portal. Medikabazaar promotes the e-auction on its platform and helps connect manufacturers with academic innovations.
• Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of IndiacoreOthers · 21 July 2017KIHT receives 100% financial support from the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India. It functions under the aegis of the National Biopharma Mission and is identified as the nodal point for medical technology program support.
• WHO (World Health Organization)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKIHT has been designated as a WHO Collaborating Centre for Health Innovation. The terms of reference include supporting WHO's work on development and standardization of need assessment frameworks for health innovation, interactive platforms for knowledge exchange on healthcare innovators, and incubation and scaling of innovations.
• Association of Indian Medical Device Industry (AiMED)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAiMED serves on KIHT's Governing Board and leads the prioritized indigenous development of medical devices in India for addressing priority diseases. The partnership brings industry perspective and technical bandwidth to KIHT's initiatives.
• Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKIHT was established with support from BIRAC, a PSU of DBT. KIHT was accepted as facilitator for DBT/BIRAC-funded innovations for helping them with certifications and market access.
• BioCubaFarma Enterprise GroupminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLoI signed with BioCubaFarma under the National Biopharma Mission for promoting medical technologies. Partnership under the BIRAC-KIHT-BioCubaFarma agreement for biotech and medical device collaboration.
• Andhra Pradesh MedTech Zone (AMTZ)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKIHT is hosted within the AMTZ campus. AMTZ provides world-class manufacturing and testing infrastructure, while KIHT provides knowledge partnership including market access, HTA, and technology transfer support.
• AIC - AMTZ Medi Valley Incubation Council & BIORx Venture Advisors Pvt LtdminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerIncubation partner providing startup support services within the AMTZ ecosystem, supporting healthcare innovators in product development and commercialization.
• Skill-Lync (EpowerX Learning Technologies Pvt Ltd)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerKIHT partnered with Skill-Lync to offer an Executive PG Program in Medical Technology — a one-year master's level program combining 6 months online courses with 6 months industrial training at AMTZ.
• JhpiegominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJhpiego participates in WHIF programs and forums, contributing expertise in global health innovation and healthcare technology implementation.
• PATHminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPATH partners with KIHT/WHIF, contributing to discussions on MedTech innovation for global health access and participating in investment forums and innovation showcases.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC): Public sector undertaking of DBT that funds and facilitates biotech and medical device innovation in India. BIRAC is KIHT's parent facilitator and shares the technology-transfer and incubation mandate for DBT-funded innovations.
• IKP Knowledge Park: Hyderabad-based life sciences R&D and incubation park with a focus on medtech and biotech startups. IKP runs technology transfer and innovation programs comparable to KIHT's e-auction and Innovation Passport offerings.
• Andhra Pradesh MedTech Zone (AMTZ): India's flagship medical device manufacturing zone where KIHT is physically co-located. AMTZ provides the manufacturing infrastructure and KIHT provides the knowledge, market intelligence, and technology transfer overlay — together functioning as a single integrated ecosystem.
• Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-CAMP): Bangalore-based life sciences innovation hub and incubator supported by DBT. C-CAMP plays a comparable role in life sciences, including technology transfer, startup enablement, and ecosystem building — parallel to KIHT's mandate in medical devices.
• Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST): An Institute of National Importance under the Department of Science and Technology with a dedicated medical devices and biomaterials wing. SCTIMST is among the few Indian institutions performing end-to-end medical device R&D and technology transfer, making it a natural peer to KIHT.
• Bangalore Bioinnovation Centre: Karnataka government-supported bio-innovation hub offering incubation, equipment access, and scale-up support. Comparable to KIHT's role in providing startup infrastructure and ecosystem access for healthcare innovators.
• National Health Systems Resource Centre (NHSRC): Government of India technical support body for the National Health Mission, which performs health technology assessment and policy advisory work comparable to KIHT's CHTA division.

Broad incumbents

• AdvaMed (Advanced Medical Technology Association): Global medical device industry association that shapes policy, market access, and innovation pathways. Comparable to KIHT's ecosystem-building role in medical device technology transfer and industry facilitation.
• National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) International: UK's national HTA body that performs clinical and cost-effectiveness evaluations for medical technologies. NICE is the global gold standard for HTA and a useful benchmark for KIHT's CHTA function and methodology.
• PATH: Global non-profit that drives health innovation and medical technology access in low- and middle-income countries. PATH is a WHIF partner and shares the Global South health technology mandate with KIHT.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/KIHTech
• Facebookfacebook.com/KIHTech
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kiht-2016

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Kalam Institute of Health Technology