Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society

What Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society does

Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society (KITS), formerly Karnataka Biotechnology and Information Technology Services (KBITS), is a state-level society registered under the Karnataka Societies Registration Act, 1960, operating as the implementing arm of the Department of Information Technology, Biotechnology and Science & Technology, Government of Karnataka. It facilitates and promotes IT, biotechnology, ESDM, AVGC, and emerging technology sectors in Karnataka through policy administration, ecosystem-building, incubation, funding, and skilling.

The organisation's product portfolio is layered: (1) five sector-specific policies (i4 Policy, Karnataka BT Policy v3.0, KESDM Policy, KAVGC Policy, Startup Policy) that authorise incentives such as PF/ESI reimbursements, R&D grants up to INR 2 Crores, and patent registration incentives; (2) government grant and venture funding vehicles — Idea2PoC (up to Rs 50 lakhs), Grand Challenges, Semiconductor Venture Fund (Rs 92.95 Crores), Bio Venture Fund (Rs 50 Crores), AVGC Venture Fund (Rs 20 Crores), Startup Fund of Funds (Rs 200 Crores); (3) operational programs — ELEVATE 100, NAIN (incubation across 30+ engineering colleges), Yuva Yuga (25,000+ youth trained via the eKaushal platform), BiSEP (18 institutions, Rs 44.17 crore budget), K-SAP Bio-50, and CHETANA; and (4) eight Centres of Excellence covering Space Technology, Agri & Allied Innovation, Aerospace & Defence, Cyber Security, Data Science & AI, IoT, AVGC, and Agri-tech Innovation, alongside K-Tech Innovation Hubs at NASSCOM, IAMAI/Mobile10X, IKP Knowledge Park, and Bangalore Bioinnovation Centre. Common Instrumentation Facilities include IBAB, the Bio-IT Centre with Illumina HiSeq 2500, the Centre for Human Genetics, and IIIT-B Innovation Centre. Flagship events are the Bengaluru Tech Summit (annual ICT/biotech summit) and the GAFX Conference (AVGC).

KITS operates a non-commercial revenue model. Its operating budget comes from Karnataka state budgetary allocations, and it disburses grants, equity investments, and program support to startups, MSMEs, and ecosystem participants. Services, grants, and incentives are provided free of cost or at subsidised rates to eligible beneficiaries. Customer segments include technology startups, students and job seekers, IT/BT/ESDM companies, and educational institutions, served through a multi-channel network spanning physical hubs, CoEs, partner incubators, NAIN colleges, and GTM partnerships with Naukri.com (GCC talent), Ideabaaz Tech (startup mentorship/investor access), and international collaborators such as France's Link Innovation / VivaTech and Poland's Katowice Chamber of Commerce.

Name

Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society

Legal name

Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society

Website

https://k-tech.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society (KITS) is the Government of Karnataka's society under the Department of IT, BT and S&T that administers state tech-sector policies, funds, incubators, Centres of Excellence, and skilling programs for startups, students, and enterprises across Karnataka.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Government Technology Ecosystem Facilitation

NAICS

Regulation, Licensing, and Inspection of Miscellaneous Commercial Sectors (926150), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Science, Technology & Innovation Administration (National R&D Policy) (BPAIAAAK)

Keywords

• Startup incubation services
• Technology policy administration
• Innovation funding schemes
• Skill development programs
• Ecosystem facilitation services

Headquarters

HQ city

Bengaluru

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Government Funding & Grants Disbursement: KITS operates as a government society receiving budgetary allocations from the Karnataka state government and redistributing funds as grants, equity investments, and program support to startups, MSMEs, and ecosystem participants. Core revenue is not commercial; operational funding comes from government budget lines.
2. Policy Incentive Administration: KITS administers various policy incentives (I4 Policy, BT Policy, KESDM Policy, KAVGC Policy, Startup Policy) including reimbursement of PF/ESI contributions, R&D grants (up to INR 2 Crores), capital subsidies, patent incentives, and prototyping cost reimbursements for registered companies.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society (KITS) is a government society under Karnataka's Department of IT, BT and S&T that facilitates the state's IT, biotechnology, ESDM, and AVGC innovation ecosystem. It administers technology policies, runs Centres of Excellence, K-Tech Innovation Hubs, and incubation networks; disburses venture funds and grants (Idea2PoC, Grand Challenges, Semiconductor/Bio/AVGC Venture Funds); and operates flagship skilling programs (Yuva Yuga, BiSEP, CHETANA, NAIN) and events (Bengaluru Tech Summit, GAFX).

Product overview

Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society (KITS), operating under the K-tech brand, is a government society that functions as Karnataka's primary technology ecosystem enabler across IT, Biotechnology, Electronics System Design & Manufacturing (ESDM), and Animation/Visual Effects/Gaming/Comics (AVGC). Its portfolio consists of a layered architecture of policy frameworks (i4 Policy, Biotech Policy v3.0, KESDM Policy, AVGC Policy, Startup Policy), government grant and venture funding vehicles (Idea2PoC, Grand Challenges, Semiconductor Venture Fund, Bio Venture Fund, AVGC Venture Fund, Startup Fund of Funds), and operational programs (ELEVATE 100, NAIN, Yuva Yuga, BiSEP, K-SAP Bio-50, CHETANA). These are complemented by a network of 8 sector-specific Centres of Excellence (Space Technology, Agri & Allied Innovation, Aerospace & Defence, Cyber Security, Data Science & AI, IoT, AVGC, Agri-tech Innovation), 4 K-Tech Innovation Hubs (NASSCOM, IAMAI/Mobile10X, IKP Knowledge Park, Bangalore Bioinnovation Centre), and Common Instrumentation Facilities (IBAB, Bio-IT Centre, Centre for Human Genetics, IABT, CBR, CENSE, SMART Lab, IIITB Innovation Centre, CoE-IoT). Flagship events include the Bengaluru Tech Summit (annual ICT, Electronics, and Biotech summit) and Bengaluru GAFX Conference (AVGC sector). KITS also publishes the annual Karnataka Bioeconomy Report tracking the state's $39.2 billion biotech ecosystem.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Centre of Excellence for Space Technology (CoE SpaceTech Foundation) India's first state-led Centre of Excellence for Space Technology serving startups, researchers, and academia with advanced research, talent development, and cross-sector satellite applications in agriculture, climate, disaster management, and national security.
• Centre of Excellence in Agri & Allied Innovation, Kalaburagi Agricultural innovation centre serving farmers, startups, researchers, and innovators across Kalyana Karnataka with focus on AI, IoT, robotics, and digital farming technologies under the Rs 1,000 crore LEAP programme.
• Centre of Excellence in Aerospace and Defence CoE enhancing skill development and providing industry-ready manpower to the aerospace and defence sector in Bengaluru and Belagavi through partnership with VTU and Dassault Syst\u00e8mes.
• Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security CoE boosting Karnataka's cybersecurity industry, assisting the state in tackling cyber threats, and encouraging academic research activities in cybersecurity.
• Centre of Excellence for Data Science & Artificial Intelligence (CoE-DSAI) PPP CoE between Government of Karnataka and NASSCOM catalysing AI growth through innovative AI applications, globally acclaimed research, data-driven decision-making, AI for social good, and talent development.
• Centre of Excellence for Internet of Things (CoE-IoT) Largest deep-tech innovation ecosystem in India for IoT, AR/VR, Machine Learning, and Robotics, helping Indian IoT startups build market-ready products through academic research.
• Centre of Excellence in AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics) CoE in collaboration with ABAI featuring a Post Production Lab and Finishing School, building a complete ecosystem for original IP creation and international outsourcing projects in the AVGC sector.
• Centre of Excellence in Agri-tech Innovation CoE promoting deep-science and technology-driven entrepreneurship in agriculture through immersion programs, Grand Challenges, incubation, funding, and mentorship for innovators and startups.
• K-Tech Innovation Hub (NASSCOM) 36,000 sq. ft. K-Tech Innovation Hub at NASSCOM Diamond District, Bengaluru, offering subsidised incubation space, Hack-cellerator for idea-stage entities, and Start-up Warehouse. Incubated 192 startups physically and 766 virtually between 2013-2018.
• K-Tech Innovation Hub (IAMAI / Mobile10X) 10,000 sq. ft. K-Tech Innovation Hub at IAMAI focused on strengthening the mobile app ecosystem with testing lab, design lab, and capability building for early-stage app startups. Has incubated 92 startups that raised approximately Rs 20 Cr.
• K-Tech Innovation Hub (IKP Knowledge Park) Chain of hardware product startup incubators across Bengaluru, Belgaum, Mangalore, and Mysore, each accommodating 80-90 individuals with shared prototyping facilities, co-working space, and private office spaces. Houses 25 startup companies with 82 innovators.
• ELEVATE 100 Flagship government entrepreneurship platform for identifying and supporting 100 innovative startups per cohort through Idea2PoC grant funding, mentorship, and non-grant support such as pilot opportunities and investor connections. Over 300 startups supported across multiple sectors.
• Bengaluru Tech Summit Annual flagship ICT, Electronics, and Biotechnology summit featuring conferences on Blockchain, AI, ML, Robotics, IoT, Cyber Security, Bio Pharma; IT Export Awards, Bio Excellence Awards, Startup & Innovation Zone, Hackathons, and B2B meetings.
• Bengaluru GAFX Conference Annual flagship Games, Animation, and Visual Effects event hosting animation studios, VFX production houses, gaming developers, professionals, students, and technology partners for talent showcase, recruitment, and ecosystem enrichment.
• New Age Incubation Network (NAIN) District-level incubation network supporting student entrepreneurs and innovators in engineering colleges across Karnataka's tier-2/3 cities. Has funded 283 projects across 9 districts in Phase 1, producing 138 working prototypes and 18 incorporated companies. Phase 3 covered 13 more colleges.
• Yuva Yuga Industry-led skill development scheme focusing on IT, ITeS, ESDM, Telecom, and AVGC sectors. Operates through eKaushal digital platform with AI-powered chatbot for course counselling and job matching. Launched 407 training centres and trained 25,000+ youth.
• Biotechnology Skill Enhancement Programme (BiSEP) Biotechnology finishing school program implemented across 18 institutions in 8 districts over 5 years with Rs 44.17 Crores budget. Reserves 50% of seats for Karnataka resident students and focuses on industry-specific skills and entrepreneurship development in biotechnology.
• K-SAP Bio-50 (Karnataka Startup Advancement Programme) Acceleration program mentoring and hand-holding 50 bio-startups over three years through structured mentorship including one-on-one sessions, workshops, networking events, and advance roadmaps tailored to each startup's scientific, business, and investment needs.
• CHETANA Initiative empowering girl toppers from government schools across Karnataka with technology education, mentorship, and devices (Samsung laptops/tablets) through residential camps at Infosys Mysore campus and winter schools.
• Idea2PoC Grant Early-stage funding programme providing grants of up to Rs 50 lakhs for ideas or concepts that have not yet established proof of concept. Open to anyone from Karnataka with selection through panel evaluations and Idea2PoC committee presentations.
• Grand Challenges Initiative facilitating generation of innovative technology solutions with social impact across Urban Development, Healthcare, Food Security, Clean Environment, and Education. Provides corpus of up to Rs 10 lakhs for 5 shortlisted projects and up to Rs 50 lakhs for 1 selected innovation.
• Semiconductor Venture Fund

Quantifiable outcome

• Karnataka hosts 35% of India's tech startups
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers4 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

AI capability10 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and strategic.

• SIA-India (SatCom Industry Association of India)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2026Strategic collaboration to establish India's first state-led Centre of Excellence for Space Technology (CoE SpaceTech Foundation) in Bengaluru, bridging research and market-ready solutions through applied innovation, talent development, and ecosystem building. Focus areas include agriculture, climate, disaster management, and national security satellite applications.
• Manipal Academy of Higher EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2026Strategic MoU signed at launch of CoE SpaceTech Foundation to align space technology offerings with industry needs, supporting advanced research, industry-aligned training, and startup incubation in the spacetech sector.
• Helogen Corporation (U.S.)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2026MoU with US-based Helogen Corporation at CoE SpaceTech Foundation launch to advance space technology commercialisation in India, bringing international expertise and market access to the Karnataka spacetech ecosystem.
• ABLE (Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2026ABLE partnered with KITS to co-release the Karnataka Bioeconomy Report 2025 (bioeconomy grew to $39.2 billion), co-host the Bio Excellence Awards, and collaborate across biotech initiatives including spacetech CoE and Grand Challenges programmes.
• Dassault SystèmescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2026Partnership through CoE SpaceTech Foundation and separately for the Centre of Excellence in Aerospace & Defence (established 2017 with MoA at VTU Campus) to provide skill development, simulation tools, and industry-aligned training for engineering students in aerospace and defence domains.
• Idea BaazcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 May 2026Strategic MoU at CoE SpaceTech Foundation launch to serve as a collaborative platform for government, industry, startups, and academia, focusing on applied innovation and ecosystem building in space technology.
• Naukri.comcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 24 April 2026Two-year MoU with Naukri.com to strengthen Karnataka's talent ecosystem and reinforce its position as India's leading GCC hub. Naukri provides a customised GCC starter package at no cost for the first 90 days to newly established centres registered with KITS, focusing on tier-2 cities.
• Ideabaaz TechcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 23 April 2026MoU with startup discovery platform Ideabaaz Tech to provide startups with mentorship, investor access, and market linkages through a framework supporting early-stage validation to market entry and scale. Focus on AI, deeptech, climatetech, and healthtech sectors with expansion beyond Bengaluru into tier II and tier III regions.
• Krishi Kalpa FoundationcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 March 2026Implementation agreement with KITS to operationalise the Centre of Excellence in Agri & Allied Innovation in Kalaburagi under the Rs 1,000 crore LEAP programme. Foundation focuses on AI, IoT, robotics, and digital farming technologies serving farmers, startups, researchers, and innovators in Kalyana Karnataka region.
• Katowice Chamber of Commerce and Industry / Kato.hub (Poland)strategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 February 2026Letter of Intent signed at AI Impact Summit in New Delhi to establish an AI, gaming, and deep-tech innovation corridor connecting Karnataka and Katowice. Includes startup exchange programs, joint demo days, academic collaborations, and a joint task force for pilot projects, positioning Karnataka as a gateway for India-EU technology cooperation.
• Link Innovation (France)strategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 February 2026MoU between KITS and France's Link Innovation signed during Karnataka IT Minister's engagements with Anthropic and global tech leaders, deepening innovation ties between Karnataka and France across startups, research, and GCC collaborations.
• VivaTech (France)strategicGTM or Marketing Partner · 19 February 2026Letter of Intent with VivaTech signed to deepen innovation ties between Karnataka and France, expanding market access and ecosystem linkages for Karnataka startups through VivaTech's global platform.
• NASSCOMflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerK-Tech Innovation Hub established at NASSCOM Diamond District, Domlur, Bengaluru in collaboration with NASSCOM. Also jointly established Centre of Excellence for Data Science & Artificial Intelligence as India's first PPP model CoE for AI, aiming to be among top 5 global AI destinations by 2025.
• IAMAI (Internet and Mobile Association of India)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerK-Tech Innovation Hub at IAMAI established to strengthen Karnataka's mobile app ecosystem, providing affordable incubation space, training center, testing lab, design center, and mentorship for early-stage app startups and developers. 92 startups incubated; approximately Rs 20 crore funding raised by incubates.
• IKP Knowledge ParkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIKP Knowledge Park powers a chain of hardware product startup incubators across Karnataka (Bengaluru, Belgaum, Mangalore, Mysore) as part of K-Tech Innovation Hubs, each accommodating 80-90 individuals with shared prototyping facilities, co-working space, and IKP's global alumni network.
• C-CAMP (Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerC-CAMP is a key partner for Karnataka's bioincubation ecosystem, operating the Centre for Excellence in Agri-tech Innovation with KITS, implementing K-SAP Bio-50 acceleration programme (mentoring 50 bio-startups over 3 years), and housing state-of-the-art technology platforms for life sciences research and entrepreneurship.
• ABAI (Association of Bangalore Animation Industry)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerABAI is KITS' key partner for AVGC sector development, collaborating on the Centre of Excellence in AVGC with post-production lab and finishing school, and co-hosting the annual Bengaluru GAFX Conference (India's largest Games, Animation & Visual Effects event).
• Bangalore Bioinnovation Centre (BBC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBBC is a world-class K-Tech Innovation Hub in Bangalore Helix Biotechnology Park (Electronic City, 10-acre campus, 50,000+ sq. ft.) providing mentoring, funding opportunities, branding support, networking, and laboratory equipment. 30 startups incubated, 15 patents filed, 40 in pipeline, ~Rs 50 crore raised by incubates.
• Institutions (Colleges/Universities) under LEAPcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorKITS invited applications from institutions to organize technology training camps across Karnataka under the Local Economy Accelerator Programme (LEAP), bringing industry-relevant training to smaller cities and districts through collaboration with industry partners.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• Invest India: Invest India is the official investment promotion and facilitation agency of the Government of India. While KITS is state-focused on Karnataka, both share a mandate to attract technology investment and support innovation. The relationship is complementary—KITS feeds investment leads into Invest India while leveraging federal signals—rather than directly competitive.

Direct peers

• Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SINE), IIT Bombay: SINE is IIT Bombay's registered technology business incubator supporting startups across multiple deep-tech and IT verticals through physical incubation, mentorship, and investor connections. It is comparable to KITS's CoE network in offering incubation infrastructure and structured programs, though anchored to a premier academic institution rather than a state government society.
• CIIE, IIM Ahmedabad: CIIE at IIM Ahmedabad is one of India's leading academic-anchored startup incubation and innovation organizations supporting technology and social-impact startups through seed funding and accelerator programmes. Comparable to KITS's K-SAP Bio-50 and ELEVATE 100 in offering funding-driven incubation, mentorship, and structured acceleration programmes within India's broader tech ecosystem.
• T-Hub: T-Hub is India's largest state-level startup incubator operated by the Government of Telangana, headquartered in Hyderabad. It runs flagship events (T-Hub Foundation Day), manages state-backed venture initiatives, and operates innovation hubs similar to KITS's K-Tech Innovation Hubs—making it the closest Indian state-level peer in mandate, structure, and ecosystem-building role, though serving a competing geography.
• Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM): KSUM is the Kerala state government's central nodal agency for promoting and supporting startups, implementing similar programmes to KITS including incubation, funding, skilling, and ecosystem development. It represents a directly comparable state-level society running multiple innovation hubs, partnerships, and policy-driven programs across IT and emerging technology verticals.
• SIDBI Innovation and Incubation Centre (SIIC), IIT Kanpur: SIIC at IIT Kanpur is a SIDBI-supported incubation centre that runs seed funding programmes, accelerator cohorts, and technology commercialization tracks similar to KITS's ELEVATE and Idea2PoC. Comparable in structuring government/capital-funded innovation vehicles, supporting product startups, and bridging academic research with commercial scale-up.
• IIT Madras Incubation Cell (IITMIC) / IITM Research Park: IIT Madras Research Park and its affiliated incubation cell are among India's largest deep-tech startup ecosystems. Comparable to KITS in scale and in operating a mixed academic-government incubation network with sector-specific centres (analogous to KITS's CoEs), tech-transfer focus, and capital-formation programmes supporting founders in hardware, AI, and emerging tech.

Broad incumbents

• Atal Innovation Mission (AIM): AIM is a Government of India federal initiative under NITI Aayog promoting innovation and entrepreneurship pan-India through Atal Tinkering Labs, Atal Incubation Centers, and Applied Research & Innovation Hubs. It is a broader incumbent over KITS's state-level activities—setting national frameworks that KITS's state programmes overlap with and complement rather than directly compete.

Regional players

• Tamil Nadu Startup and Innovation Mission (TANSIM): TANSIM is Tamil Nadu's nodal agency for startup ecosystem development, similarly focused on building innovation infrastructure, supporting incubators, administering funding schemes, and promoting Chennai as a startup hub. It is a sister state-level organization pursuing parallel objectives to KITS in a competing Indian geography.
• Maharashtra State Innovation Society (MSInS) / Startup Maharashtra: MSInS is Maharashtra's state-level body for promoting startups and innovation, with operations focused on Mumbai and Pune. It is comparable to KITS in administering state-level startup policy and incubation programmes, but serves a different geography and constituency (Maharashtra vs. Karnataka) without direct head-to-head competition for the same startups.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ITBTGoK
• Facebookfacebook.com/StartupKarnataka

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society