Symbiosis Centre for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (SCEI)

What Symbiosis Centre for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (SCEI) does

Symbiosis Centre for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (SCEI) is a Section 8 not-for-profit Technology Business Incubator established by Symbiosis International University (SIU) and supported by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India. Headquartered at SIU's Hill Base Campus in Lavale, Pune, with 16 employees, SCEI runs a structured incubator program serving aspiring entrepreneurs, early-stage technology startups, women entrepreneurs, and students/professionals through four core products: a 12-week Pre-Incubation (Mind to Market) program, a 2-year (extendable by 1 year) Incubation program, a Certificate in Entrepreneurship with Design Thinking (CEDT), and a Women Entrepreneurship Development Programme (WEDP).

SCEI's core technology infrastructure centers on a well-equipped FABLAB comprising a Prototyping Lab (3D printers, microscopes, drones, PCB milling), an IoT Lab, a Fabrication Workshop (VMC, laser cutting, robotic arm, lathes), a Laser Cutting facility, and Nvidia DGX high-performance AI compute. Incubatees receive office space with PC and Wi-Fi, AWS and IBM credits worth $125,000, business and technology mentoring from a 40+ mentor network, investor connections, company registration support, and IP rights guidance. The incubator has 30+ startups in its portfolio spanning FinTech, HealthTech, EdTech, Agritech, Environmental Tech, Sustainable Fashion, Food Tech, and Hardware.

SCEI's business model is grant- and donation-driven rather than fee-based: it is a Section 8 Company eligible to receive CSR funding under Section 135 of the Companies Act 2013 (e.g., Rs. 11.05 lakhs grant from Curtis Instruments India Pvt Ltd in March 2024), supported by DST government funding, and underwritten by parent SIU. Go-to-market is community-led via the website application portal, university partnerships, ecosystem events (Sankalp Global Summit, Nagpur Startup Expo), and CSR partnerships. Specific program pricing is not publicly disclosed. Distribution channels include direct self-serve applications and a co-incubation MOU with CIMP Business Incubation and Innovation Foundation in Bihar, plus international academic partnerships with Liverpool John Moores University (UK), Durham University (UK), and Western University (Cambodia).

Name

Symbiosis Centre for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (SCEI)

Legal name

Symbiosis Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Pune

Website

https://scei.org.in

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Symbiosis Centre for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (SCEI) is a Section 8 not-for-profit technology business incubator under Symbiosis International University in Pune, India, supporting aspiring entrepreneurs, early-stage startups, and women founders with pre-incubation, 2-year incubation, certification, and prototyping programs including Nvidia DGX AI compute and FABLAB facilities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Pune

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. CSR Funding: SCEI is eligible for CSR Funding to support entrepreneurs. Companies can make CSR contributions to SCEI as per Companies Act 2013. On 27th March 2024, SCEI signed an MOU with Curtis Instruments India Pvt Ltd against CSR Funds for startups' New Product Development, securing 11.05 lakhs as grant.
2. Government Support: Supported by Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India as a recognized Technology Business Incubator (TBI).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

SCEI is a Technology Business Incubator that delivers structured incubation, pre-incubation, certificate, and women entrepreneurship programs to aspiring and early-stage entrepreneurs. It provides physical office space, well-equipped prototyping labs (IoT, 3D Printing, Fabrication, Nvidia DGX, Laser Cutting), access to a 40+ mentor network, AWS and IBM cloud credits, and connections to investors and corporate CSR funders. It is supported by DST, Government of India, and operated under Symbiosis International University.

Product overview

SCEI is a Technology Business Incubator established by Symbiosis International University, offering a comprehensive ecosystem for entrepreneurship development. The core offerings consist of Pre-Incubation (M2M) and Incubation Programmes, Certificate in Entrepreneurship with Design Thinking (CEDT), and Women Entrepreneurship Development Programme (WEDP). These are complemented by specialized technical training programmes in 3D Printing and IoT. The incubator provides access to well-equipped facilities including a Prototyping Lab, IoT Lab, Fabrication Workshop, Nvidia DGX high-performance computing, and Laser Cutting services. Additionally, incubatees benefit from a pool of mentors covering diverse expertise areas. SCEI leverages Symbiosis's advanced research capabilities in Health-tech, Medical Imaging, Waste Management, AI/ML, and Nano Technology to act as a catalyst for technology start-ups.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Rs. 5 crore VC funding secured by startups at 'The Grand Pitch' event
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 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

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Western University, CambodiaminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 March 2024From 15th March to 22nd March 2024, SCEI Incubated start-up Guruji AIR collaborated with Western University, Cambodia. The purpose was to further expansion of Guruji AIR, focusing on technology education revolution in Cambodia. Meetings were held with advisory ministers of Cambodia and chairman of Western University to discuss collaborative efforts in technology education and humanoid robotics.
• CIMP Business Incubation and Innovation FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 March 2024SCEI signed an MOU with CIMP Business Incubation and Innovation Foundation on 11th March 2024. The purpose is co-incubation opportunities and supporting respective incubated start-ups in different regions of Maharashtra and Bihar. This MoU would enable SCEI to co-conduct pre-incubation programmes and entrepreneurship bootcamps in the state of Bihar along with CIMP and B-HUB.
• MSFDA (Maharashtra State Faculty Development Academy)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 February 2024Under STLRC-MSFDA Collaboration, SCEI facilitated a session on experiential learning for faculty members across Maharashtra on 21st Feb 2024. This was conducted for MSFDA with STLRC on Entrepreneurship and Innovations.
• Durham UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 January 2024Prof. Kiran Fernandes, Pro-Vice Chancellor at Durham University, UK interacted with SCEI officials and entrepreneurs. One of the startups Guruji AIR labs (which is going international) is connected to Durham University officials for further possibilities of acceleration programme and mentoring support.
• Liverpool John Moores University, UKminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 July 2023From 10th July to 20th July 2023, SCEI conducted 'bootcamp on entrepreneurship' for 12 participants (students from Liverpool John Moores University, UK) under Study India program. This was an immersive bootcamp with training and mentoring sessions on entrepreneurship ecosystem in India, opportunity evaluation and business modelling.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM): Government of Kerala's nodal agency for startup incubation with multiple TBI-affiliated centers. Comparable as a state-backed, multi-program incubator offering pre-incubation, incubation, and entrepreneurship training with government funding.
• CIIE.CO (IIM Ahmedabad): IIM Ahmedabad's startup incubation and innovation investment arm. Comparable in providing incubation, mentorship, and investor-connect to early-stage Indian startups; serves as a key comparable for university-anchored incubators.
• NSRCEL (IIM Bangalore): IIM Bangalore's startup incubation and entrepreneurship development center. Directly comparable in offering pre-incubation, incubation, and women entrepreneurship programs (similar to SCEI's WEDP), with university backing and structured cohort programs.
• Villgro: India's oldest social enterprise incubator, focused on health, agriculture, and education startups. Comparable as a non-profit/impact-driven incubator running structured cohort programs and providing mentoring, infrastructure, and grant funding.
• T-Hub: India's largest startup incubator based in Hyderabad. Comparable in running structured cohort-based incubation and pre-incubation programs for technology startups, though T-Hub operates at substantially larger scale than SCEI.
• Forge Accelerator: India-focused startup accelerator with structured cohort programs. Comparable in providing early-stage founders with mentorship, investor access, and cohort-based learning, though operating on a for-profit basis rather than SCEI's non-profit structure.
• SINE (Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship) - IIT Bombay: IIT Bombay's technology business incubator with a comparable university-affiliated structure. Both incubate deep-tech and hardware startups, provide lab access, mentorship, and government-recognized TBI status. SCEI's Symbiosis + DST positioning closely mirrors SINE's IIT + DST positioning.

Broad incumbents

• Atal Innovation Mission (AIM): Government of India's flagship innovation and entrepreneurship initiative under NITI Aayog. Broader policy-level incumbent supporting 1000+ Atal Tinkering Labs and incubators; comparable as the umbrella framework within which SCEI's DST-TBI recognition sits.
• IIT Madras Research Park / IITM Incubation Cell: IIT Madras's research park and incubation ecosystem. Comparable as a top-tier Indian university-affiliated deep-tech incubator with strong infrastructure access, though operating at much larger scale than SCEI.
• NITI Aayog - Atal Incubation Centres: Network of Atal Incubation Centres (AICs) across universities and institutions. Directly comparable as government-supported TBI infrastructure competing for the same pool of Indian deep-tech startups and CSR/government grant dollars.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/scei-symbiosis-tbi-under-dst

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

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 Symbiosis Centre for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (SCEI)