An elite jury chaired by Amitabh Kant, one of the most prominent supporters of India’s entrepreneurship ecosystem, will meet in Bengaluru on Thursday to decide the winners of the 11th edition of The Economic Times Startup Awards, the country’s most prestigious recognition for entrepreneurial excellence.
Kant, India’s former G20 Sherpa, will helm a group of accomplished founders, investors and business leaders. These include Prashanth Prakash, partner at venture capital fund Accel; Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO of Flipkart Group; Sahil Barua, cofounder and chief executive, Delhivery; Ruchi Kalra, cofounder of OfBusiness and Oxyzo; Adwaita Nayar, cofounder of Nykaa; Ghazal Alagh, cofounder of Mamaearth; Tarun Mehta, cofounder and CEO, Ather Energy; Harshil Mathur, cofounder and chief executive, Razorpay; Faraz Khalid, chief executive of Dubai-based ecommerce major Noon; and Satyan Gajwani, chairman of Times Internet.
Together, the jury will deliberate on winners in eight categories, including Startup of the Year, Midas Touch for best investor, Woman Ahead, Top Innovator, Social Enterprise, Bootstrap Champ, Comeback Kid and Best on Campus.
These categories have spotlighted some of the country’s most transformative entrepreneurs, with past winners having grown into listed enterprises.
This year’s edition of the awards comes at a pivotal time for the Indian startup ecosystem, which is navigating evolving geopolitical and trade issues that are reshaping investor priorities and market opportunities.
Alongside, the global technology industry too is at an inflection point, with artificial intelligence unleashing a new wave of disruptive innovation.
Jury members will evaluate factors such as resilience, innovation and leadership in deep technology while deciding this year’s winners.
Since its inception in 2015, the ET Startup Awards has grown to become the benchmark for entrepreneurial achievement. It mirrors the paper’s in-depth coverage of the Indian startup and technology industry.
Some of the past winners of the coveted Startup of the Year award, such as Freshworks, Delhivery, Zomato and Swiggy, have moved on to become publicly listed new economy companies. Other winners like Ather Energy (Best on Campus in 2016) and Ixigo (Comeback Kid in 2021) have also debuted on the Indian bourses, signalling a robust startup economy.
ET reached out to more than 200 of the country’s top entrepreneurs, investors, industry groups and other stakeholders to compile a list of India’s brightest entrepreneurial talent. The paper’s editorial team then distilled this to arrive at the final shortlist. Tracxn is the knowledge partner for ET Startup Awards.