Global Venture Alliance (GVA), a Moscow-headquartered provider of business services, training programs and seed funding for startups, has teamed up with the Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SINE), a major tech business incubator based in Mumbai, to launch the ‘India-Russia Bridge for Innovations’ (IRBI).
As reported by BW Disrupt, an Indian online publication, the IRBI program enjoys the financial support of the Government of India’s Department of Science and Technology.
As part of the program, 10 Indian startups will participate in a 2-week accelerator program in Moscow as soon as this month. GVA will introduce them to the Russian market in an educational, practical, networking and cultural perspective. Also included in the program is a visit to Skolkovo, the international tech hub under completion on the outskirts of Moscow.
10 Indian startups in Moscow
Among the Indian startups coming to Russia are Campus Time, whose mobile app connects students on college campuses; Ecolibrium, which provides Big Data energy analytics; Field Assist, which has developed a mobile monitoring system for on-field sales; Frodo, which is developing an adventure camera; and ShopsUp, which offers a hyperlocal store discovery app with cognitive capabilities.
Also participating are medical technology startups A3 RMT, Algosurg Products, CareNx Innovations, Medprime Technologies and Transcell Biologics.
GVA believes that these startups could potentially develop partnerships with Russian businesses in the very short term.
Over the past few years, GVA has launched a number of initiatives to develop the Russian innovation ecosystem. In particular, it offers startup acceleration programs as well as training and networking programs for entrepreneurs and investors. GVA has also launched a seed fund and corporate startup accelerators with such companies as IKEA and Faberlic. GVA currently has permanent offices in Moscow and San Francisco, and claims to have 20 partners in different countries around the world.
Russian tech investors in India
Russia and India have been strengthening their ties in the field of high technologies over the past years. In September 2014, a delegation of scientists, educators and ministry officials from India paid a visit to Skolkovo on a fact-finding mission to study the opportunities available for Indian students and startups in Russia.
A few months later, 15 IT companies from Skolkovo took part part in IndiaSoft, a major industry conference and B2B networking; then Skolkovo and the Electronics and Computer Software Export Promotion Council (ESC) of India signed an agreement to create a cluster of Indian IT firms at the Russian tech hub.
Also noticeable is the flow of Russian tech investors to India. Ru-Net, a Moscow-based venture fund backed by Leonid Boguslavsky, invested in several Indian e-commerce companies, including Indian mobile recharge platform FreeCharge in 2014. Another Russian investor interested in the Indian market is Boris Ryabov, managing partner of venture fund Bright Capital. Last year he took part in a $1.7 million round of funding for Indian food delivery service Inner Chef, along with Ukrainian and local investors.
In February 2016 AFK Sistema, a Russian LSE-listed conglomerate, launched a proprietary $50-million fund to support startups operating in the technology and niche consumer retail segments in India and other Asian countries. Its latest investment went to QwikCilver, a Bangalore, India-based provider of gifting card solutions.
Most recently, as reported by Firrma.ru, Russian edtech startup ProctorEdu announced its participation in Indian accelerator EDUGILD in a bid to enter the Indian market.
In the field of microelectronics Angstrem — a major Russian player which has just been targeted by US sanctions — is about to deliver to India, its first export market, its new radiation-resistant microchips for use in outer space.
Business cooperation is encouraged at the political level. Yesterday in New Delhi Russian deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin met his Indian counterpart, Sushma Swaraj at the 22nd session of the Indo-Russian Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC). The two governments are willing to expand bilateral trade to up to $30 billion, BW Disrupt reported.
