SINE IIT Bombay: the deeptech incubator behind ideaForge and Gupshup — now with a ₹250 crore fund

The Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SINE), IIT Bombay's technology business incubator, offers "Start to Scale" support with a sharp deeptech specialisation — backing startups during the critical phase when outside support is scarce, and bridging the "lab to market" gap that long-gestation, capital-intensive technologies face. Its track record: 500+ startups and 1,000+ innovators supported, $942M raised, $3.56B in valuation created, 300+ IPs and an 80%+ survival rate (SINE release, via ET/Inc42).

The Y-Point fund

SINE now invests directly too: the Y-Point Venture Capital Fund — described as India's first incubator-linked VC fund — targets a ₹250 crore corpus (about $28M) to back 25–30 early-stage deeptech startups with tickets up to ₹15 crore. Launched around December 2025, it had 2–3 deals near close at launch. Incubation itself runs up to 3 years (physical and virtual), and SINE also runs the PMU for the central government's DST NIDHI PRAYAS programme across 50+ incubators.

Sectors

AI, advanced computing, advanced manufacturing, advanced materials, nuclear technology, spacetech, defencetech, cleantech, life sciences and healthcare, biotech, ICT, industrials, agritech and mobility.

Notable startups

ideaForge (listed drone maker), Gupshup (AI-messaging unicorn), SEDEMAC (IPO-bound), Atomberg, ImmunoACT (CaR-T cancer immunotherapy), Zeus Numerix, SAFE Security and Haystack Analytics.

People and programmes

CEO: Shaji Varghese; Professor-in-Charge: Prof. Santosh J. Gharpure; Chairman: Prof. Shireesh Kedare. Programmes include Titanium (bridging IIT Bombay deeptech research to market-ready ventures) and partnerships with DST, MeitY, DBT and the Ministry of Defence for startup support.

How to engage

Apply for incubation via sineiitb.org, email [email protected] or call 022 2576 7016 (5th Floor, RBTIC Building, IIT Bombay, Powai, Mumbai – 400 076). Deeptech founders should lead with the technical moat and IP position — that is what SINE was built to evaluate. The combination of up-to-three-year incubation, the Y-Point fund's cheques up to ₹15 crore, and access to IIT Bombay's labs and faculty makes SINE a full-stack option for research-led teams that need years, not months, to reach the market. Its role running the DST NIDHI PRAYAS programme management unit across 50+ incubators also means SINE sits at the centre of India's public deeptech funding plumbing — a useful vantage point for founders navigating government grants.