BengaluruITE.biz 2016 highlights digital disruption, consequent ongoing transformation

BENGALURU: Karnataka’s Minister for IT, BT & Tourism Priyank Kharge and his dynamic team of secretaries  captured the ongoing digital transformation and disruption along with associated developments and challenges in the India industry under intriguingly themed ‘Define the Next’ IT industry showcase event branded BengaluruITE.biz.

The annual three-day conference and expo (Nov 28-30, 2016) that concluded on Nov 30 was held at the City Palace premises, making the setting a confluence of old and new, science and art, emergent and emerged spanning information technology, biotechnology, animation, innovation with an expansive, inclusive focus across technologies, industries and governance.

Established leaders like CP Gurnani of Tech Mahindra and Jim Fowler Global CIO at GE as well as a host of other industry captains took time out to share their perspectives. Define the Next made an effort to address the millennials who, it is expected, will script next wave of India growth story in the coming decades. The focus of the event said it all – Artificial Intelligence, IoT, Robotics, Big Data, Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR), Electronics System Design, Animation, Visual Effects and Gaming, Apps Development, Startups, Cyber Security, Aerospace, Entrepreneurship… and a Science Gallery. Plus a full day conference devoted to startups.

The Karnataka Startup Policy, announced in November 2015, was the country’s first multi-sector startup policy with a vision to create a world-class startup ecosystem in the State through strategic investments and policy interventions, leveraging the robust innovation climate in Bengaluru.

Under the policy, the Department of IT, BT and S&T, the nodal implementation department, is executing various initiatives. The Karnataka Startup Cell has been established in KBITS and is acting as a one-stop shop that enables easy flow of information and assistance to needy startups. The Karnataka Startup Cell is targeting to support 20,000 startups during the policy period, of which 6,000 are expected to be product startups. The cell has already registered 2000+ startups and is aiming to assist startups with the various initiatives available under the policy such as:

• Startup Booster Kit
• Idea to PoC funding
• Incubation facility at subsidized cost
• Venture Funding through state supported funds e.g. Semiconductior Venture Fund, Animation Fund, Biotech Fund and Venture Funds supported by the upcoming State Fund of Funds
• Networking with mentors, industry leaders and investors
• Incentives and concessions under the policy

This year the Government of Karnataka also announced Startup Karnataka Top Tech-25 Awards to recognize promising startups of Karnataka across five categories of IT/ITES, ESDM (Electronic System Design & Manufacturing), AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Games and Comics), Biotechnology, Pharma & Life Sciences and Social Inclusions.

An additional feature of this years’ ITE.biz was the co-located Creativity World Forum-2016 with the theme, ‘Cities in Transition’. World Creativity forum is an annual conference organized by the District of Creativity (DC) Network, with Creativity and Innovation Platform of Karnataka (CIPK). The CWF rotates yearly between DC regions and bring together progressive thinkers, experts, inventors, practitioners, innovators, thought leaders and entrepreneurs from all over the world on a single platform to engage, unite and inspire individuals to work together across disciplines to ideate and develop new solutions to critical issues in improving regional economy and quality of life.