ET Startup Awards 2018: It’s about chasing a dream

If there is one thing that typifies the optimism that a brighter future lies ahead of India, it is the startup sector. The internet and the mobile phone are making it possible to organise hitherto fractured markets even as more young people come up with cutting-edge technology that promises to transform how we live here in India and around the world.

There is a special excitement about startups because entrepreneurship is not just about earning a living but changing the world. It is about chasing a dream, and our paper recognises this, which is why ET’s coverage of startups is unmatched in depth and breadth.

From today, ET will also unveil the contenders who have made it to the shortlist. We begin with Bootstrap Champ (those who have built a startup without outside funding) and Top Innovator categories.

There are also awards saluting students, women, social entrepreneurs and investors, as well as those who return with bigger and better ideas.


ET reached out to over 50 of India’s top entrepreneurs and investors who helped identify the high-quality group from which the final shortlist of candidates were chosen. ET worked with research venture Tracxn as its knowledge partner to compile this listing of India’s brightest entrepreneurial talent.

And here is the shortlist for the category Top Innovator: