Starburst accelerator SARL to set up innovation hub in IIT Madras

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras on Tuesday said it is tying up with French aerospace and defence firm Starburst Accelerator SARL to set up an innovation hub for startups with total funding support of €100 million, or around Rs 900 crore.

IIT Madras—through this collaboration—will enable Starburst to set up accelerator programmes to boost the aviation, space, and defence (ASD) ecosystem in India, the premium technology institute said in a release.

This partnership will provide impetus to export promotion and support Indian ASD startups to explore international markets through Starburst’s network.


Starburst is a global aerospace and defence accelerator that connects startups with corporates, investors, and governments. With offices in Paris, Los Angeles, Munich, Madrid, Tel Aviv, Seoul and Singapore, it has built an ecosystem of key players with more than 17,000 startups in its network.

By offering a congenial environment for entrepreneurship and innovation, the partnership aims to strengthen India’s position as a hub for ASD innovation on the global stage.

“We, together, aim at creating a robust ASD ecosystem that supports innovation in deep tech, and the production in India, to meet the future challenges of aerospace, new space and defence worldwide players,” François Chopard, chief executive of Starburst Aerospace, said in the statement.

A key thrust of this partnership will be on entrepreneurs, research parks, private and public investors, government, and corporate firms. The aim is to fashion innovative startups and aid them in growing rapidly to work in conjunction with future aerospace and new space worldwide programmes.

“Encouraging young entrepreneurs is extremely important as we embark on our journey to become a multi-trillion economy,” said V Kamakoti, director of IIT Madras. “In this context, such collaborations with accelerators to nurture startups in critical and emerging sectors are crucial and timely.”

Starburst has fostered deep relationships with dozens of global aerospace and defence legacy players by contributing to their strategic vision and growth through consulting projects.

To help startups scale up in their growth journey in India, Starburst will create a consulting team that can be composed of IIT Madras alumni and experienced military officers besides ASD managers and senior consultants from their offices, the statement said.

Structured programmes will be created by combining academic knowledge with practical startup guidance, including workshops, seminars, and mentoring sessions for Indian startup clusters and research and innovative projects, it said.

Starburst will provide startups with business tools to grow and scale businesses in aerospace and defence to become future suppliers.

The programme will also allow startups and entrepreneurs to explore synergies and avenues of collaboration with industry, government and beyond, besides guiding them towards rapid implementation and global commercialisation, the statement said.

These measures will help accelerate the development of startups by attracting external capital and de-risk investments, it said.