Atal Incubation Centre — established by Mahindra University, supported by Atal Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog, Government of India.
AIC Mahindra e-Hub Foundation is a Section 8 not-for-profit company and an Atal Incubation Centre supported by the Atal Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog, Government of India. It has been established by Mahindra University to support early-stage startups, entrepreneurs and innovators in building products, validating business models and creating ventures that can reach the market. The incubator works with startups at the early and critical stages of their journey. This includes problem validation, prototyping, product development, user testing, market access, funding preparedness and business growth. Startups have access to mentors, prototyping infrastructure, lab facilities, business guidance, industry experts, investor connects and relevant ecosystem partners.
Startups in Programmes
Aayog Supported
Month Incubation Programme
Structured Programmes
AIC Mahindra supports founders at different stages of their startup journey, from early ideas to validated products and incubation-ready ventures. The pathways are designed to help founders get the right kind of support at the right time.
Eureka Evenings is a monthly idea pitch platform for Mahindra University students, including undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD students. It gives students with early ideas an informal space to pitch to the AIC Mahindra team, receive feedback and explore the next steps. The focus is not on judging or eliminating ideas, but on encouraging students, helping them think more clearly and guiding serious teams towards pre-incubation or other relevant AIC Mahindra programs.
IdeaSprint is a three-day, in-person idea validation bootcamp for early-stage founders and student teams. The bootcamp focuses on problem validation through hands-on activities, customer discovery, assumption testing and peer feedback. Participants work on sharpening their problem statements, identifying key assumptions and understanding whether the problem they want to solve is meaningful for the target users. The bootcamp also includes mentor interactions in a speed-mentoring format, giving teams a chance to receive inputs from multiple experts.
Startup Clinic is a focused mentoring support initiative for early-stage founders who are facing specific challenges in their startup journey. Founders can book a dedicated 30-minute mentoring session with AIC Mahindra mentors, either online or in person.
Each session focuses on one or two key challenges identified by the founder, such as problem validation, customer discovery, product direction, business model, go-to-market, pitch preparation, funding readiness or early operational issues.
The Pre-Incubation Program is a hybrid engagement for early-stage teams that are working towards problem-solution fit and venture readiness. It includes an intensive on-campus bootcamp followed by virtual mentoring and founder engagement over four months. The program supports teams through customer discovery, idea validation, prototype planning, business model development, mentor reviews and pitch preparation. It concludes with a final pitch day where teams present their progress and next steps.
The Lab-to-Market Program supports faculty members, researchers and PhD scholars who are working on research-led innovations with commercial or societal potential. The program helps research teams explore use cases, customer segments, market relevance, prototype development and possible startup pathways. The focus is on helping promising technologies and research outcomes move beyond the lab and towards pilots, products, partnerships or venture creation.
AIC Mahindra offers incubation support to selected startups through periodic rolling calls for applications. Startups applying for incubation go through a selection process that includes application review, evaluation and a final pitch presentation to the incubation panel. Selected startups are offered incubation support for up to 18 months. The support includes mentoring, workspace access, prototyping and lab access, business guidance, market connects, funding readiness, investor linkages and ecosystem support.
AIC Mahindra e-Hub provides a comprehensive set of offerings to support early-stage ventures through ideation, validation, and venture development.
Continuous strategic guidance and performance reviews as you grow.
Connection with industry, corporates, and real market for pilot and business opportunities.
Hands-on help turning concepts into working prototypes.
A live network of founders, investors, mentors, and operators
Introductions to investors and funding networks and support for fund raising
Access office space, prototyping facilities and lab infrastructure, in a creative environment
Expert legal guidance and intellectual property protection.
Credits and tooling from our partner stack to keep early costs low.
AIC Mahindra e-Hub follows a stage-wise incubation model designed to support founders at different points in their entrepreneurial journey. The approach emphasises clarity of problem definition, feasibility assessment, and disciplined execution.
Mahindra e- Hub is spread over 12,000 sq. feet of area, which can accommodate 15 entrepreneurs. The incubation Centre facilitates through starting, shaping and scaling up innovative ventures resulting from student-faculty research. Founders operate within the Mahindra University campus and have access to shared and specialised facilities.
AIC Mahindra works with a growing network of mentors, investors, industry experts, academic experts, entrepreneurs and ecosystem partners. These connections help startups access guidance, opportunities and relevant support at different stages of their journey.
