Google selects 6 startups for Launchpad

As part of its initiative to engage with the startup ecosystem, Google on Thursday announced the second list of Indian startups that will join the Launchpad Accelerator programme.

The selected 6 startups will be taken to the Google Headquarters at Redmond in the Silicon Valley on June 13 for a 2-week boot camp. They will have to undergo a 6-month long mentorship programme that will include $50,000 equity-free funding.

Besides determining their critical challenges, Google will help them undergo precise actionable solutions and resources that enable their products and apps to scale up.

Interacting with Deccan Herald, Google India Country Head- Strategic Partner Development - VCs and Startups Sunil Rao said that Indian startup ecosystem is growing and maturing very fast. “Entrepreneurs are not shying away from the risks involved and are very eager to learn. Access to good mentoring and advice at early to mid-stage has been a big gap which we are looking to fill,” he said.

Rao said the Launchpad Accelerator Programme brings together mentors and experts from within Google and external world to help these startups succeed. “The first batch from India was hugely benefitted and we are excited to be on board with the second batch from India,” he said.

Besides Bengaluru-based ShareChat and PlaySimple Games, other startups that got selected for the programme include Mumbai-based Taskbob and Programming Hub, and Delhi-based RedCarpet and Magic Pin.

PlaySimple Games co-founder Siddharth Jain said he is excited to be part of the programme. “It is the right time in the journey of our startup that we got selected for the Google programme. It will give us more exposure to scale up through this hand-holding. It will help expand our business further,” he said.

Jain said the company has founded in 2014 along with his other 3 co-founders and has an employee base of 20. “The global gaming industry is $60 billion and India’s contribution is only $200 million. We have been witnessing good downloads for our games like Word Trek and Guessup and half a million play our games daily. We have raised seed funding from IDG Ventures and plans to be the top gaming company of India within 2 years,” he said.