Target India’s accelerator program that focuses on early stage startups (in the retail industry), today announced the addition of its fourth batch of startups. Five startups including Preksh, MintM, Uncanny Vision, Lechal and Lawbot, selected by Target will go through a four-month training program. These startups come from industry verticals like health & wellness, Internet of Things (IoT) and retail technologies.
The program will provide mentorship from top entrepreneurs, investors, academicians and experts in the concerned industry for each startup. According to Target’s website, the program will allow startups to pitch their idea to potential investors; funding may also be provided by Target.
It will also provide a co-location space at Target India’s Bangalore office with resources and amenities like IT support, cafeteria and transportation services; training in enterprise business areas including Finance, Legal, HR, Marketing and IT Services.
A look into the five startups selected by Target
–Preksh provides augmented reality solutions to retailing stores across Apparels & Accessories, Furnitures and Home Décor. It allows customers to browse and discover products online or in a physical store on a virtual screen, proving a walkthrough experience of every corner of a store.
–MintM is an in-store customer engagement platform that provides advertising, branding and marketing services to brands and stores. One particular product of the startup provides ‘location based ads’ to businesses/brands looking to run ads in their stores or at locations of their choice, or at Point of Purchase (POP).
–Uncanny Vision is a computer vision processing library for businesses that use embedded systems in their products/services. The startup currently focuses on domains like Automotive Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), robotics, Android app development, and video surveillance.
–Lechal is an interactive footwear brand that provides shoes and insoles that sends back haptic feedback data to smartphones through a mobile app. It allows a user to share locations, find navigational routes, host group journeys online, etc.
–Lawbot is an automated platform that analyzes legal contracts by allowing users to upload contract details online, and getting it reviewed from an online bot with the least physical intervention.
Recent developments from accelerators/incubators
-Last month, Pune-based Maharashtra Institute of Technology (MIT) launched an accelerator called Eduglid for education technology startups.
-In February, HCL Technologies had entered into a partnership with Microsoft to launch an incubation centre for Internet of Things in Redmond.
-In the same month, Venture capital firm Kalaari Capital said that it will launch a seed and incubation program called KStart to invest about $20 million in 40 startups over the next 2 years.
-In December, Flexeye had opened HyperCat, an accelerator and incubator centre for Internet of Things (IoT) startups in Hyderabad.
– In October, Anil Ambani-led Reliance Games said that it would soon start incubating and investing in startups in the gaming sector.
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