The Centre for Research on Startups and Risk Financing (CREST) at IIT Madras has launched a new digital initiative, 'Startups for All', aimed at democratising access to critical information about India's startup ecosystem. The platform has been developed in collaboration with YNOS, an IIT Madras-incubated startup.
The initiative was unveiled by Dr Palanivel Thiagarajan, Minister for IT and Digital Services, Government of Tamil Nadu, during the TN Global Startup Summit.
According to IIT Madras, the platform provides free and affordable access to India's most comprehensive repository of information on startups, investors, incubators, and support agencies. It currently hosts data on more than 2.75 lakh startups, 15,000 angel investors, 5,500 venture capital firms, 1,400 incubators, 800 banks and over 110 government schemes.
By offering verified data and tools such as investor discovery, comparative analytics, and outreach capabilities, the initiative seeks to bridge the information gap that often hinders founders, students, researchers, and innovators. Officials said the platform is designed to help users make informed and confident decisions.
CREST noted that the launch aligns with IIT Madras' commitment to ensuring equitable access to information, emphasising that such access should be universal and not a privilege.
