The Indian Institute of Management Bangalore’s entrepreneurship arm, NSRCEL, aims to support over one million entrepreneurs through AI-enabled, future-ready initiatives while expanding its reach into sustainability and global partnerships, building on a track record of over 3,000 startups and $7 billion in enterprise value.
The entrepreneurship arm of the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore says it has helped build more than 3,000 startups since 2000, generating over $7 billion in enterprise value and creating more than 35,000 jobs. The latest figures come as the incubator, NSRCEL, prepares to widen its focus towards artificial intelligence, deep technology and overseas partnerships in the years ahead.
Rasika Prashant, NSRCEL’s chief executive, said the centre wants to become a more “future-ready” incubator as founders’ needs change. The plan is to use AI-enabled learning pathways to provide round-the-clock, personalised support, with a target of lifting engagement from about 238,000 entrepreneurs to more than one million. In fiscal 2024-25, the incubator backed more than 720 ventures across 24 states through a hybrid digital and physical model, while also deepening ties with corporate and government partners such as Hindustan Unilever, Goldman Sachs and Capgemini.
NSRCEL has also built what it calls an “open architecture” model, drawing on a network of more than 100 mentors and a startup support kit that includes more than 116 product and service providers. It has expanded through collaborations with the Sbif Leap initiative to reach underserved regions, including north-east India, and through partnerships with T-Hub and IIT Delhi’s Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer, which are meant to share resources and mentor pools. Deloitte India is working with the incubator on modules covering governance, taxation and mergers and acquisitions.
The centre is increasingly organising its work around specialised centres of excellence. One of the clearest examples is a fintech hub approved by the Karnataka government, backed by a five-year commitment of ₹13.24 crore. More than ₹8 crore has been set aside for incubation and acceleration, while ₹5 crore will fund skilling and training through IIMBx. Sustainability has become another pillar, with the incubator backing ventures such as Angirus IND, which makes bricks from recycled plastic, waste-management start-up WeVOIS and electric mobility platform Hala Mobility.
Investor interest has followed. NSRCEL-backed businesses have appeared on Shark Tank India, while portfolio companies including The Energy Company, FluxGen, Ukhi and medtech venture Anatomech have also secured funding or other milestones in the past year. The incubator has simultaneously expanded support for women founders, including a programme that supported 341 entrepreneurs in 2024-25 and the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women initiative, which worked with 391. Separately, its social entrepreneurship platform Impact Orbit has supported 131 ventures since 2017, reaching more than 20 states and helping to build education, employability and environmental enterprises.
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