First-of-its-kind model offers funding, mentorship, and co-building for deep tech startups
In a major boost for India’s sustainability and climate tech sectors, a pioneering venture studio, NOW, has officially launched its operations. As the first-of-its-kind venture studio focused on deep tech and climate tech in the country, NOW will act as an institutional co-founder, proactively investing in and co-building ventures from the ground up. This innovative approach aims to de-risk the journey for startups, taking them from initial ideas to successful commercialization.
The venture studio model offers a unique advantage for early-stage, deep tech founders developing critical sustainability and climate technologies. These entrepreneurs often face challenges scaling their solutions within traditionally slow-to-change industries. NOW steps in to provide a much-needed partner and supportive ecosystem, offering more than just financial backing.
Through this model, NOW will equip founders with a comprehensive toolkit for success. This includes access to funding, mentorship, support in achieving product-market fit, market opportunities, and valuable corporate partnerships for prototype and solution validation. Additionally, NOW connects founders with climate tech experts, significantly increasing their chances of success. Statistics show that globally, Venture Studio startups boast a 30% higher success rate compared to traditional startups, with a remarkable 84% securing seed funding compared to the 25-30% success rate of traditional ventures.
Led by a seasoned core team with over 40 years of combined experience in startup scaling, climate entrepreneurship, innovation, SaaS, and venture capital, NOW is the brainchild of Gayathri Kuppendra Reddy, an entrepreneur, trained climate leader, and active angel investor. Over the next 12-18 months, the company will invest between USD 250,000 and USD 500,000 in each of 3-4 promising deep tech sustainability and climate tech startups.
“At NOW Venture Studio, we firmly believe that climate change and sustainability represent not only the greatest challenge of our time, but also the most significant opportunity,” said Gayathri Kuppendra Reddy, Founder of NOW Venture Studio. “Our vision is to build category leaders in sustainability and climate tech by leveraging deep tech and deep science-led innovations. We are seeking bold, disruptive, and audacious entrepreneurs or founders with an idea, patent, or prototype who share our commitment to solving critical sustainability and climate challenges.”
Pradeep V, Venture Partner at NOW Venture Studio, elaborated on the urgency of the mission: “Environmental issues on the ground underscore the critical need for innovative solutions that can address these adverse effects. Entrepreneurs are the key to unlocking these solutions and driving change from the grassroots level. NOW operates under a venture studio model, accelerating the founder’s journey from idea to revenue generation through a unique de-risking methodology, hands-on co-building, and milestone-based funding.”
As part of its holistic approach, the initial phase of NOW’s focus will be on key sectors critical to reducing the global carbon footprint and bolstering environmental resilience. These sectors include the built environment, industrial and supply chain decarbonization, energy, electric vehicles and mobility, agriculture and food, the circular economy, and low-carbon materials.
Applications for NOW Venture Studio are now open on the official website https://nowventurestudio.com/, with a deadline of March 31, 2024. Entrepreneurs passionate about shaping a more sustainable future are encouraged to apply and join NOW in building a better world.