The hub to create marketplace for stakeholders.

India, the third largest startup ecosystem in the world with 3-4 startups commencing every day, has launched a Startup India Virtual Hub, an online platform for entrepreneurs to discover, connect and engage with each other.

The portal will host startups, investors, funds, mentors, academia, incubators, accelerators, corporates, Government bodies and more. The Hub attempts to solve the problem of information asymmetry and lack of access to knowledge, tools, &experts, especially in the nascent ecosystems across Tier II and III towns.

Launching the hub on 19 June 2017, Commerce & Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the Hub is an effort to create a marketplace where all the stakeholders can interact, exchange knowledge, and enable each other to grow.

It will streamline the lifecycle of existing and potential startups, helping them access the right resources at the right time, said the minister, encouraging entrepreneurs in the country to utilize the portal and all enabling stakeholders to contribute to the platform as much as possible.

Sitharaman also announced a new initiative, wherein a Startup exchange program across South Asia would be organized.

The Hub is a dynamic & interactive platform that will facilitate learning & development, networking, mentorship, funding, etc. for startups.

The basic principle behind developing this platform is to aggregate different offerings of the ecosystem and enable discovery by the right audience.

Startup India Hub has partnered with various organizations to on-board entrepreneurs & investors, as well as build knowledge modules. To ensure accessibility across various platforms, dedicated Apps are also available on both Android and iOS.

The Hub will act as a nodal platform and will enable users to connect with ecosystem stakeholders, access free learning resources, tools & templates on legal, HR, accounting & regulatory issues and discussion forums.

The Hub has also aggregated over 50 relevant Government schemes/programs.

In the next phase, the platform will also aggregate schemes available across various state governments. To provide a better user experience, the platform has been enabled to build smart intelligence along with Chatbots to automatically collate, update information and respond to queries. fii-news.com