Kanpur edition – WISE Tech India Pitchathon 2026

The Kanpur edition marked the twenty-fifth stop of the WISE Tech India Pitchathon 2026, organised by SPJIMR WISE Tech in collaboration with Startup Incubation and Innovation Centre, IIT Kanpur. Designed to spotlight entrepreneurial talent emerging from Kanpur and the wider region, the edition brought together early-stage ventures addressing diverse challenges and demonstrated the depth of innovation in one of North India’s prominent academic and entrepreneurial ecosystems.

The edition featured startups working across a range of problem areas, with founders presenting solutions spanning technology, electric mobility, environmental sustainability, and other innovation-led sectors. The pitches reflected the diverse nature of entrepreneurship emerging from the region, with founders leveraging technology and innovation to address real-world challenges and build commercially viable solutions.

The jury panel, comprising Piyush Mishra and Santosh Kumar, evaluated the participating start-ups on parameters such as problem clarity, founder capability, execution potential, market opportunity, and scalability. The evaluation also provided founders with valuable perspectives on strengthening their business models, refining their market positioning, and developing clearer pathways for growth.

The jury recognised the following start-ups:

The Kanpur edition highlighted the breadth of entrepreneurial potential emerging from the region, with ventures developing solutions across technology, electric mobility, and environmental innovation. The collaboration between SPJIMR WISE Tech and SIIC IIT Kanpur brought together institutional expertise and founder access to create a platform to discover and support promising early-stage ventures with the potential to scale and create meaningful impact.