2019 has been an extraordinary year for all of us at iB Hubs.
Since our inception 3 years ago, iB Hubs has been on a journey towards a grand vision — becoming a global hub for Industry 4.0 technologies and making India a global leader in them. Over the years, we have executed many initiatives towards nurturing the culture of entrepreneurship and innovation in advanced technologies across India.
Last year, we made rapid strides towards laying stronger foundations, building systems, and refining approaches to charge ahead in 4.0 technologies.
In a nutshell, in 2019, iB Hubs and our associated companies have focused on:
Strengthening our Ecosystem to become the Global Hub for 4.0:
- Spread our wings to 2 more countries — USA and South Africa
- Vision to build a 1000+ acre iB Hubs Global Tech Valley in Santa Clara County, California, USA
- Created a Knowledge Network for 4.0 Technologies
- Strengthened ties with 2 more state governments
- Established the first of our 20 planned iB Tech Parks across India for 4.0
Creating a Powerful Workforce for 4.0
- 500+ youngsters are training in a successful pilot of our Talent Accelerator Program
- 5300+ IITians enrolled in our specially crafted program 10xIITian
- Initiated Masterclass Series from highly passionate industry 4.0 stalwarts from Stanford, Apple, Amazon, etc.
Offering End-to-end Assistance to Startups
- iB Cricket: Strengthened their brand globally; received “VR Startup of 2019” from Entrepreneur India
- CyberEye: Had a very happening 2019 with new products, pilots, partnerships, technology deployments, and trainings.
- Make The World Wonderful: As the children are coming of age, the team is focusing extensively on carving out a bright career for them.
Startup Support
- Provided extensive customised support to additional 30 portfolio startups who are progressing rapidly.
Nurturing the Culture of Entrepreneurship and Innovation in 4.0 Technologies
- iB Hubs Startup School
- iB Hubs IoT Bootcamp
- StartUP Express
- iB Hubs Super 30
- Talks and Workshops
Sounds like a lot? Let’s go deeper and take a closer look at iB Hubs’ progress in 2019.
Highlight of the year — iB Hubs Global Tech Valley
iB Hubs is set out to become the global hub for 4.0 Technologies. We are planning to build The World’s Largest Upskilling Center on a 1000 + acre campus in Santa Clara County, California, USA.
iB Hubs Global Tech Valley’s artistic impression was unveiled by Shri. Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary of I&C, ITE&C, Govt. of Telangana at The Things Conference India 2019.
** Construction of the shown layout will be carried out in phases.
iB Hubs — a Global Hub for 4.0 Technologies
With widespread and extensive applications, 4.0 technologies are impacting every domain. Just like the smartphone and the internet, these technologies will soon revolutionize the world and enhance the lives of billions.
At iB Hubs, we’re implementing a comprehensive approach to enable faster adoption of 4.0 technologies among individuals, organizations, and countries — as we enter the new era of opportunities and possibilities.
As we enter 2020 with high energy, here’s a look at everything we’ve done in 2019.
Strengthening our Ecosystem to become the Global Hub for 4.0:
We’re in 7 countries now!
In addition to India, UK, Australia, Singapore and Dubai, in 2019, iB Hubs and our associate companies spread our wings to the USA and South Africa. Across these countries, we’ve laid strong foundations to nurture the next line of talent in innovation and entrepreneurship.
We’ve also set up our US Headquarters, in a 4.2-acre space in the heart of Silicon Valley, in close proximity to the offices of corporate giants like Google, Facebook, Amazon, Uber, etc.
Creating a Knowledge Network for 4.0 Technologies
Along with our 500+ global mentor community, we’re creating a knowledge network with people who are on the frontline of research in 4.0 technologies. This powerful network consists of PhDs, post-doctorates, from the world’s top universities; and scientists, industry professionals, etc. from internationally reputed organizations and top MNCs. They have very happily joined us and are actively becoming a part of our programs and initiatives.
Creating a knowledge network for 4.0 with professionals and researchers from:
Strengthened ties with Governments
iB Hubs has been working with 5 state governments — Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand — to develop a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship in the states. Adding more strength to iB Hubs’ association with the governments, this year we have started working with 2 more state governments through various programs.
Establishing iB Tech Parks across India for 4.0
iB Tech Parks are Centres of Excellence for 4.0 Technologies for
- Creating Workforce for 4.0
- Application R&D in 4.0 Technologies
- Developing World-Class Products
- Building Global Startups
With the refined approaches and robust systems that we built over the years, now, we’re scaling to accelerate the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies.
We’ve deepened our roots in India, with our first iB Tech Park in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, a 50-acre campus facing the Hyderabad-Bengaluru Highway with 3.15 lakh sq. ft. built-up area. We also identified 150 acres in Telangana.
With this as a start, we’re planning to establish 20 iB Tech Parks to take our initiatives to all corners of India to create a skilled workforce, to bring out many world-class innovations, and to build global startups that will impact billions of lives.
Creating a Powerful Workforce for 4.0
Talent Accelerator Program — Pilot
It is people who make ideas a reality. All the great things that 4.0 technologies promise to bring to our world become a reality only when we have a proficient workforce that makes it happen. At iB Hubs, we’re committed to creating a powerful skilled workforce for this new wave of 4.0 technologies
We’ve devised the iB Hubs Talent Accelerator Program to equip individuals with skills needed for 4.0 and accelerate their careers. In a pilot program at iB Tech Park Kurnool, we’re training over 500 youngsters in technical, managerial, and core personality skills.
This intensive program is based on a reverse-engineered curriculum in line with the upcoming 4.0 requirements. By the end of the program, the youngsters will be ready with in‑demand job skills to thrive in the dynamic world.
Here is an interesting point. We’ve taken these students in without any technical criteria or screening. Because we strongly believe that with a supportive platform that nurtures their strengths, every aspiring person can excel. Keen to know the outcome?
The core personality skills sessions combined with our methodologies and the distraction-free environment in the iB Tech Park, created a base for efficient learning and sustained motivation. Within 2 weeks, more than 70% of students in the first batch experienced great improvements in their confidence levels, and their desire to grow. This shift in mindset became a springboard for their rapid progress in the program.
We had noticed something even more interesting. The 500 youngsters who joined the program in three batches with around 1.5-month gap between each batch. As new batches’ students came in, the existing batch students joined forces with the program mentors to help and guide them.
This intensive training program is running very successfully with the students achieving new milestones every day. This pilot concretized the scalability of our culture and our methods to understand, assess and provide personal care to each and every individual.
“The training is really on par with international standards. And the amazing thing is that they start from level 0. We started as absolute beginners and learned to code with attention to every small detail. Thanks to the amazing trainers!”
“After the sessions on core personality skills, I have noticed that I am able to communicate very clearly and effectively. I am now feeling closer to so many of my friends. My self-talk has improved and I am more confident now.”
“I am taking up responsibilities. I’ve never volunteered for anything before, but with these trainings, I am becoming proactive and taking up more responsibilities. Now, I am looking for solutions to all the problems on my own without complaining.”
10xIITian
Under the Talent Accelerator Program, we’ve devised 10xIITian, a specially crafted program for the country’s premier students — IITians. This customized program comprehensively primes IITians for 4.0 technologies and makes them ready for the most lucrative careers — be it high-paying jobs, higher education from the world’s best universities or entrepreneurship.
Along with technical skills, the in-depth reverse-engineered curriculum builds the necessary 21st-century skills, mindset and thinking skills required to thrive in 4.0 world.
With 10xIITian, the students get a personal learning coach and AI-based insights for an ideal career choice. With accessible domain experts and opportunities to collaborate with real teams building products, this program is their perfect launchpad to a bright future in 4.0.
As a part of building awareness on 4.0, we talked to IITians from 19 IITs explaining them the scope and opportunities with 4.0. So far, 5300+ IITians enrolled for the program from across India.
Masterclass Series
To guide youngsters to set directions for their career goals in 4.0 and to inspire them to dream without limitations, iB Hubs introduced Masterclass Series. These special up-close sessions are being delivered by highly passionate industry stalwarts who have checked off key milestones in their life that are an aspiration for millions. Know more at: https://10xiitian.ibhubs.co/
End-to-end Assistance to Startups
With iB Hubs’ end-to-end assistance, startups can focus on their core competencies while we facilitate the rest. Here’s a brief look at the progress of these startups in the last year.
iB Cricket in 2019:
In 2019, iB Cricket team put an extensive focus on building and strengthening their brand image. The team introduced the world’s first VR cricket league with 12 international stars, which received 30+ million views so far and is still counting.
Before the waves settled, 5 teams joined hands with iB Cricket to enhance fan engagement during the IPL — iB Cricket is the official VR gaming partner of Chennai Super Kings, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kolkota Knight Riders, Rajasthan Royals, and Delhi Capitals. They’re also VR gaming partner of Abu Dhabi T10 League 2019 that hosted some of the biggest cricket stars — Yuvraj Singh, Andre Russell, Zaheer Khan, Lasith Malinga, Eoin Morgan, Chris Lynn and many more.
Till date, more than 150 world-class cricket stars have been involved with iB Cricket through various events and partnerships.
With global events like iB Cricket World Cup Fan Tour, associations with movies like Super 30, Sarileru Neekevvaru, and ’83, iB Cricket has been bringing the world of cricket closer to fans. Growing rapidly, they have established 30 arcades across India. iB Cricket flew across the seas to 7 countries — the USA, the UK, South Africa, Australia, Sri Lanka, Singapore and the UAE. iB Cricket experience zones went to 80 corporates across these nations.
Recognizing their world-class innovation and rapid growth, iB Cricket was awarded ‘Startup of the year -VR technology‘ by Entrepreneur India. Read more about their progress here
CyberEye in 2019
In 2019, CyberEye set itself in a much more powerful position in IoT / LoRaWAN®️ and Cyber Security space with rich and extensive on-ground experience.
To build a strong IoT / LoRaWAN ecosystem, CyberEye presented Asia’s largest LoRaWAN conference ‘The Things Conference India’. The second edition in 2019 hosted 60+ speakers from 10+ countries, 700+ delegates and 50+ workshops.
As a part of building a comprehensive technology ecosystem, CyberEye partnered with leading device makers, manufacturers, technology alliances and many more.
CyberEye has become an Authorized Design Partner for Microchip Technology Inc. — one of the world’s leading providers of semiconductors. And it’s working closely with The Things Industries (The Creators of The Things Network) for strengthening the LoRaWAN ecosystem on a global scale. Also, they’ve partnered with Browan (a Gemtek group company), one of the world’s largest electronics manufacturers of LPWAN technology.
To accelerate digital transformation efforts of governments and organisations, and provide maximum RoI, CyberEye is extensively establishing Secure Private Networks in the domains of Smart Industries, Defence, and Governance. The company unveiled their LoRaWAN module at Microchip India Masters, December 2019. This module helps device makers to adopt LoRaWAN in a fast and secure way.
As part of their commitment to empowering governments in solving critical on-ground security challenges, CyberEye has been closely working with DRDO and the Telangana Government. This year, they have successfully delivered multiple projects to DRDO. Read more about their progress here
Make The World Wonderful
The children at Make The World Wonderful are progressing remarkably well in academic, moral and social aspects. As the children are coming of age, the team is focusing extensively on carving out a bright career for them.
The core team is concentrating on developing the necessary skills required for the children to become future professionals and support themselves and their families. The team is empowering them with skills required for employment through companies in the industry.
Startup Support
One size never fits all. Apart from our end-to-end assistance to the above-mentioned startups, we have provided extensive customised support to 30 portfolio startups.
Celebrating the 2019 successes of the startups at iB Hubs:
All the startups we supported in 2019 have been doing remarkably well. Just in 2019, they’ve bagged 15 awards in the national and international arenas and secured 5 incubations/fundings. Here are a few of those success stories.
- Edunify, which ventured into the startup world with its flagship product, Uniform Application — a digitized platform that simplifies the application process for schools, has become one of India’s biggest school discovery platforms where more than 15,000 parents have found the best school for their children.
- Namaste Gaon, a startup with a mission to empower rural India by improving accessibility to local information & news through digitization, has received a viewership of around 3.5 lakhs from 5 rural towns on their platform just in one month — October ‘19.
- Heaven Solar Energy, which models effective engineering designs for solar plants, has served 80+ business clients so far and has delivered projects of 20 MW+ in detailed engineering design and 30 MW+ in solar pre-design.
- Aatm Nirbhar, is a social entrepreneurship venture that aims to build a nationwide women-driven community that employs women from marginal families to help upskill other women to make every woman in India self-reliant. Aatm Nirbhar Learning has trained more than 250 women in riding a two-wheeler through 18 women trainers.
- Arrow AI develops AI-based customer experience platforms that provide customized solutions for businesses .This year, they have upgraded their AI assistant and developed Aisha — an HR Platform; Elle — a retail assistant capable of handling omni channel customer experience; Finco — a financial assistant. These automated bots can handle different aspects of a business like gathering information, marketing solutions, support systems, etc
Nurturing the Culture of Entrepreneurship and Innovation in 4.0 Technologies
We believe that when individuals are equipped with the right mindset and skills, innovation and creativity will be a natural outcome. And providing a supportive platform to them will amplify the impact they create. As the impact and progress become visible, these individuals inspire others to create — In short, they become role models.
Here’s a brief runthrough of iB Hubs’ activities in 2019 towards nurturing this culture.
iB Hubs Startup School
Through our flagship program, iB Hubs Startup School, we nurture student entrepreneurs into role models for the student startup community. In the 2019 edition, we trained 23 budding startups with essential entrepreneurial skills to spread their wings in the startup world. 14 industry experts and 30+ partners engaged in the program providing key insights and directions to young startups. Through 8 editions of the iB Hubs Startup School, we’ve given wings to 79 student startups across India.
“To obtain the skills that I have acquired here in a month, I could have taken 5–10 years normally. It was a big value addition to learn from the experiences of Mentors and Alumni.”
Vivek Khedkar,
Founder, KalaCircle,
Graduate of NITK Surathkal
iB Hubs IoT Bootcamp
The annual iB Hubs IoT Bootcamp enables enthusiasts to ride the wave of a smart future! Building the next generation of Makers in advanced technologies, iB Hubs IoT Bootcamp 2019 nurtured tech enthusiasts in IoT and LoRaWAN through bootcamps in 4 states to shape their ideas into smart Things.
“I am currently working on four innovative solutions and expecting results very soon. iB Hubs IoT Bootcamp triggered these multiple ideas and gave me enough motivation to start working on them.”
Krishna Chaitanya,
Wipro Technologies
iB Hubs has joined hands with the UP government and is all set to sensitize 6000+ youngsters through 12 day-long boot camps covering the entire state of Uttar Pradesh. The sensitizations will be followed by training in industry 4.0 and entrepreneurship for selected participants.
iB Hubs is the Execution Partner for StartUP Express. The program was launched by Hon’ble Deputy Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Dr. Dinesh Sharma on 14th September 2019. The program is scheduled to commence in 2020.
iB Hubs Super 30
Teachers play a crucial role in guiding youngsters and shaping their dreams. India is full of amazing teachers who are relentlessly working towards developing the students and the country. We believe that when these teachers’ ideas are empowered, and their culture & values are transferred to every mind, our nation achieves its highest potential.
Joining hands with the film Super 30, we initiated iB Hubs Super 30 to honour inspiring teachers — for they stand as role models and kindle passion in several teachers to do more.
We’ve received 30,000+ nominations from across India bringing to us incredible stories. Of those, we’ve selected 30 teachers from across the nation in an inclusive approach. All the iB Hubs Super Teachers were honoured in a Grand Felicitation Ceremony at HICC Hyderabad.
The 30 super teachers who we selected are a representation of thousands of their likes. At iB Hubs, we’re coming up with initiatives, which will include all such teachers in India, to magnify their impact and initiate change right from a young age.
“This initiative will inspire many teachers from across India and will also spark a boost in us to work harder. I can see everyone at iB Hubs is bound to a single objective to build the nation.”
Bijal Dimani,
Educator,
The Galaxy Education System
Talks and Workshops:
Along with several initiatives, iB Hubs has also become a part of various events across the country focusing on 4.0 technologies and entrepreneurship. Through expert talks and hands-on workshops in 22 events across India, 1150 enthusiasts were presented with knowledgeable insights. Few of the partnered organizations include DSME — Govt.of Odisha, IIT Kanpur, IIT Kharagpur, IIT Bhubaneswar, NIT — Trichy, Indus International School, Ashoka University, Bundelkhand University, Exseedu, etc.
For each of the activities, we’ve done numerous pilots across age, background and geographies. Till date, iB Hubs trained 25,000+ youth on entrepreneurship and innovation in 4.0 technologies. So far, we have nurtured 140+ startups through our various programs and produced world-class products like iB Cricket and CyberEye SPN.
And now, we’re scaling. 2020 is a pivotal year for us with exciting things set to happen!
An exciting future:
At iB Hubs, we’re committed to enabling growth in Industry 4.0 by fostering and enabling the rapid adoption of these technologies among individuals, companies, and countries. We are bringing together everything required to develop iB Hubs as a global platform to learn, experiment and build world-class applications in Industry 4.0, enabling human advancement and impacting billions of lives.
We’re planning to set up 20 iB Tech Parks across India. We have revamped our plans to establish 2500 centres (500 nodal hubs with 4 spokes around each) to the end of December 2020. These serve as the infrastructure where future workforce trains, and innovations & startups flourish.
We are excited to bridge the gap between emerging technologies and individuals/organizations to harness the power of 4.0 and benefit billions of people. We look forward to making 2020 a year of great progress and transformation for the world!
