New Delhi: The Innovate2Educate challenge, conducted under the first season of the Create in India Challenge (CIC), has emerged as a significant initiative promoting innovation at the intersection of education and technology.
Designed to encourage creative problem-solving, Innovate2Educate focused on the development of handheld learning devices by students, startups, and innovators across India.
The Innovate2Educate initiative placed strong emphasis on accessibility and inclusivity. Participants were encouraged to design solutions catering to children with diverse learning needs, including visually impaired and neurodivergent learners.
The Innovate2Educate challenge witnessed participation from a wide spectrum of individuals, including students and innovators from varied socio-economic backgrounds.
An industry association, supported by the Ministry, executed the Innovate2Educate challenge and conducted extensive outreach across schools and universities.
These efforts under Innovate2Educate aimed to ensure broader stakeholder engagement and participation from across the country.
Key Highlight of Innovate2Educate Framework: Strict Cost Criterion
Participants were required to design and develop handheld learning devices within a ceiling of ₹1,000 using hardware components.
This requirement under Innovate2Educate was introduced to promote affordability, accessibility, and frugal innovation in the EdTech sector.
Following initial selection, participants underwent mentoring and workshop sessions, enabling them to refine and enhance their solutions within the ecosystem.
Out of more than 1,800 registrations received, a total of 10 finalist teams were selected. These teams were provided an opportunity to showcase their prototypes at CreatoSphere during WAVES 2025.
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The finalists also engaged with industry stakeholders, gaining valuable exposure and feedback.
The top three teams in the challenge were awarded prize money of up to ₹50,000 in recognition of their innovation and efforts.
The solutions presented demonstrated diverse approaches to enhancing accessibility, interactive learning, and technology-enabled education.
Post the summit, the impact of Innovate2Educate continued to unfold. Out of the 10 finalist teams, four teams have transitioned into startups, while two of these startups are exploring incubation through the WAVEX Startup Accelerator Programme.
Through WAVES Bazaar outreach events, winners have also gained opportunities to interact with potential investors to scale their solutions further.
The details regarding the challenge were shared by Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, Dr. L. Murugan, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha, in response to questions raised by Basavaraj Bommai.
