KSUM Partners with German Ecosystem to Bring Support for Startups

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
In a path-breaking partnership, Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with NXTGN Startup Factory of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, aiming to benefit for deep-tech startups on both sides.

The MoU was clinched at India’s largest startup festival Huddle Global 2025, which concluded at Kovalam here on a high note last evening.

The agreement was signed by KSUM CEO Anoop Ambika and Thomas Neumann, Head, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany in the presence of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who addressed “The Kerala Future Forum” at the event on Sunday.

NXTGN Startup Factory is a consortium of five major universities from Germany, having a venture capital fund of above 1 billion Euro (Rs10,000 crore).

The MoU aims at developing around 300 startups in both in Germany and Kerala, which will be carried out in a structured way. The collaboration will facilitate funding and other support for deep tech startup.

A steering committee and a working group will be formed to carry forward the collaboration with participation of the government, the state’s startup ecosystem and German startup ecosystem.

A significant feature of the partnership is its focused efforts to create a sustainable talent pipeline from the premier institutions and colleges in Kerala that would bring out innovations, which will redefine Kerala’s industrial ecosystem, besides creating a lot of job opportunities.

“The MoU comes as a big opportunity for Kerala to lead research and innovations in deep tech sector in the country,” Anoop Ambika said.

The collaboration will also facilitate close interaction between the startup community in Germany, Kerala, and across the globe.

Dr Rubina Zern-Breuer, Head of TRACES, University of Stuttgart & Project Management NXTGN, Germany; Dr Syed Ibrahim, Consul of Germany to Kerala & Goethe-Zentrum, Thiruvananthapuram; and Bernhard Krieger, CEO, Hands on Solution, Germany were present on the occasion.

Meanwhile, KSUM and IIT Palakkad Technology I-Hub Foundation (IPTIF) inked an MoU for promoting innovation and entrepreneurship in the housing and construction sector through the Construction Innovation Hub (CIH) and the Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) Programme.

The MoU was exchanged between KSUM and IPTIF at the valedictory of the Huddle Global 2025.

KSUM CEO Anoop Ambika and Saishyam Narayan, CEO, IPTIF exchanged the MoU in the presence of Sivarajah Ramanathan, Mission Director & CEO, StartupTN; Dr S D Sudarsan, Executive Director, C-DAC, Bengaluru; and Prajeet Prabhakaran, Lead IT Strategist, High Power IT Committee, Govt. of Kerala.

The pact aims to foster technology-based startups by providing structured support including fellowships, mentorship, incubation, infrastructure access and financial assistance to aspiring entrepreneurs and graduating students.