Boost Your Biotech Startup: DPIIT & Thermo Fisher Launch BioVerse

In a landmark move to strengthen India’s biotechnology sector, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with global life sciences leader Thermo Fisher Scientific. The partnership aims to empower over 500 biotech startups across India in the next three years, providing cutting-edge technologies, mentorship, advisory support, and investor connections to accelerate growth.

This collaboration aligns with the government’s Startup India initiative and underscores DPIIT’s commitment to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship in the biotechnology space. With India’s biotech industry expanding rapidly, the MoU positions the country as a global hub for biotechnology innovation while creating new opportunities for early-stage entrepreneurs.

BioVerse Challenge: Empowering India’s Top Biotech Startups

As part of the collaboration, Thermo Fisher Scientific and Startup India will launch the BioVerse Challenge, a nationwide competition to identify and scale India’s most promising biotech startups. The program focuses on high-impact sectors such as healthcare, diagnostics, genomics, and bio-research.

Key Features of the BioVerse Challenge:

• 100 high-potential startups will receive intensive mentorship, subsidized R&D access, and investor readiness support to accelerate their journey from lab to market.
• 400 additional startups will join the BioVerse Mentors Circle, gaining advanced skill-building, technical training, and access to India’s leading bio-incubators.
• The BioVerse Alumni Network will provide long-term coaching, mentoring, and funding pathways, ensuring founders have guidance and resources to sustain growth.

Government and Industry Leaders Highlight the Partnership

Sanjiv, Joint Secretary, DPIIT, emphasized:

“This partnership represents a major leap forward in strengthening India’s biotechnology ecosystem. By combining Thermo Fisher’s global expertise with Startup India’s extensive innovation network, we are creating tangible opportunities for early-stage biotech entrepreneurs to scale their solutions and contribute meaningfully to India’s bioeconomy.”

Srinath Venkatesh, Managing Director, India & South Asia, Thermo Fisher Scientific, added:

“Through the BioVerse Challenge and our upcoming facilities in Genome Valley, Hyderabad, we aim to equip founders with advanced technologies and expert guidance to accelerate their journey from prototype to product. Our goal is to help them compete successfully in the global biotech market.”

Strengthening India’s Bioeconomy and Startup Growth

By leveraging Thermo Fisher’s international biotech expertise and DPIIT’s strong policy support, the partnership is set to catalyze India’s rise as a global biotechnology powerhouse. Startups in healthcare, diagnostics, genomics, and life sciences will gain critical support, fostering innovation, job creation, export-led growth, and technological advancement.

Genome Valley in Hyderabad, India’s premier biotechnology cluster, will serve as a hub for R&D activities, mentorship programs, and startup acceleration initiatives, reinforcing the region’s role as a strategic center for biotech innovation.

With this collaboration, India actively strengthens its biotech startup ecosystem, enabling entrepreneurs to scale globallywhile enhancing the nation’s bioeconomy and healthcare innovation capabilities.

Everything You Need to Know About the DPIIT–Thermo Fisher Biotech Startup Initiative

Q1: What is the DPIIT–Thermo Fisher Scientific partnership?
A1: The partnership is a strategic collaboration to accelerate India’s biotech startup ecosystem. It supports over 500 startups with advanced technologies, mentorship, advisory services, and investor connections.

Q2: What is the BioVerse Challenge?
A2: The BioVerse Challenge is a nationwide program launched by Thermo Fisher Scientific and Startup India to identify and scale India’s most promising biotech startups in healthcare, diagnostics, genomics, and bio-research.

Q3: How will Genome Valley, Hyderabad, support biotech startups?
A3: Genome Valley provides state-of-the-art R&D facilities, mentorship programs, and networking opportunities, enabling startups to accelerate growth and compete globally.

Q4: Which startups can benefit from this initiative?
A4: Early-stage biotech startups in healthcare, diagnostics, genomics, life sciences, and bio-research can access mentorship, training, investor support, and long-term guidance through the BioVerse Alumni Network.

Q5: How does this partnership strengthen India’s bioeconomy?
A5: By combining Thermo Fisher’s global expertise with DPIIT’s policy support, the initiative fosters innovation, job creation, export-led growth, and positions India as a leading hub for biotechnology startups.

Q6: What long-term support do startups receive after the program?
A6: Startups gain ongoing mentoring, funding pathways, and strategic guidance through the BioVerse Alumni Network, enabling them to scale operations nationally and internationally.