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Boeing Announces Winners of Boeing University Innovation Leadership Development Program 2022-23

  • Seven teams comprising university students and early-stage start-up entrepreneurs emerge winners
  • 800+ ideas submitted by more than 1,600 students and start-up participants from India

Bengaluru. On February 13, Boeing announced seven teams comprising university students and early stage start-up entrepreneurs as winners of the second edition of Boeing University Innovation Leadership Development (BUILD) program 2022-23. Winners will be further supported by Boeing and the respective incubator partner for over six months, to help develop their ideas into market-ready and viable business solutions.

The seven winning teams are SpaceFields Pvt. Ltd. from the Society for Innovation and Development (SID) – IISC Bengaluru; HEM Dimensions Pvt. Ltd. from SID – IISC Bengaluru; Scavengex from IIT Madras Incubation Cell; CeraTattva InnoTech Pvt. LTD. from IIT Madras Incubation Cell; Modulo EV from the Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer (FITT) – IIT Delhi; SAP AEROSPACE from FIIT – IIT Delhi; and Galanto Innovations Pvt Ltd. Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (IIEC) – IIT Gandhinagar.

Front row: Winners from the seven winning teams. Back row: (L-R) Boeing team members including Aarti Singh, senior director, IT&DA, CIO, Boeing India (second from the left); Nanditha Aaroor, senior manager, IT&DA, Boeing India; Imtiaz Ali Khan, Director, Directorate of Human Space Program, ISRO HQ; Ankit Mehta, Founder and CEO, Idea Forge; Salil Gupte, president, Boeing India; Heidi Grant, president, Business Development Boeing Defense Space and Security, BDS; Nidhi Bansal, Director, Technology Development Fund, DRDO; Vivek Virmani, Chief Operating Officer, iDEX, MoD; Carey Arun, Consular for Commercial Affairs, US Consulate Chennai; Krishna Badrinath, director and chief engineer, Boeing India Software Engineering; Captain Roy Joseph, Program Director, Defence Innovation Organization, iDEX; Anubhav Kumar, director – strategy, Boeing India; Ahmed Elsherbini, managing director, BIETC and chief engineer, Boeing India; and Ankur Kanagalekar, Head of International Business Development Strategy, Boeing India.

“BUILD is an excellent platform that provides young Indian minds and start-up enthusiasts a chance to hone their skills and mature their ideas for implementation. I want to congratulate our incubator partners for leading this program for over six months and thank all the applicants for their active participation,” said Salil Gupte, President, Boeing India. “We are committed to fostering innovation and nurturing talent through collaborations and partnerships to strengthen the student and start-up ecosystem in India for India, and the world”, added Gupte.

Each of these seven teams received INR 10 lakh as cash prize, and their ideas covered solutions for community development, defence and space industry, and sustainability.

Boeing partnered with seven incubators, namely, Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship – IIT Mumbai, Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer – IIT Delhi, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center – IIT Gandhinagar, IIT Madras Incubation Cell, Society for Innovation and Development – IISC Bengaluru, T-Hub Hyderabad, and Technology Business Incubator – KIIT Bhubaneshwar to launch BUILD in India. The applicants were invited to submit ideas in the fields of mobility, space, connectivity, Industry 4.0 technology, enterprise digital solutions, sustainability, and data analytics/AI.

Front row: Winners from the seven winning teams. Back row: (L-R) Boeing India team members including Parikshit Vashist, director – regional sales, Boeing India, Ankur Kanagalekar, Head of International Business Development Strategy, Boeing India; Praveena Yagnambhat, Boeing Global Engagement Lead India; Salil Gupte, president, Boeing India; Ahmed Elsherbini, managing director, BIETC and chief engineer, Boeing India; Dr. G. Satheesh Reddy, Scientific Advisor to Raksha Mantri; Krishna Badrinath, Director and chief engineer, Boeing India Software Engineering; Anubhav Kumar, director – strategy, Boeing India; Aarti Singh, senior director, IT&DA, CIO, Boeing India; Carey Arun, Consular for Commercial Affairs, US Consulate Chennai, and Captain Roy Joseph, Program Director, Defence Innovation Organization, iDEX with Boeing India colleagues.

Following a stringent evaluation process, 70 shortlisted teams entered the regional boot camp, of which regional and national finalists received guidance from start-up ecosystem experts, incubator partners, and Boeing engineers to incubate ideas. Participants further received access to Boeing’s innovation ecosystem.

Over the years, Boeing has strategically invested in developing talent for the Indian aerospace sector, and inspiring the next generation of engineering talent in India. Through its programs such as the HorizonX India Innovation Challenge, the Accelerated Aircraft Maintenance Engineers Apprenticeship, and National Aeromodelling Competition with IIT, Boeing has made a significant impact in creating a skilled frontline workforce and empowered entrepreneurs in India.

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