Bosch India launches graduation of 13 tech startups

Bosch India today launched graduation of 13 technology startups under its Rs 7.5 crore DNA, an accelerator programme, which looks to collaborate with technology solution providers, in different areas. The areas included Internet of Things and Virtual Reality, to improve business sustainability, among other things, Bosch India, Corporate Venture Programme - Discover, Nurture and Accelerate (DNA), Head Manohar Esarapu told reporters here.
Asked whether the company also would give legal assistance to the selected startups to avoid cases like Stayzilla which is mired in legal tangle for allegedly not paying up a vendor, Esarapu said the company is giving legal support, but under the complimentary services, instead of separate service.

The vendor, Jigsaw, had alleged Stayzilla had defrauded it to the tune of about Rs 1.68 crore for services it rendered since last year.
"We are already offering legal service, but it is under complimentary service, not a separate service. May be in future we may initiate an exclusive legal service," he said.
Asked if the company wants to pick up equity from the startups they are mentoring, Esarapu said, for now, it was not in the plans, but in future it would love to do it if these startups turn into unicorns.
"We do not want to pick equities in these startups for now, as it will be a risk, if the startups which we will mentor fails. If the startups are successful, yes we would love to pick," Esarapu said.

The programme will also look to collaborate with those technology solutions in deep learning, analytics, cloud and block chain, he added.
DNA is not a one-off activity, but part of the group's long-term growth strategy.
Esarapu also said Bosch will partner and collaborate with these technology startups that work in areas of aerospace, mobility, social impact, healthcare and agriculture, apart from others.