Key Points

Offering a comprehensive launchpad, from mentorship to regulatory guidance, the programme leverages the opportunities created under the UAE-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) to accelerate cross-border growth. The start-up series journey commenced on 24 June 2025, with a dynamic launch event in New Delhi, hosted by His Excellency Abdulnasser Alshaali, PhD, UAE Ambassador to India.

Bringing together leading founders, investors, and policymakers from both nations, the event marked the official unveiling of the Start-up Series trailer to an audience poised with anticipation. Since the launch event, the Start-up Series, led by Ahmed Aljneibi, Director of the UAE-India CEPA Council, has travelled to eight leading Indian institutions, building partnerships and opening new pathways into the UAE's start-up ecosystem. At Banaras Hindu University in Varanasi, the Council partnered with the Atal Incubation Centre Mahamana Foundation for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, where rural-tech founders pitched solutions to transform lives and an MoU was signed to formalise future collaboration. In Gurugram, sessions at IILM University and the Master's Union School of Business brought live pitches and a strategic Q&A with the UICC leadership, paving the way for new MoUs linking Indian ventures to UAE stakeholders. The journey continued to Bengaluru, where IIM Bangalore's NS Raghavan Centre for Entrepreneurial Learning hosted deep-dive roundtables on scaling tech and deep-tech ventures, with tailored advice on achieving product-market fit for the GCC. At IIM Calcutta Innovation Park, climate, mobility, and fintech founders explored how the CEPA can accelerate their international ambitions. In Greater Noida, engagements at Galgotias University and the Atal Incubation Centre - Birla Institute of Management Technology spotlighted health-tech, sustainability, and women-led enterprises, with UAE experts offering practical feedback. The series culminated at IIT Delhi's Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer on August 4, where an MoU was signed, the Start-up Series trailer was premiered, and incubatees showcased their unique and forward-leaning innovations from agri-tech to defence and smart mobility, underscoring the breadth of opportunities awaiting Indian entrepreneurs in the UAE. "From Varanasi to Bengaluru, Kolkata to Delhi, I've had the privilege of meeting hundreds of India's most ambitious founders - listening to their pitches, walking through their incubators, and seeing innovation in action. The Start-up Series is more than a roadshow; it's a bridge into the UAE's thriving start-up ecosystem. The partnerships we have signed, the mentorship we are offering, and the market access we are opening will give these entrepreneurs the tools they need to scale globally," said Mr. Aljneibi, Director of the UAE-India CEPA Council. With the conclusion of the nationwide roadshow, the UAE-India CEPA Council's Start-up Series will now move into its next exciting phase. Applications close on 15 August 2025, after which 20 of India's most promising ventures will be shortlisted and invited to New Delhi to present their UAE expansion plans before a high-profile panel of experts from both countries. From these, five winners will be selected to receive fully sponsored market entry and incubation in the UAE. The prize package will include funded incubation, trade licences, tailored mentorship, and hands-on support to fast-track integration into the UAE's start-up ecosystem under the CEPA framework. Amid unprecedented growth in the UAE-India economic relationship, the Start-up Series is a practical example of how high-level trade and investment gains are being turned into real-world opportunities for entrepreneurs. With bilateral trade surging to USD 100.05 billion in the 2024-25 financial year and UAE foreign direct investment into India tripling in just two years, the series offers a direct way for innovative Indian ventures to access the UAE's dynamic market, strengthen cross-border supply chains, and contribute to the next chapter of this rapidly deepening partnership. As a concrete outcome of the UAE-India CEPA, the initiative delivers on Article 13.2 of the accord, which commits both countries to advancing cooperation in the start-up sector through closer links between incubators, accelerators, and related institutions.

By turning this commitment into a working platform for market access, mentorship, and investment, the Start-up Series is transforming the CEPA's ambitions into real opportunities for growth.

- ANI