Karnataka Innovation Authority to empower start-ups

Bengaluru : Karnataka will soon set up an innovation authority to empower start-ups for the ease of doing business, said Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Thursday.

"The Karnataka Innovation Authority (KIA) will be set up through a law with powers to overcome legal hurdles the start-ups face in innovating technologies and ideas," Kumaraswamy said, inaugurating the 21st edition of the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2018 in the state capital.

The innivation authority will be headed by the Chief Minister.

"We are also setting up a legal framework to protect Intellectual Property (IP). A blockchain-based IP registry will be formed to protect smart ideas for commercialising them," said Kumaraswamy.

Asserting that the JD-S- Congress coalition government was backing the IT industry to ensure its innovation thrives in the southern state, retaining its leadership in the transformation of the country through digitization.

"The state government is also granting seed capital up to Rs 50 lakh to each start-up with innovative ideas to provide socio-economic solutions to the people, facing several challenges," the chief minister told the gathering of industry leaders, executives, geeks, officials and entrepreneurs.

Kumaraswamy, who also holds the finance portfolio, provided Rs 16 crore in the state budget for the fiscal 2018-19 after coming to power in May.

The state government has also set up the Accelerated Assisted Elevate for the starts-ups in backward areas, including the Hyderabad-Karnataka region in the state's northern parts, about 500km from Bengaluru.

About 10 start-ups from the old region were selected for funding them this year.

"As innovation and entrepreneurship will be the driving forces, we have set up 58 K-Tech Innovation Centres across the state to encourage and nurture innovations in the farm sector," said Kumaraswamy.

Technology sharing and promoting joint research projects are key strategies being adopted to engage with the leading innovation ecosystems.

"We have set up a framework for innovation engagements with global leaders to ensure a strategic approach to developing and leveraging our international partnerships,a added Kumaraswamy.

As designing will be the engine of growth, a Centre of Excellence for designing technology products will be set up in Bengaluru.

The state government is also forming global innovation alliances with countries developing the eco-system for innovation and entrepreneurship.

Bengaluru is ranked 20th among the world's innovation cities.