KITS Calls for Proposals to Support Women-Led Startups FY 2026

By: WE Staff | Friday, 13 February 2026

• Applications are invited by KITS from eligible NGOs in Karnataka for WEscalate initiatives for the Financial Year 2026-27
• The program aids in supporting women-led startups via incubation and acceleration programs

Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society (KITS) invite non-profit organizations in Karnataka to submit applications to implement the WEscalate initiative during the fiscal year of 2026-27.

The initiative will help women-led startups get the best out of incubation and acceleration programs, as well as networking and capacity-building.

Non-profit organizations implementing the program will get up to INR 20 lakhs in incubation and up to INR 30 lakhs in acceleration, as well as additional deployment amounts for the best-performing startups.

WEscalate is an initiative geared towards using the women entrepreneurship ecosystem in Karnataka, which includes providing support to women entrepreneurs, fast-tracking the growth stage, and also contributing to increasing the level of inclusiveness.

Further, it helps to resolve the concerns of women entrepreneurs, which include funding, dealing with issues of inclusiveness, growth, and access.

One of the best startup environments in India is Karnataka, and we have over 7,000 startups, including some of the best-performing ones from previous startup rankings in India. The initiative will take the current pace and build on it, especially for women.

The incubation program, focusing on early-stage startups, will provide training in terms of business skills, mentorship, market analysis, and funding, with grants ranging up to INR 20 lakh for the cohort.

Therefore, the selected applicants will be expected to contribute in the onboarding and mentorship process of the 15 women-led startups for each cohort over a six-month program.

This is part of KITS’ larger vision of striving to make the startup ecosystem in Karnataka more inclusive and sustainable, with a specific focus on empowering women entrepreneurs, providing access to capital, and supporting scalable innovations.