Lucknow: A Lucknow-based university has set up a digital platform for startups, which is expected to connect investors and incubators to entrepreneurs across the state.

The Innovation Hub, launched by Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University (AKTU), aims to bring startups, incubators, investors, mentors and other stakeholders to a single ecosystem, the university said in a statement.

Since the launch at AKTU's flagship event, UP Startup Samvad 3.0, which concluded recently, 35 incubators have already been onboarded, it said, adding that the new platform will help the number of incubators to reach 70 with the support of AKTU.

Developed by Noida-based SanchiConnect, the digital platform was launched recently in the presence of UP Governor Anandiben Patel.

Uttar Pradesh is the third-largest startup ecosystem in the country, with startups now active across most of its districts.

The launch of AKTU's Innovation Hub coincides with the Uttar Pradesh government revamping its startup policy with a Rs 1,000-crore Fund of Funds to strengthen startup financing, alongside an expanded corpus for startup and incubator grants, seed capital and Centres of Excellence, and a district-level expansion of incubation infrastructure on a hub-and-spoke model.

The new platform -- ecosystem.ihub.up -- is intended to give the state's policy push a delivery layer from the university: a shared digital foundation on which capital, mentorship and market opportunities can be discovered and routed to the university-supported incubators across the state, rather than remaining concentrated in a handful of cities, the university said.

With 35 incubators onboarded and the wider university network to follow, the immediate priority is deepening engagement across the platform, ensuring the connections it enables between startups, mentors, investors and institutions translate into active collaboration, investment conversations and market linkages, the statement said.

Mahip Singh, Chief Executive Officer, Innovation Hub, AKTU, said, "UP has no shortage of talent or ideas; what it needs is a way for its startups, investors and markets to find each other. Our priority with this platform is to build a genuine investment and market access layer for the state's startups."

A founder in any district should be able to get in front of the right investor, the right corporate buyer and the right mentor, regardless of where they are based. This gives incubators and innovation centres across the state a shared foundation to make that happen at scale and on an ongoing basis, he said.

Sunil K Shekhawat, Co-Founder and CEO of SanchiConnect, said, "This platform will mainstream startups from cities like Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Agra, Jhansi and beyond."

This report was published from a syndicated wire feed. Apart from the headline, the EdexLive Desk has not edited the copy.