T-Hub 2 all set to take off

Constructed at a cost of Rs 276 cr, facility to house over 2,000 startups

Hyderabad: Hyderabad is all set to house the world’s second largest tech incubator with the State government gearing up to launch operations at the much-awaited T-Hub 2 shortly.

Buoyed by the success of T-Hub 1, the State government constructed T-Hub 2 at Raidurgam at a cost of Rs 276 crore. Compared to T-Hub 1, the new T-Hub will be huge in terms of space, housing startups and operations.

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Sharing images of T-Hub 2, IT Minister KT Rama Rao on Sunday tweeted: “The innovative spaceship is ready to take off! T Hub 2 is almost ready. With 3.5 lakh square feet of built-up space, it will be home to more than 2,000 startups. India’s largest tech incubator and world’s second largest. Telangana continues to strengthen its innovation ecosystem.”

The idea behind launching T-Hub 2 is to provide bigger and better facility. Though the new facility was to be launched in early 2020, it was put off due to Covid-19 pandemic.

T-Hub 1, as a startup catalyst, was established in November 2015. The State government set up the facility in association with three academic institutes – IIIT-H, Indian School of Business and Nalsar. It has a built-up area of over 70,000 square feet and is located in the IIIT-H campus. The new T-Hub 2 has a built-up area of 3.5 lakh square feet and can house 2,000 startups. It is almost four times bigger than the existing facility. Apart from startups, it will also house corporations, investors and other ecosystem enablers, said an official.

Over the last five years, T-Hub has helped more than 1,200 startups garner about Rs 1,800 crore in investments and provided employment to over 2,500 people. Corporate heads including Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Adobe Systems CEO Shantanu Narayen and Biocon Chairman Kiran Mazumdar Shaw have addressed the startups and young entrepreneurs.

T-Hub offers different services including startup innovation, corporate innovation and other programmes like demo day, international relations, cohort-based learning. Since 2015, it has provided over 1,200 national and international startups with access to better technology, talent, mentors, customers, corporates, investors and government agencies.