Conquest : BITS Pilani’s Startup Launchpad

Founded in 2003, Conquest has grown into an outstanding platform for startups, enabling more than 1000 startups to succeed every year. Evolving and adapting to the constantly changing needs of the startup ecosystem, Conquest has today become India’s first ever student-run startup launchpad. Assimilating learnings from various revamped models and experiences from the ecosystem, Conquest 2019 will provide the top 10 most exciting startups of India with 6 weeks of online mentoring from some of the best entrepreneurs and field experts out there. This will be followed by a 10-day Accelerator Program in Bangalore consisting of investment workshops by firms like Accel Partners and Blume Ventures, mentoring sessions by successful founders and pitching to seed stage investors. With promising investment opportunities, media coverage and a prize money of ₹ 5 lakhs on the line, Conquest is on a mission to empower founders and assist creation.

This year, Conquest has tied up with Venture Catalyst as an Investment Partner, who has set aside a fund of INR 20 Crores exclusively for Conquest startups. With investors like Dev Khare from Lightspeed, Shanti Mohan from LetsVenture, Sanjay Nath from Blume and Barath Shankar from Accel, coupled with mentors like Suvonil Chatterjee from Ola Cabs, Abhishek Nayak from Accel and Anuj Rathi from Swiggy, Conquest serves as a networking paradise for every startup out there.   

In the past, Conquest has had success stories like SocialCops, which is acclaimed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and has been recognized as the Most Impactful Startup of 2017 by YourStory. Thinkerbell Labs, the winner of Conquest 2016, aims to bring Braille within the reach of visually-impaired people and has been funded by IAN and Anand Mahindra. XWards and Pencilton, the two finalist startups of Conquest 2018, have already expanded to multiple cities after receiving support from the expansive network.

“In those magical moments of giving birth to innovation, we stand by the crazy ones, for they are the ones pushing the human race forward by rejecting the status quo and building the future. Creation, with all its purity and nobility is a mammoth task, and startups don’t need to rediscover the wheel every time. At Conquest, our goal is to help startups find that one missing piece, tie that one loose end or just connect the existing dots so that they can leave their mark on the world. We have just the right people, who have done it all, to help you do it.”, says Ishan Joglekar, CEO at Conquest, BITS Pilani who plans to build India’s first student run startup launchpad, and a go to for every founder.

A Glimpse of Conquest 2019

With something in store for every founder, Conquest has become a leader in India’s startup ecosystem with multiple initiatives for all stakeholders in the industry.

• Accelerator Program – With a goal to help the best founders build great businesses, Conquest provides a 10-day long accelerator program in Bengaluru. Fueled by the belief that multiple founders tackling similar problems in close proximity would lead to efficient solutions, the program features a unique co-living and co-working experience. Everyday has something new in store for the startups, including investment workshops, fundraising pitches and mentoring by successful founders.

• Online Mentorship Program – Conquest connects the Top 10 Startups with industry stalwarts from all over the country, enabling them to grow remotely while they continue to learn and work.

• Grand Finale – The Grand Finale serves as the perfect platform for the Top 10 startups to pitch before Top Investors and Media houses for a prize money of INR 5 Lakhs.

• Conquest Mentoring Sessions -Top 50 shortlisted startups are invited to attend a day-long multi city mentoring session in Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai with mentors from various domains such as Product Management, Customer Acquisition and Fundraising.

• Conquest Community – An initiative to build a strong and long lasting community by bringing together stakeholder from all editions — startup founders, mentors, investors, developers and media representatives, this is the perfect platform to make the most of network synergies.

• Conquest Academy – A one-stop shop of localized content for Indian startups. Whether you need help in acquiring your first 100 customers or in designing the perfect UI for your app, Conquest Academy ensures that you don’t have to go through tons of foreign resources.

Why should your startup register for Conquest?

Conquest has created the perfect high growth environment for every founder trying to build a great company. Be it an online word with a mentor, a casual chat with a founder, an intense discussion with an investor, a pitch to investment partners or just the cash prize, Conquest will make sure that you get exactly what you need, and much more. With numerous networking opportunities lined up, all you need to do is grab them as you take your startup to the next level.

Conquest has opened registrations, embark on your journey here – www.conquest.org.in.

To know more about Conquest, check out their blogs – Introducing Conquest 2019, Why register your startup for Conquest?.