Your guide to Bangalore’s tech startup scene

Bangalore isn’t regarded as the Silicon Valley of India for nothing. Home to several disruptive companies such as Flipkart, BigBasket, Mu Sigma, and Ola Cabs, it’s made quite the name for itself as the next up and coming startup capital. And indeed, wherever you turn – you’re bound to find innovation in this cosmopolitan city from its startups to eateries.

Whether you’re joining us for Tech in Asia Bangalore 2016, or making plans to explore the local startup scene, here’s a quick rundown to help you get the most out of your trip.

Co-working spaces

BHive Workspace

If you find yourself with time to spare in between meetings, it’s an excellent excuse to visit the second homes of local entrepreneurs.

• Bhive is one of Bangalore’s largest, most vibrant co-working space with three locations across the city: Indiranagar, Koramangala, and HSR. Prices start from INR300 (US$4.50) for a day pass and varies across the three outlets.
• CoWorkIndia has three locations in HSR layout. Monthly passes startup from INR3,850 (US$60)
• Bangalore Alpha Lab has locations in Koramangala and JP Nagar. It charges INR4,000 (US$60) a month for full membership and INR250 (US$3.75) for day passes.
• Hustle Cowork charges INR 250 (US$3.75) for a day pass and also holds mentorship and meetup events to connect people in the industry together.

See here for a more exhaustive list.

Accelerators & incubator programs

Planning to expand into Bangalore? Look into the various accelerator and incubator programs that could help you gain an edge in growing your network.

• Tlabs is a startup accelerator and early stage seed-fund in India for internet and mobile technology startups. Known for its structured and intensive four-month mentoring program, startups can apply to join on a rolling basis.
• Axilor is an accelerator which also invests in early stage startups. Its chairman and co-founder is Kris Gopalakrishnan, one of the founders of IT services bellwether Infosys. Axilor focuses on ecommerce, healthcare, and clean tech. It is currently taking applications for its fourth batch.
• Kyron Accelerator is a global accelerator for early-stage startups.
• GSF Global Accelerator is a 13 week program with stints in India, San Francisco Bay Area, Germany, and Singapore aimed to help product-oriented startups.
• Microsoft Accelerator is an early-to-middle-stage accelerator focused on themes including smart cloud services, mobile, big data and IoT. The corporate accelerator announced its latest batch of 12 startups in March this year that collectively raised US$18 million.

Accommodation

The airport is about an hour’s drive from the city, so staying near the airport won’t be the most convenient option. Not to worry, conference goers – there is no shortage of choice for accommodation near the venue, Manpho Convention Centre.

More great news: all conference attendees are entitled to a 30% discount off your stay*, courtesy of our official accommodation partner Oyo Rooms. If you’ve already got your passes to #tiablr2016, look out for a unique discount code you will be receiving in your email inbox from the Tech in Asia team!

*Valid for rooms priced above INR 1199, check-in dates from July 5 to 7

Getting around

For fuss-free commuting, call a taxi that provides receipts. Uber and Ola are also convenient options to get you from point to point.

Night birds, note that public transport will mostly be unavailable after 11pm. Arrange to have taxis to pick you up – especially if you’re planning on having a good time at our post-event party, Night Crawl, till late!

People to look up

• Sharad Sharma is an angel investor in India as well as the co-founder of iSPIRT.
• Manish Singhal  is an angel investor and founder of letsventure.

• Ravindra MK is the co-founder of co-working space BHive.

• Alok Goel is an entrepreneur turned VC. After leading two of India’s largest startup acquisitions, Freecharge and RedBus, he is now managing director of SAIF Partners.

• Malavika Velayanikal is the head of India at Tech in Asia

Pro-tip: these people will all be at Tech in Asia Bangalore 2016 – if you want to meet them, you know where to be on July 6 and 7!

Refuelling with food

If you’re hungry at the conference, rest assured that there will be light refreshments to tide you over. Water, coffee, and delicious wraps from Freshmenu are all available while stocks last. If that’s not enough, you can get more fuel from Dropkaffe and Freshmenu at their respective mobile cafes within conference grounds.

Outside of the conference, Bangalore is a food paradise. Whether you’re on a shoestring budget or feeling adventurous, you’ll find no lack of good food to catch up with your new friends.

We’re almost down to one week before Tech in Asia Bangalore 2016! If you have yet to get your passes to meet over a hundred speakers flying in from around the world, you’re still in time.

Get yours today! Passes for Indian citizens start from US$99.