IndiaICU and Proton Volt win TiE U Nagpur final, advance to global semifinals in Indore

TiE Nagpur held the Nagpur chapter final of the TiE U Global Pitch Competition 2026 at VNIT Nagpur on November 1, 2026. Eighty-seven startup teams from nine educational institutions in the city took part. The event is being seen as a major milestone for student entrepreneurship in the region.

TiE U is a global initiative of The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE), in which student-run startups compete in a global pitch competition involving TiE chapters from India, Asia and the United States.

The Nagpur chapter's journey began in August 2026. Teams came from VNIT Nagpur, IIIT Nagpur, JD College, Symbiosis International University, LAD College, Jhulelal Institute of Technology, Cummins College of Engineering for Women, Ramdeobaba University and G H Raisoni College of Engineering.

During this period TiE Nagpur held nine Guru Sessions. Topics included testing an idea, building a business model, market research, financial planning, unit economics, regulatory compliance and preparing to pitch to investors. After several rounds of evaluation, 35 teams reached the semifinals. From them, 15 finalist teams were chosen in two categories. The Open Track had ventures at the early traction and revenue stage, while the Core Track had ventures from the idea stage to the prototype stage.

The jury had two members: Shashikant Chaudhari, a serial entrepreneur, angel investor and startup mentor with more than four decades of experience, and CA Dr Tejinder Singh Rawal, TiE U Chair of TiE Nagpur.

In the Open Track, IndiaICU won, with Dhruv Jindal of VNIT Nagpur named alongside it. Orvia of G H Raisoni College of Engineering was the runner-up.

In the Core Track, Proton Volt won, with Rugved Kate of VNIT Nagpur named alongside it. Saral Labs of Ramdeobaba University, with Om Kamatkar named alongside it, was the runner-up.

Both winning teams, IndiaICU and Proton Volt, will represent TiE Nagpur at the TiE U Global Semifinals, to be held during the TiE Global Summit in Indore on December 13, 2026. There they will compete against winning teams from other TiE chapters. The top six teams will qualify for the Global Finals on December 15.

The selected teams will receive further mentoring and pitch preparation support from TiE Nagpur and TiE Global before the international round.

The entire programme was planned and conducted under the leadership of Amol Mule, Executive Director of TiE Nagpur, with the support and guidance of TiE Nagpur's leadership and programme team.

TiE Nagpur is the regional chapter of The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE). TiE is a global not-for-profit organisation that promotes entrepreneurship through mentoring, networking, education and help with investment. The chapter works with startups, entrepreneurs, institutions and ecosystem partners to strengthen the startup environment of the Vidarbha region. The successful holding of TiE U 2026 is described as part of its effort to nurture young entrepreneurial talent, connect colleges with the startup world and take student innovators' ideas to a global platform.