Bengaluru, November 22, 2024: AssisTech Foundation (ATF) is establishing India’s pioneering Assistive Technology (AT) ecosystem dedicated to accelerating AT innovations focused at helping the PwDs and elderly. Through its flagship initiative, ATF recognized the cutting-edge solutions developed by established and emerging start-ups and noteworthy AT initiatives led by enablers (Corporates, Govt. Organizations, NGOs, Investors & Educational Institutes) by presenting the prestigious ATF awards to them at the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2024. The ATF Awards is India’s foremost and only award for Assistive Technology ecosystem, recognizing startups, corporates, NGOs, educational institutions, and individuals making significant contributions to the AT sector.
AssisTech Foundation played a pivotal leadership role in the Assistive Technology track at the Bengaluru Tech Summit (BTS) 2024. Building on the success of the 2023 AT track, this year’s edition aimed to further solidify Bengaluru Tech Summit as a global hub for innovation, awareness, and collaboration in the Assistive Technology space.
The objective of the awards was to raise awareness and celebrate technology innovations & enabling efforts that empower people with disabilities, promoting inclusivity and independence. Legendary cricketer Rahul Dravid, a strong supporter of AssisTech Foundation from the beginning, launched the inaugural ATF Awards back in 2022.
The AssisTech Foundation presented 10 awards in 3 categories to recognize the revolutionary start-ups, as well as the ecosystem enablers like corporates, NGOs, governments, educational institutions and investors who have leveraged the power of assistive technology and changed the lives of people with disabilities.
The awards were presented by Priyank Kharge – Hon’ble Minister for IT & BT and Rural Development & Panchayat Raj, Govt. of Karnataka, Dr. Ekroop Caur – IAS, Secretary to Government, Department of Electronics, IT, BT, and Science & Technology, Prashanth Prakash – Founding Partner, Accel Partners India, Surendra S – Managing Director, Accenture Advanced Technology Centre, India, Accenture, and IAS Darshan HV – Managing Director, Department of IT BT and KITS, Govt. of Karnataka.
ATF Awards has been supported by various organizations including Accenture, Microsoft, Shell & ThoughtWorks. In line with its commitment to disability inclusion, entrepreneurship, and fostering women-led innovation in assistive technology, Accenture will provide a grant-in-aid to the winner of the ‘Women Ahead – Best Assistive Technology Women-Led Startup’ award.
The award winners in their respective categories include –
| Category | Award Title | Startup Name |
| Emerging Startups | Best Assistive Technology (AT) Start up for Innovation (Product Technology) | Sparshmind Innovations |
| Established Startups | Most impactful Assistive Technology (AT) start up | Access for All |
| Women Ahead: Best Woman-led Assistive Technology (AT) start up | XL Cinema | |
| Jury’s Choice for Best Assistive Technology (AT) Start up | SHG Technologies | |
| Best Assistive Technology (AT) Start Up: People’s Choice | InfiHeal HealthTech | |
| Enablers | Best Assistive Technology (AT) Initiative among Educational Institutes | VIT – Technology Business Incubator |
| Best Assistive Technology (AT) CSR initiative of the year | Cognizant Foundation | |
| Best Assistive Technology (AT) initiative among NGOs | National Association for the Blind Delhi | |
| Best Assistive Technology (AT) Investor of the Year | Global Innovation Hub | |
| Best Government Assistive Technology (AT) Initiative | The State Commission for Persons with disability Goa |
Prateek Madhav, CEO & Co-Founder of AssisTech Foundation, commented on the occasion, “Building on the impressive success of the Assistive Technology track at the Bengaluru Tech Summit in 2023, we are proud to honour the winners of the ATF awards, whose contribution to the realm of assistive technology has enable many people with disabilities to gain a new outlook on life. We remain steadfast in our commitment to help this technology reach across the country to those less fortunate.”
The organization also hosted a first of its kind panel discussion on the topic – India’s AT Evolution: What Will Define Innovation, Policy, and Impact in the Coming Decade? The session saw a panel of esteemed industry leaders including Rumi Mallick Mitra, Global Head, Director, Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability, EY GDS, Shri Rajesh Aggarwal, Secretary of the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Deepak Padaki, President of Catamaran, Akashdeep Bansal, Founder of Saralx and Dr. Ananthalakshmi Venkitaraman, Founder of Equibeing Foundation. The panel was moderated by Prateek Madhav, CEO & Co-founder of ATF.