Hyderabad, September 29, 2025 – The Indian School of Business (ISB) today announced the graduation of the second cohort of its flagship I-Venture Immersive (ivi) programme, celebrating the successful journey of 50 high-potential startups. The graduation ceremony, held at ISB’s Hyderabad campus, brought together entrepreneurs, faculty, investors, and ecosystem leaders to honour the founders who completed a rigorous six-month venture-building experience.
The event featured Kavikrut, CEO of T-Hub, as Chief Guest, along with Professor Madan Pillutla, Dean of ISB, and Professor Bhagwan Chowdhry, Faculty Director of ISB I-Venture, who addressed and inspired the graduating cohort.
Over six months, founders in the ivi programme engaged deeply with ISB’s faculty, an expansive alumni network, top-tier venture capitalists, and seasoned practitioners. The immersive environment sharpened their strategic thinking, built entrepreneurial resilience, and prepared their ventures for long-term growth.
This year’s cohort showcases the diversity and dynamism of India’s startup ecosystem. Startups spanned key sectors such as consumer tech, D2C, edtech, agri-tech, health-tech, and AI-powered SaaS platforms. Notably, 35% of the founders were women, and participants ranged in age from 18 to 49, with an average age of 28. The cohort included a mix of revenue-generating businesses, high-potential pre-revenue startups, and innovative early-stage ideas, demonstrating the programme’s broad reach and impact.
Delivering the keynote, Kavikrut shared powerful lessons from his entrepreneurial journey. He emphasized that generalist thinking and moonshot ideas—though risky—can lead to transformative growth. Drawing on his experience at OYO, he spoke on the value of building systems, spotting patterns early, and creating strong, high-intent teams. He urged founders to focus on execution, noting, “Boring tasks, done consistently, often lead to surprising outcomes.”
Dean Madan Pillutla called entrepreneurship a noble pursuit, particularly in a country like India, where new ideas and models are critical to progress. Offering his advice, he encouraged founders to:
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Practice generosity by lifting others along the way,
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Surround themselves with ambitious, supportive peers, and
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Maintain integrity while taking bold risks.
He also acknowledged the vital role of families and communities in supporting entrepreneurial journeys.
Professor Bhagwan Chowdhry reframed the ceremony as a beginning, not an end, highlighting the real entrepreneurial journey ahead. Celebrating the programme’s growth, he noted that with two cohorts completed, ivi is on track to nurture 500 entrepreneurs in the next five years, building a strong global network of ISB-backed ventures.
Looking ahead, Phase 2 of the programme will provide selected ventures with funding of up to INR 40 lakhs, along with extended venture-building support. This next stage will help founders refine their business models, accelerate product development, and move closer to market readiness—all within the robust support system of the ISB ecosystem.
With this milestone, ISB continues to reaffirm its commitment to fostering innovation, scaling impact, and building India’s entrepreneurial future through world-class education, mentorship, and venture support.
