**Executive Summary**
The ‘Innovate2Educate’ challenge, part of the first season of the Create in India Challenge (CIC), was established to develop affordable handheld learning devices. Showcased at WAVES 2025, the initiative focused on inclusive EdTech solutions with a strict hardware cost ceiling of ₹1,000. The program concluded with the selection of 10 finalists and the awarding of prize money to top performers to encourage startup incubation and scaling.
**Key Points / Main Content**
**Challenge Objectives and Framework**
* **Targeted Innovation:** Encouraged students, startups, and innovators to design handheld learning devices by combining education and technology.
* **Inclusivity Focus:** Solutions were required to be accessible to diverse learners, including those who are visually impaired or neurodivergent.
* **Affordability Criterion:** Guidelines mandated a hardware cost ceiling of ₹1,000 per device to promote frugal innovation and accessibility.
**Execution and Participation**
* **Scale of Participation:** The challenge received over 1,800 registrations from across the country.
* **Operational Support:** Executed by an industry association with Ministry support, featuring outreach activities in schools and universities.
* **Development Process:** Participants underwent mentoring and workshop sessions to refine and improve their preliminary solutions.
**Recognition and Results**
* **Finalists:** 10 teams were selected to showcase prototypes at CreatoSphere, WAVES 2025, and engage with industry stakeholders.
* **Awards:** The top three winning teams received prize money of up to ₹50,000.
* **Entrepreneurial Outcomes:** Post-summit, four finalist teams evolved into startups, with two exploring incubation through the WAVEX Startup Accelerator Programme.
* **Investor Engagement:** Winners were provided platforms, such as WAVES Bazaar, to interact with potential investors for scaling their solutions.
**Impact Analysis**
**Students and Innovators**
**Impact**
Participants gained access to professional mentoring, workshops, and a national platform to showcase their prototypes. The challenge provided a pathway for academic projects to transition into formal startups.
**Action Required**
Develop prototypes within the prescribed cost limit, participate in refinement workshops, and engage with acceleration programs for scaling.
**Startups**
**Impact**
Finalist teams received financial rewards and opportunities for incubation through the WAVEX Startup Accelerator Programme.
**Action Required**
Utilize prize money for further innovation and engage with potential investors at outreach events to secure funding.
**Industry Associations**
**Impact**
Responsible for executing the challenge and conducting wide-scale outreach to ensure stakeholder participation.
**Action Required**
Collaborate with the Ministry to facilitate outreach in educational institutions and support the execution of workshops and showcases.
**Educational Institutions (Schools and Universities)**
**Impact**
Benefited from outreach activities aimed at ensuring wide participation of students in the technology and education sector.
**Action Required**
Facilitate student participation and adopt frugal EdTech solutions designed through the challenge.
Key Entities Referenced
'Innovate2Educate' Challenge: A competition focused on designing and developing affordable handheld learning devices for education technology.
Create in India Challenge (CIC): The broader initiative framework under which the 'Innovate2Educate' challenge was launched to encourage creative innovation.
WAVES 2025: The summit where challenge finalists showcased their prototypes and engaged with industry stakeholders.
WAVEX Startup Accelerator Programme: A dedicated program for incubating startups that evolved from the finalist teams of the challenge.
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting: The primary central ministry overseeing and supporting the execution of the 'Innovate2Educate' initiative.
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting
‘Innovate2Educate’ Challenge Spurs Affordable &
Accessible EdTech Solutions at WAVES 2025
Posted On: 01 APR 2026 4:41PM by PIB Delhi
The ‘Innovate2Educate’ challenge under the first season of Create in India Challenge (CIC) was aimed at
encouraging innovation by creatively intertwining education and technology. The challenge was focused
on designing and development of handheld learning devices by students, startups and innovators.
The challenge framework encouraged participants to design solutions that are innovative and accessible,
including for children with diverse learning needs such as visually impaired and neurodivergent learners.
The initiative received participation from across the country, including students and innovators from
diverse backgrounds. An industry association, with support from the Ministry, executed this challenge and
undertook outreach activities in schools, universities etc. This was to ensure wider participation of all
stakeholders.
The challenge guidelines prescribed a cost criterion to design and develop handheld devices using
hardware components within a ceiling of ₹1,000. This was aimed at promoting affordability, accessibility,
and frugal innovation in educational technology solutions. Following mentoring and workshop sessions
with the preliminarily selected participants, the solutions were further refined and improved.
A total of 10 finalists were selected from more than 1,800 registrations. The shortlisted teams were
provided opportunities to showcase their prototypes at CreatoSphere, WAVES 2025 and engage with
industry stakeholders.
In addition, the top three winning teams were awarded prize money of up to ₹50,000 in recognition of
their innovation and effort. The designs and prototypes showcased reflected diverse approaches to
accessibility, interactive learning and technology-enabled education.
After the Summit, out of the 10 finalist teams, 4 teams have evolved into startups, and 2 of these startups
are exploring incubation through WAVEX Startup Accelerator Programme. Through WAVES Bazaar
outreach events, winners have been provided opportunities to interact with potential investors to scale up
their solutions.
This Information was submitted by the Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Dr. L.
Murugan in a written reply in Lok Sabha today in response of questions asked by Shri Basavaraj
Bommai.
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Mahesh Kumar/ Vivek Vishwash
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