Rohith Bhat (right), Founding President of TiE-Mangaluru chapter, announces the launch of K-Combinator initiative in coastal Karnataka region. Shyamprasad Hebbar (centre), President of TiE-Mangaluru, and Suyog Shetty, Vice President of TiE-Mangaluru, are seen.
| Photo Credit:
H S Manjunath
TiE Mangaluru has been selected to host and drive the first K-Combinator initiative in Karnataka, according to Shyamprasad Hebbar, President of the TiE-Mangaluru chapter.Addressing media persons in Mangaluru on Friday, he said this marks the beginning of the programme’s rollout across Karnataka. The initiative will focus on supporting startups from the Udupi-Mangaluru and wider coastal Karnataka region, he said.K-Combinator is a structured, industry-led startup acceleration programme aimed at identifying, nurturing, and accelerating high-potential startups from Karnataka.16-week acceleration programmeRohith Bhat, Founding President of TiE-Mangaluru, said the initiative, which is built on ‘TIE Nurture’ (TiE Global’s decade-strong organised mentoring methodology), will select four-six startups per cohort, with three cohorts planned every year.Selected founders will undergo a structured 16-week acceleration journey, including boot camps, masterclasses, more than 15 mentoring sessions, peer reviews, market and industry connects, investor readiness and demo day opportunities.₹9.26-crore grant outlay for coastal KarnatakaHe said the K-Combinator initiative has a total approved grant outlay of ₹9.26 crore over five years for the coastal Karnataka region. Of this, the first tranche of ₹1.89 crore has already been released, marking the commencement of programme implementation.K-Combinator, which is powered by ‘TiE Nurture’, will provide founders with access to TiE’s global mentor network, along with its wider industry, investor, and entrepreneurial ecosystem, enabling promising regional ventures to gain expert guidance, access markets, build scalable businesses locally, and scale globally, he said.Focus on startups ready to scaleSuyog Shetty, Vice President of TiE-Mangaluru, said the programme is targeted at startups that have successfully tested their proof of concept or minimum viable product and are entering the initial stages of scaling, with support focused on product-market fit, customer validation, go-to-market strategy, market access and investment readiness.Two qualifying startups from each cohort will be eligible for a ₹10 lakh performance-linked grant at 0 per cent equity, subject to successful programme completion, applicable criteria and approvals.Published on August 21, 2026
