Article · 14 min read

Deep tech and AI startup grants: DSIR, BIRAC and the R&D funding ladder

IncorpX editorial team · IncorpX Free Intermediate India

This maps the second layer of R&D support to your build stage exactly the way you should think about it: NIDHI-PRAYAS and TIDE 2.0 for a prototype, BIRAC BIG (up to Rs 50 lakh, non-dilutive) at proof-of-concept, BIRAC SBIRI and iDEX once you have a provable milestone, with DSIR recognition unlocking the 200% weighted R&D tax deduction. It also shows how founders legitimately stack these grants as a ladder rather than chasing one headline cheque.

  • Applied R&D money is stage-gated: prototype grants (NIDHI-PRAYAS, TIDE 2.0) come before proof-of-concept grants (BIRAC BIG), which come before scale-up grants (SBIRI, iDEX).
  • BIRAC BIG offers up to Rs 50 lakh non-dilutive for 18 months, aimed squarely at a lab-provable or tech-provable milestone rather than a pitch deck.
  • DSIR recognition of your in-house R&D unit unlocks a weighted R&D tax deduction, a cash saving founders routinely miss because it sits outside the grant headlines.
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The question it answers

  1. How do I claim R&D and innovation support (patent fee rebates, SIDBI, technology development funds) beyond the headline grants?

Read with it

  1. The official explainer of the concrete money DPIIT-recognised startups get on IP, an 80% patent-fee rebate, 50% trademark-fee... Government of India (startupindia.gov.in) Article · ~10 min read Startup India, Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Benefits & SIPP Scheme DPIIT / Startup India
  2. SIDBI's own page lays out how its Fund of Funds machinery actually works: it does not write you a cheque directly, it... SIDBI Tool · 8 min read SIDBI Fund of Funds and technology development schemes overview Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI)
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