Pfizer INDovation awards grants worth Rs 8+ Cr to 14 healthtech startups
February 12, 2026 | Thursday | News
14 startups were awarded grants of Rs 60 lakh each and structured incubation support for clinical validation
Pfizer has announced the winners of the INDovation Program 2025 edition. The programme selected 14 promising healthtech startups who will receive grants of Rs 60 lakh each and 18 months of other incubation support.
The winning startups delivered robust solutions in the fields of Immunisation, NCDs (non-communicable diseases), Brain Health, Oncology and Maternal and Child Health.
The programme is designed to fast-track the journey of startups from lab readiness to regulatory validation and on-ground deployment. Backed by Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Department of Pharmaceuticals, NITI Aayog and Maharashtra State Innovation Society (MSINS), the initiative is implemented by Social Alpha and supported by the Foundation of Innovation and Technology Transfer (FITT) at IIT Delhi.
The final 14 winners were selected based on stringent criteria including potential public health impact, technological advancement, uniqueness of value proposition, competitive differentiation, scalability, and a clear development roadmap. In addition to the grant, each winner will benefit from structured incubation and acceleration support led by Social Alpha and FITT at IIT Delhi.
The programme provides tailored support to startups through two parallel tracks:
Incubation Track: Support for clinical validation, regulatory approvals, and go-to-market strategies for startups with validation-ready products. 8 startups have been selected in this track (Rheoheme, Medblue Innovations, Astraeus Innovus, Skyfire Applied Intelligence, Heethox-K, RNT Health Insights, Vidcare Innovations, BioLockey)
Deployment Track: Deployment support for startups with regulator-approved products in Ayushman Arogya Mandirs, enabling real-world clinical efficacy data collection and scalable public health impact evaluation. 6 advanced startups with products ready for deployment are placed under the Deployment track (AI Health Highway, Blackfrog Technologies, Doto Health, Neodocs, Pragmatech, Sunfox)
