Facebook owned instant messaging company, WhatsApp on Wednesday, announced “that it has partnered with Invest India to organize a startup challenge in the country with the aim to invest in the top five participants of the competition. ”
In the statement, the official said: “The company will invest $250,000 as a seed fund in the five winners of the ‘WhatsApp StartUp Challenge.”
Startups are future of India: Union Minister @sureshpprabhu, said speaking at the #InvestIndia and WhatsApp event in New Delhi
????https://t.co/DGpdmjvpbT pic.twitter.com/XEMGcKjQJJ
— PIB India (@PIB_India) October 31, 2018
“Adding to this WhatsApp will also make an additional investment of $2,50,000 to few selected firms from the entrepreneurial community to promote their WhatsApp business number on Facebook,” the statement added.
Speaking at the event Union Minister of Commerce and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu said that “the startup community is the future of India and it will be the platform through which, millions of youth of this country will be gainfully employed”.
Happy to announce the partnership between #WhatsApp and #StartupIndia to support businesses and startups across India through training and WhatsApp’s business products. A ‘WhatsApp Startup Challenge’ will also be organised with seed funding of $ 250,000 for 5 winners. pic.twitter.com/b1lnVo0Aia
— Suresh Prabhu (@sureshpprabhu) October 31, 2018
Talking on the partnership, Deepak Bagla, CEO of Invest India said: “India adds over three new startups a day ranking it amongst the top startup nations in the world. Through this partnership with WhatsApp, we aim to support the innovative start-ups in India and to create solutions not only for India but the entire world.”
One of the largest corporate partnerships @investindia has made till now, that will help further the growth of SMBs in the country! #WhatsAppForStartups pic.twitter.com/HXN3M1u75y
— Startup India (@startupindia) November 1, 2018
Adding to this Chris Daniels, Vice President of WhatsApp said: “We are excited to work closely with Startup India by supporting entrepreneurs and start-ups to become engines of economic growth.”
