One Billion Minds announces the Next50 Global Innovation Challenge

Online, April 2, 2010 (Newswire.com) - Bangalore, India - One Billion Minds, India's leading Open Innovation company, today announced that it is powering the Next50 Global Innovation Challenge, a prestigious program to support early stage innovation sponsored by the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur Golden Jubilee Celebrations.

The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (known as IIT Kanpur or IITK) is one of the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology, set up in the industrial city of Kanpur in 1959. IIT Kanpur has grown into one of the top technological institutes in India, primarily focused on research in engineering and science, and the teaching of undergraduates. To drive its increasing leadership in innovation, in its 50th anniversary, the Next50 program plans to identify 50 early stage innovators from around the world who have the potential to change the way we work and live.

The innovators have to apply in one of 5 identified themes: Agriculture, Clean Technologies, Education, Financial Inclusion and Energy. The uniqueness of the Next50 program lies in the vision that each of the shortlisted Next50 innovators will get access to a unique and powerful ecosystem for mentoring, support and funding. Seasoned entrepreneurs and professionals with a passion to mentor early stage innovators can take part in the Next50 program by becoming a Mentor and gaining exclusive access to the shortlisted innovators in the Next50.

The Next50 Global Innovation Challenge, as it is called, is powered by One Billion Minds - India's leading open innovation ecosystem. To participate in the Next50, early stage innovators will have to submit their innovations in one of the 5 themes mentioned above. The challenge is open to individuals as well as teams with only one restriction that if applying as a company, the entity should not be older than one year. The Top 5 teams from within the Next50 will be felicitated in a glittering ceremony in Bangalore on June 19, 2010 with substantial cash awards.