Prateek Madhav is the Co-Founder and CEO of AssisTech Foundation (ATF), India's first assistive technology-focused organization that fosters innovative disability technology startups.
A non-profit organization based in Bangalore, ATF's goal is to raise awareness about the world of disability and make a positive impact through the startups they foster.
Prateek spoke to indianexpress.com about his venture into assistive technology, the startup network he has created, the challenges and opportunities in the assistive technology space, and how the assistive technology ecosystem is being built in India. Edited excerpt:
Venkatesh Kannaiah: How does AssisTech Foundation work and what are the axis on which you hope to make an impact?
Prateek Madhav: We believe that the impact of assistive technology in India is happening along three axes. First, run the accelerator. We have had five cohorts go through the accelerator so far. 42 startups have benefited from our efforts and spent approximately 4-5 months of an intensive learning experience with us, where we have provided technical, Invite business development and behavioral science mentors.
Over a period of time, we have built a network of 450 assistive technology startups across India and have impacted around 500,000 people through our startups' 100+ products. We are looking at monetization and technology coaching, and provide shared spaces and testbeds for experimentation. We also help build economically viable startups and organizations. ATF is also building its first Atal Incubation Center for assistive technology startups. This will be a game-changer for the field.
Second, ATF partners with groups and organizations around the world. ATF was the only assistive technology ecosystem enabler from India in the Moonshot Disability Accelerator initiative, a coordinated global disability innovation ecosystem. Moonshot has 10 of his global accelerator partners in six countries, leveraging inclusive and universal design and accessibility principles in their model. Interestingly, there is also an effort to raise his $20 million Disability Impact Fund, which will be invested in assistive technology startups around the world.
Third, we are building a one-stop online platform for all things assistive technology. ATF is also holding an awards event for startups in the field, which is in its third year of existence.
Venkatesh Kannaiah: Can you tell us about the aspects of assistive technology that have made significant advances?
Prateek Madhav: There is some really exciting work being done to fight the problem of visual impairment using AI for mobility. In some cases, these tools or devices take video and audio input and provide audio feedback to visually impaired people through implants near the ear. Technicians can now read facial profiles and features, remember them, and provide feedback to visually impaired people.
Such tools can also read any text and translate it into the language of your choice. We have also seen advances in technology that allow us to access physical documents. There are now tools that allow you to scan a document and read it out loud in your chosen language in real time, or save it to an audio file and listen to it whenever you want.
Significant advances in technology have been made in the field of reading, storing, and making handwriting searchable. There are also tools that make sign language audible. This means that when a person speaks in sign language, the application scans it and reads it out loud in real-time to enable conversation.
There are many advances being made when it comes to bionic materials. Smart wheelchairs and alternative and augmentative communication methods to support children on the cognitive impairment spectrum using virtual reality and content gamification are some of the areas receiving significant attention.
Venkatesh Kannaiah: Can you tell us about your recognition program for assistive technology startups and your work with other ecosystem players?
Prateek Madhav: We established the Assistive Tech Foundation Award, which awards startups and other enablers in an ecosystem that includes educational institutions, businesses, and governments. Some interesting startups and collaborations have emerged from these awards. For example, there is a startup working on battery-powered scooters and he is currently working with Zomato to provide scooters to gig workers with physical disabilities. There are approximately 400 of these scooters in operation. now.
We work with a range of government agencies to raise awareness of assistive technology to provide intervention advisory services and policy advice in the disability sector. We are working with some state governments on the possibility of sourcing directly from assistive technology startups and entrepreneurs with disabilities. We are also working on policy recommendations to some state governments and working with businesses on how CSR funds can be more effectively used in assistive technology.
Venkatesh Kannaiah: Can you tell us about some of the impactful and interesting startups that have come out of your acceleration/awards programs?
Prateek Madhav: Our portfolio includes quite a few startups.
SHG Technology has developed smart vision glasses, an assistive device for the visually impaired. Use AI, machine learning, and machine vision to make a difference in people's lives and drive progress. Apart from facial recognition and facial data storage, the device also helps visually impaired people become aware of their surroundings, read a book of their choice in a language they know, and identify Indian currency. Masu.
Another of our startups is working to support oral care. There, people with severe disabilities and the elderly are unable to do simple things like brush their teeth. Sociodent has launched an oral care aid device. This is a new mouthpiece for those who are addicted.
Lifespark Technologies creates solutions for the care of chronic neurological conditions such as stroke, Parkinson's disease, and spinal cord injuries. The company's solutions span the areas of AI/ML, medical devices, mobile applications, and web applications.
Robo Bionics has developed a 3D printed prosthetic hand with haptics and multi-grip control. Made in India products are lightweight and affordable. A battery-powered prosthetic leg is now available in the Indian market for people with below-elbow amputations.
Glovatrix designs affordable wearable technology products that help people with speech and hearing impairments communicate effectively. One of the company's products is an AI-powered smartwatch that converts gestures into voice and text. It's easy to use and the microphone converts audio into text or image format. It also enables learning Indian Sign Language using his mechanism of real-time feedback.
Trestle Labs is committed to addressing the issue of accessibility for physical documents. The machine scans the text and starts reading it in any language in real time. Save it to your phone and read it aloud in one of 60 languages. You can also save and search your handwriting. Digitize your schools, universities and offices.
Venkatesh Kannaiah: What are some startups that work with differently-abled children?
Prateek Madhav: Vifr Tech harnesses the power of virtual reality to train and educate neurodiverse youth in a fun way. The company's product, Halara, is a complete virtual reality special education platform for training and teaching young people with autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders. There are children with severe disabilities that require great effort to communicate something as simple as pain in a part of their body. In this situation, these virtual reality platforms bring about a change.
CogniAble is another startup that provides machine learning-driven assistive technology for early detection and treatment of autism spectrum disorders. Founded by researchers at IIT Delhi, it assesses children and creates individualized education plans.
Avaz is a startup that uses image- and text-based alternative and augmentative communication applications to help children and adults with complex communication needs express themselves and learn.
Venkatesh Kannaiah: How is the assistive technology ecosystem in India and what challenges are startups facing?
Prateek Madhav: The assistive technology ecosystem may include governments, nonprofits, people with disabilities, researchers, start-ups, investors, and global institutions.
Thanks to our efforts, we believe that the investment environment has matured a little. We are constantly pushing these technologies forward to market, exploring other use cases, and exploring sustainable business possibilities.
We believe that our intervention with the Atal Incubation Center for Assistive Technology will create 100 more startups in this field. Together with our startups, we have impacted 500,000 lives. We expect to impact the lives of approximately 5 million people over the next five years. Here are some trends likely to be taken by the 450 startups entering this space in India. Some of the startups with strong IP-driven technologies will continue their journey and move into adjacent sectors and find monetization and commercial use cases.
Second, some of them will be full-spectrum companies that offer a range of products in the disability areas in which they operate. Third, someone may be building a platform for this kind of technology. It's a kind of integration, building different products and potentially becoming a platform.
Assistive technology may not seem like a big market, but we have the unicorn Israeli company Orcam, and we also have Microsoft, which is spending a lot of time and money and focusing on building assistive technology products.
We believe that India has the potential to eventually become a global hub for assistive technology, with Indian startups playing a key role and a focus on affordable products, which India excels in. I think there is. The Global South could be such a market. Affordable products.
