AP Build Grant , Build with AI: RTIH Startup Sprint

• Grant support of Rs. 3 lakh to Rs. 5 lakh.
• An intensive four-week AI prototype sprint.
• A hybrid format across RTIH hubs and spokes in Andhra Pradesh.
• Backed by the Government of Andhra Pradesh through RTIH.
• Open across ten deep-tech verticals.

About this scheme

The AP Build Grant is the money side of the Build with AI: RTIH Startup Sprint, a programme of the Ratan Tata Innovation Hub (RTIH) under the Government of Andhra Pradesh. It is meant for prototype-stage startups and MSMEs in the state that have a genuine operational bottleneck and want to ship a working AI prototype to fix it.

On the funding: a chosen team is given Rs. 3 lakh to Rs. 5 lakh to meet the cost of building, testing, and proving its prototype. This is money for teams that have moved beyond ideation and now need the means to get a real product into users' hands.

On the programme: the grant comes with a four-week intensive sprint run in hybrid form, blending online sessions with face-to-face time at RTIH's main hub in Amaravati and at spoke centres in Tirupati, Vijayawada, Rajahmundry, Visakhapatnam, and Anantapur. The four weeks are all about execution, with domain mentors, technical builders, and AI specialists working beside founders to carry a clearly defined bottleneck through to a deployable AI prototype.

Sectors of interest run across AI, AgriTech, HealthTech, DeepTech, ClimateTech, manufacturing, EdTech, mobility, drones, and rural innovation, and the sprint favours teams whose AI use-case is pinned to a measurable operational problem rather than a vague theme.

It suits Andhra Pradesh startups and MSMEs anywhere from the idea or pre-prototype point through to MVP or beta testing. Teams that arrive with a sharp problem statement, a tight technical core, and four clear weeks for focused work will get the most from it.

Who can apply

• The applicant should be a startup or MSME based in Andhra Pradesh.
• It should be at the pre-prototype, prototype, or MVP point, per the application form's stage question.
• The work should be a technology-led innovation in AI, HealthTech, AgriTech, ClimateTech, DeepTech, manufacturing, mobility, EdTech, drones, or rural innovation.
• There should be a clear operational bottleneck the team wants to crack with an AI prototype.
• The team needs to be free for the four-week hybrid sprint, with virtual sessions plus time at a regional RTIH hub or spoke.

Eligible entity types: Private Limited, LLP, Partnership, Proprietorship

Benefits & funding

• Four weeks of intensive, mentor-led AI sprinting.
• Use of RTIH's flagship Amaravati hub plus five spoke centres dotted across Tirupati, Vijayawada, Rajahmundry, Visakhapatnam, and Anantapur.
• A look into RTIH's wider pipeline, Catalyst Incubation and Future Founders among it, and a working AI prototype to show by the close of the sprint.

How the application process works

The journey below is informational, compiled from the official program guidelines. Applications are submitted directly with Ratan Tata Innovation Hub (RTIH), in your own name.

1. 1

   The RTIH Build with AI team reviews each application on three counts: how clearly the operational bottleneck is framed, whether an AI prototype can realistically tackle it in four weeks, and the team's ability to deliver.

2. 2

   Shortlisted teams may be asked to sharpen their problem statement or take a short call before they are picked for the sprint cohort.

Documents checklist 3

• Operational bottleneck statement
• Founder or team profile
• Evidence of current stage (prototype, MVP, or traction)

Need help getting these in order? IncorpX provides assistance for incorporation, DPIIT recognition, MSME and GST registrations along with document preparation.

Frequently asked questions