IHH Catalyst Program , Fortis IndiaEdition

• Healthtech startups at product or revenue stage seeking corporate acceleration with Fortis Healthcare.

About this scheme

The IHH Catalyst Program , Fortis India Edition is a healthcare innovation initiative designed to enable startups to validate and deploy hospital-ready solutions within real clinical environments. Anchored within the Fortis Healthcare ecosystem in India and delivered in collaboration with IHH Healthcare, the program provides startups with a structured pathway to pilot their solutions directly within operational hospital systems. The initiative is powered by Plug and Play APAC and supported by Startup India under DPIIT, positioning it within a broader national effort to accelerate innovation in healthcare delivery.

The primary objective of the program is to identify startups that can meaningfully improve clinical outcomes, operational efficiency, and patient experience in hospital environments. Selected startups are given the opportunity to collaborate closely with clinical leaders, hospital administrators, and healthcare innovation teams across the Fortis and IHH network. Through structured hospital-based pilot programs, startups can validate their technologies in real-world healthcare settings, gather clinical and operational feedback, and refine their solutions to meet enterprise-grade deployment requirements.

The program focuses on priority healthcare domains including oncology, chronic disease management, preventive and predictive care, multidisciplinary care coordination, and patient journey optimisation. By targeting these areas, the initiative aims to support solutions that address critical healthcare system challenges such as care coordination, data-driven decision-making, and patient-centered treatment pathways.

Beyond pilot execution, the program provides extensive ecosystem support to participating startups. This includes mentorship from experienced healthcare leaders, subject-matter experts from Plug and Play's global innovation network, and guidance on regulatory readiness, healthcare data standards, cybersecurity, and interoperability requirements. Startups also gain direct access to decision-makers within the Fortis and IHH ecosystem, enabling potential commercial partnerships and enterprise adoption pathways.

A key outcome of the program is the opportunity to present validated solutions at a Demo Day event in Gurgaon, where startups pitch their innovations to hospital leadership, corporate partners, and ecosystem stakeholders. Successful pilots may progress toward longer-term collaborations and scaling opportunities across IHH Healthcare's international markets.

Who can apply

• Startups must demonstrate evidence of traction beyond the ideation stage, such as early revenue, pilot deployments, letters of intent, or a clear enterprise commercialization pathway.
• The product or solution should be hospital-ready or have a credible roadmap toward enterprise-grade deployment within healthcare systems.
• Solutions should address healthcare use cases such as oncology, chronic disease management, preventive or predictive care, multidisciplinary care coordination, or patient journey optimisation.
• Founders should demonstrate the capability to design, deploy, and iterate proof-of-concept pilots within hospital environments over a short execution cycle.
• Startups must show awareness of healthcare regulatory requirements, interoperability standards, data privacy, and security considerations relevant to healthcare systems.
• Prior healthcare sector experience is beneficial but not mandatory, provided the team demonstrates a clear understanding of hospital workflows and decision-making structures.
• Startups should have an operational presence in India or a clear plan to establish one in order to effectively execute pilots within the Indian healthcare ecosystem.

Frequently asked questions