Bengaluru, Dec 1 (IANS): Tech major Honeywell on Tuesday announced that it has partnered with the Society for Innovation and Development (SID) at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) to support deep science startups with societal impact.
The tech major said in a statement that its partnership with SID opens up opportunities to support startup ventures working on science and technology projects not related to the company's core areas of work, but intended to address large, societal problems.
"Honeywell's corporate social responsibility (CSR) contribution will also target needs relating to Covid-19, including building a new class of eco-friendly specialty fluorescent dyes and a rapid point-of-care diagnostics test for use in low resource settings," the statement explained.
According to the statement, Honeywell funds have been deployed to support six startups in association with IISc to begin with. Most of these startups are working in the field of the healthcare, primarily tackling cancer and Covid -19.
Three of the startups that Honeywell is supporting are led by women entrepreneurs, including by Fathima Benazir, Co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer, Azooka Labs.
"We would like to thank SID for its continuous nurturing, and Honeywell for its timely support. We hope our success will encourage the small but dedicated community of scientists and entrepreneurs working on new frontiers of science," Benazir said.
These startups include:
Azooka Labs Private Limited is developing a new class of safe fluorescent dyes and consumables for genomics research and molecular diagnostics. Azooka has also developed a safer and more stable viral transport medium, and is working on a rapid, easy-to-deploy point-of-care diagnostic kit that will be useful for testing Covid-19.
Siamaf Healthcare Private Limited is developing magnetic nanotechnology for radiation-free and affordable cancer diagnosis and therapy.
Protein Design Private Limited works on protein biotechnology and has developed a unique yeast expression technology that produces glycoprotein like human-like glycan moieties, which are useful for producing cancer immunotherapeutic treatments. In addition, they have produced viral antigens for diagnostics and vaccination for Covid -19.
Mimyk Medical Simulations Private Limited is building an augmented reality/virtual reality-based laparoscopy simulation platform to train surgeons.
HealthSeq Precision Medicine Private Limited is working towards developing solutions in precision medicine to enable targeted therapy, reduce risks, and increase efficiencies in the healthcare system.
PathShodh Healthcare Private Limited is re-purposing its technology for rapid and accurate Covid-19 diagnostics, while also eliminating the need for PCR machines.