Startup news and updates: daily roundup (July 22, 2026)

YourStory brings you today’s headlines with the latest developments across sectors.

Funding news

Bioscan Research raises $1M in seed round

Medtech startup Bioscan Research has raised $1 million in a seed funding round led by Unicorn India Ventures to scale its non-invasive brain injury detection technology.

The startup said the fresh capital will be used to expand into new markets, secure additional regulatory approvals, upgrade its flagship product, and develop new intellectual property.

Founded in 2017 by Anupam Lavania and Shilpa Malik, Bioscan Research develops affordable medical devices that combine optics, electronics, mechanics, software, and machine learning to enable the early detection of traumatic brain injuries. Its flagship product, CEREBO, uses near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and artificial intelligence to help detect intracranial injuries, even in patients who show no visible symptoms, enabling clinicians to intervene during the critical treatment window.

Other news

EduFund launches Vittam for MFDs and IFAs

EduFund has launched Vittam, a financial distribution platform designed for Mutual Fund Distributors (MFDs) and Independent Financial Advisors (IFAs).

Co-founded by Eela Dubey and Arindam Sengupta, with the mission of helping Indian families save and plan for their children's education, EduFund has, over the past six-and-a-half years, evolved into a comprehensive financial platform serving more than 300,000 families.

As households move through different life stages, their financial priorities expand beyond education to include investments, loans, insurance, retirement planning, and global opportunities.

Through Vittam, EduFund aims to equip MFDs and IFAs with an integrated platform that enables them to guide families across these evolving financial needs, while offering a suite of solutions that supports every stage of their financial journey.

Social Alpha launches clean energy acceleration programme

Social Alpha has launched Techtonic: Innovations in Clean Energy, a 12-month acceleration programme to support science-led startups developing solutions in energy access, energy storage, and energy efficiency.

The initiative, launched in partnership with Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog, SELCO Foundation, Tata Power, Jakson Green, and Sagacity, will provide selected startups with grant funding, incubation support, pilot opportunities, market access, and potential seed investment, subject to due diligence.

The programme will support startups across different stages of growth. Early-stage ventures at the R&D stage (Technology Readiness Levels 3-4) can receive incubation support of up to Rs 10 lakh to advance prototype development, while growth-stage startups (TRL 7-9) will be eligible for support of up to Rs 60 lakh to accelerate commercial deployment, expand into new markets, and strengthen their business models.

Groww Foundation backs 35 Young Innovators at IIT Bombay

Groww Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Groww, has announced the inaugural cohort of its INV.ENT programme, selecting 19 ideas from 35 student innovators at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay. Chosen from nearly 400 submissions, the projects span AI, climate tech, robotics, defence, assistive technology, and social innovation.

Among the selected ideas are a digital marketplace connecting Dharavi's pottery artisans with customers, a wearable sleeve that guides physiotherapy patients through rehabilitation exercises, a platform that converts carbon dioxide into edible protein, and an AI-powered system designed to protect critical infrastructure from rogue drones.

The first cohort is divided into two tracks. Three student teams have been named Grand Challenge Fellows and are eligible for milestone-based funding of up to Rs 25 lakh annually. The remaining 16 teams will receive proof-of-concept (POC) grants of Rs 30,000 each to validate and develop their ideas.

Beyond funding, participants will gain access to mentorship and the 15,000 sq ft Groww Innovation Space at IIT Bombay's Desai Sethi School of Entrepreneurship (DSSE).

Grahaa Space completes Mission SIDDHI

Spacetech startup Grahaa Space has announced the successful completion of Mission SIDDHI, with its technology demonstration nanosatellite SOLARAS achieving all planned objectives in low Earth orbit (LEO).

The satellite successfully transmitted telemetry signals confirming the health of its onboard systems. The signals were received and verified by the SSPACE-Tarang ground station at the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST), Thiruvananthapuram, while multiple amateur ground stations worldwide also tracked and received the transmissions across successive orbital passes.

Mission SIDDHI validated Grahaa Space's indigenously developed, stackable nanosatellite bus and platform, along with its onboard systems and subsystems, under real-world space conditions. The satellite also successfully transmitted payload data, marking a key milestone in the company's efforts to build reliable and scalable Earth observation nanosatellite technologies.

IIT Madras to host Digital India RISC-V Symposium 2026 on semiconductor innovation

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras, in partnership with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and RISC-V International, will host the third Digital India RISC-V (DIR-V) Symposium 2026 on August 1-2 at the IIT Madras Research Park in Chennai.

Centred on the theme "Empowering Bharat's Semiconductor Future," the symposium aims to bring together policymakers, researchers, startups, industry leaders, investors, faculty members, and students to accelerate India's ambitions of becoming a global hub for semiconductor design, electronics manufacturing, and secure digital infrastructure.

The event will focus on indigenous processor technologies, secure computing systems, hardware innovation, artificial intelligence, and the rapidly expanding RISC-V ecosystem.

(This article will be updated with the latest news throughout the day.)