A business idea born out of lived experience, grounded firmly in domain knowledge and determined by extensive research has a better chance of growing, averred the professors who were gathered at the GITAM University for an event on Friday. 

They said that asking the right questions and knowing where to look for answers makes all the difference. These were some of the conversations that were held at the annual SmartIDEAthon 2023 event, where students pitched start-up ideas to investors. 

The event was organised by the GITAM University, Hyderabad and sponsored by Start-up India, a part of the government's initiative to foster India's start-up ecosystem in India. 

"The market will decide at the end of the day whether your idea is good or not," said D Sambasiva Rao, pro-vice-chancellor of the university, while addressing students at the event's inauguration. Professor Greg Collier of Northeastern University, US, advised students to ground their experiments in their experience. 

"A student's world exposure is a very unique exposure for problem and problem-solving," said Collier, the director of International Programs, NUCEE, Northeastern University, US, which is also a collaborator for the event. "Students coming out with such exposure have domain understanding. They understand the issues in a real way and experience them in a real way at home. They see these problems and want to fix them," he said. 

Collier also suggested students use artificial intelligence (AI) to speed up their research. "AI is speeding up the research process so that we ask better, deeper, and more insightful questions that can help us solve bigger problems," he said. "It's a support tool, like Google Search, but a little smarter, and it has democratised the access to data."

The event, the third such, is a student-run affair and is being held by the Venture Development Center (VDC) of the varsity in collaboration with Northeastern University. 

The VDC acts as a venture pre-incubator and epicentre for all start-up activities at GITAM University. As part of the event, students pitched their business ideas and while vying for a Rs 2 lakh start-up capital and a sponsored trip to Boston for mentorship and business coaching.