Microsoft, Accenture to empower 13 Indian social impact startups

Microsoft and Accenture on Wednesday announced the third cohort of the Project Amplify programme, which will support 13 Indian startups with solutions focusing on clean tech, circularity, regenerative agriculture, education and skilling.

The programme will also support the startups with testing and validating proofs-of-concept, reimagining the impact of their solutions through design thinking sessions, access to the latest technologies and guidance from experts at Microsoft and Accenture. "Through our continued collaboration with Microsoft, we are applying our joint expertise to support social impact startups and help bring their solutions to our enterprise clients across the globe, scaling their impact," Sanjay Podder, managing director and Technology Sustainability Innovation lead at Accenture, said in a statement. Moreover, the programme will offer startups access to Microsoft technologies, including up to $1,50,000 in Azure credits, M365 and D365, Visual Studio and GitHub Enterprise access, enterprise-grade Azure engineering support, networking opportunities with other global social entrepreneurs and an array of go-to-market resources.

"In collaboration with Accenture and as part of our Entrepreneurship for Positive Impact Initiative, we are humbled to support bold innovators in India, driving systemic change through their sustainable businesses," Jean-Philippe Courtois, Executive Vice President and President, National Transformation Partnerships, Microsoft, said in a statement. Launched in 2020, previous cohorts of the programme focused on addressing issues in food safety, livelihood, education, sustainability, and skilling.