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    ET Startup Awards 2026: Nominees for Best on Campus

    Synopsis

    The Best on Campus award will showcase a startup whose impact can be judged both by the idea and the execution. The founders should have been students whose aim was to build a commercial enterprise.

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    BestOnCampus_Thumb (1)ETtech
    We are back with the 12th edition of The Economic Times Startup Awards. As we approach the main event, here are the nominees for Best on Campus.

    The Best on Campus award will showcase a startup whose impact can be judged both by the idea and the execution. The founders should have been students whose aim was to build a commercial enterprise. There must be some level of validation either through an investor or a customer.

    Here are the nominees:


    Company name: Qosmic


    Screenshot 2026-08-18 005003ETtech
    Founded in: 2025

    Founders: Shreyaans Jain, Rohit Ramakrishnan, Aloke Kumar

    Based in: Bengaluru

    Key investors: Prosus, Accel, South Park Commons

    What it does: A spacetech startup attempting to solve the massive data bottlenecks between space and earth. Its technology aims to enable satellites to transmit data faster and in much larger volumes, serving earth observation, defence, and other space missions.


    Company name: Armatrix

    L-R Vishrant Dave, Prateesh Awasthi, and Ayush RanjanETtech

    L-R - Vishrant Dave, Prateesh Awasthi, and Ayush Ranjan, founders, Armatrix

    Founded in: 2024

    Founders: Vishrant Dave, Ayush Ranjan, Prateesh Awasthi

    Based in: Bengaluru

    Key investors: Pi Ventures, gradCapital, Boundless Ventures, Inuka Capital

    What it does: Builds snake-like robotic arms that can enter cramped and hazardous industrial spaces where conventional robots and workers struggle to operate. Its systems have applications planned across aviation, oil and gas, and nuclear industries.


    Company name: Panoculon Labs

    JUST IN_Headlines only - 2026-08-18T004302ETtech

    Sreeraj R and Rishabh Sharma, founders, Panoculon Labs

    Founded in: 2023

    Founders: Rishabh Sharma, Sreeraj R

    Based in: Bengaluru

    Key investors: IIT-Madras Incubation Cell, ITEL Foundation, India Accelerator

    What it does: Builds vision hardware for robots and AI systems. Its Trinet device captures first-person visual data used to train autonomous robots. The startup is also developing AI-powered smart glasses for visually impaired users and enterprise applications.


    Company name: Dream Aerospace


    JUST IN_Headlines only - 2026-08-18T004547ETtech

    Rogith Srinivasan and Hari Krishnan KJ, founders, Dream Aerospace

    Founded in: 2022

    Founders: Hari Krishnan KJ, Rogith Srinivasan

    Based in: Kanpur

    Key investors: 247VC, Campus Angels Network, Chandigarh Angel Network

    What it does: Develops propulsion systems that help satellites move and maintain their position in orbit, extending their operating life. Its indigenous green-propellant technology is designed as a cleaner alternative to conventional satellite propulsion systems and is initially aimed at the growing low earth orbit satellite market.


    Company name: Plenome Technologies

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    Anirudh Varna, Prabhu Rajagopal, and Vijayaraja R, founders, Plenome Technologies

    Founded in: 2023

    Founders: Prabhu Rajagopal, Anirudh Varna, Vijayaraja R

    Based in: Chennai

    Key investors: Ovington Capital Partners, SIDBI

    What it does: Builds AI infrastructure that allows companies to train and deploy AI models on sensitive data without moving the data outside their own systems. It also develops specialised AI applications, including Ashwin AI, a multilingual voice copilot that helps doctors with clinical documentation and data capture.

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