Draper Founders Program brings 14 entrepreneurs to Hyderabad for intensive 12-day residency

Hyderabad: A new accelerator program aimed at early-stage startup founders has begun in Hyderabad. The Draper Founders Program, launched by Draper Startup House, is being held for the first time in India and brings together 14 entrepreneurs from across the country for a 12-day residential program.

Hosted at Draper Startup House’s co-living and co-working space in the city, the program offers mentorship, workshops and networking opportunities. It is part of the global Draper Startup House network, founded by Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper, known for backing companies such as Tesla, Skype and Coinbase.

Focus on Bootstrapped founders

Unlike traditional accelerator models that take equity, this program is non-dilutive and targets bootstrapped founders in the early stages of building their startups.

“India has no shortage of exceptional founders. What they need is structured early-stage support, global visibility, and investor access,” said Chaitanya, Director of Draper Startup House, Hyderabad. “The Draper Founders Program addresses this gap, equity-free, community-driven, and high-impact.”

The program includes training sessions, mentorship from global experts, and peer-to-peer learning. A mentor from the Draper New York team, Nacho, has also joined the Hyderabad edition to work with participants.

Startups in the cohort

The 14 startups selected represent sectors including fintech, health tech, AI, and tourism. The participants include:

• Medscore – Mannuri Vamshi Krishna

• Reoxide – Basil Paulose

• Salaah Shots – Astha Darshika

• Finstone AI – Rushikesh Chavan

• Cumma – Gautham Palaniswamy

• FinStackk – Nithin Reddy

• Macrocosmos Creation – Dr. Abhishek Mani Tripathi

• Neuralcraft – Niyas

• Brick Pay – Shubham Shah

• Xaults – Shubham Sharma

• ALGOXIA – Sandeep Yama

• Weez.AI – Sayyad, Nisa & team

• Lohas Stays Pvt Ltd – Harsha

• Spaecs – Karthik Nagapuri

Demo Day on August 1

The program will conclude with a Demo Day on August 1, where founders will pitch to investors and mentors. Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary of ITE&C, Government of Telangana, is expected to attend as the chief guest.

The list of attendees includes investors and ecosystem leaders such as Pras Hanuma (Next Unicorn Fund), Ratnakar Samavedham (Hyderabad Angels), Vikranth Varshney (SucSEED Indovation), Naveena Reddy (Lead Invest), and others from both early-stage venture firms and angel networks.

Positioning Hyderabad as a startup hub

This initiative marks a move by Draper Startup House to expand its footprint in India by anchoring itself in Hyderabad’s startup ecosystem. The city has seen a growing number of accelerators and venture programs in recent years, alongside government-backed platforms like T-Hub.

By offering both co-living and co-working under one roof, the program aims to create a focused, distraction-free environment for founders. Draper Startup House says it plans to continue running similar cohorts in the future.