OYO Founder Ritesh Agarwal's ‘7-Day Startup Challenge’ Rewards Emerging Innovators

Muskaan Kapoor

Sep 16, 2024 — 3 min read

OYO Founder Ritesh Agarwal's ‘7-Day Startup Challenge’ Rewards Emerging Innovators

Challenge organized in partnership with Nas.io and Back To Back SWE
Five startups awarded Rs 10 lakh equity-free grant
Founders get chance to directly interact with Agarwal and seek feedback

16^thSeptember 2024, New Delhi: Ritesh Agarwal, founder & group CEO of travel-tech company OYO, recently joined forces with global influencer Nuseir Yassin’s (popularly known as NAS) creator platform NAS.io and online learning portal Back To Back SWE for the 7-Day Startup Challenge, a program designed to guide early-stage startups through the foundational steps of building and refining a business idea, with Agarwal awarding a Rs 10 lakh equity-free grant to five winners.

The challenge attracted nearly 3,000 participants from around the world, including India, the US, Canada, and the UAE. The event, which was hosted on NAS.io, revolved around seven distinct daily themes, each covering a crucial aspect of business development, ranging from goal setting and market research to product roadmap and branding.

The five winners included Bharat Anubhav, an Odisha-based company building a marketplace for certified tourist guides; Ekogalaxy, a climate education platform; Harmony Sourcing, which is helping global buyers connect with factories in India; Farmkrate, an agricultural solutions startup in Andhra Pradesh; and Aura, a mental wellbeing initiative out of Bengaluru.

Over the years, several people have helped me in my entrepreneurial journey. I feel it is only fitting that I return the favour to the next generation of entrepreneurs by sharing my experience. NAS.io, with its large network of aspiring startup founders, and BackToBackSWE, which offers comprehensive mentorship programs, were ideal partners for such an initiative, said Agarwal.

Ritesh Agarwal also shared his thoughts on the challenge on Twitter:

I recently teamed up with @Nascommunities & @backtobackswe to help budding entrepreneurs with the foundational steps of building and refining their business ideas in a 7 day challenge.

From drafting a business plan to creating a financial model to getting product market fit, we…
— Ritesh Agarwal (@riteshagar) September 13, 2024

“This program will hopefully not only equip them with essential business skills but also foster a spirit of innovation and community. India is in the throes of a startup revolution, with young founders solving real-world problems. With the right support, startups can power the next wave of economic growth.”

Roshan Paul, co-founder at Aura, one of the winners, added: “The simple, step-by-step approach made it easy to refine our idea, and the support we received from the community members was invaluable. Competing with so many talented participants made this a rewarding experience.”

Agarwal is also mentoring startups through his stint at the reality TV series Shark Tank India, where he made his debut during the third season earlier this year, becoming the youngest judge on the show. Last year, he announced an equity-free grant of Rs 5 lakh each to four startups from Ladakh in partnership with the Naropa Fellowship.

About OYO

OYO is a global platform that aims to empower entrepreneurs and small businesses with hotels and homes by providing full-stack technology products and services that aim to increase revenue and ease operations; bringing easy-to-book, affordable, and trusted accommodation to customers around the world. OYO offers 40+ integrated products and solutions to patrons who operate over 175K hotels and home storefronts in more than 35 countries including India, Europe, and Southeast Asia. For more information, visit www.oyorooms.com.