New Delhi, February 14, 2022.

Discovering creative solutions to improve the digital consumer experience is the focus of AkzoNobel’s 2022 Paint the Future regional startup challenge, which is all set to be launched in India. 

Startups are being invited to tap into the company’s broad knowledge and extensive expertise to help enrich their own business and build the best value proposition for their digital solutions. 

Launched in 2019 as a global startup challenge, Paint the Future has quickly become the world’s largest collaborative innovation ecosystem in the paints and coatings industry. Since its introduction, the challenge has been further expanded, with two regional programs taking place in Brazil and China, while two supplier challenges have also been staged. In 2022, we’re ready to stir things up with the third regional startup challenge launched in India. 

“We’re excited to share our pioneering spirit and centuries of paints and coatings expertise, work with startups and help to accelerate their innovative solutions,” explains AkzoNobel CEO, Thierry Vanlancker. “India’s startup ecosystem is the third largest in the world, a real powerhouse. So, we’re looking forward to actively collaborating on disruptive digital solutions and exploring how we can paint the future together.” 

Adds Klaas Kruithof, AkzoNobel’s Chief Technology Officer, “Paint the Future is both a challenge and our promise to the brightest Indian startups that we’ll partner with them in a win-win approach to accelerate digital innovations into the market to delight our consumers.” 

The Paint the Future India startup challenge officially opens for submissions on March 1, 2022. Selected startups will then be invited to a collaboration event in late 2022, when the winners will be announced. 

The successful participants will be offered exciting partnership opportunities as they join AkzoNobel’s accelerator program to support the further development and deployment of their solutions. 

Oscar Wezenbeek, Managing Director, AkzoNobel Decorative Paints, South East South Asia (SESA) adds, “In the 75th year of India’s Independence, we’re confident that Paint the Future will transform and unleash a new era of collaborative innovation for the first time in the Indian paints industry. It’s all about accelerating consumer-centric digital disruptions by Indian startups – the backbone of new India, to a global stage.” 

Elaborating on Digital Consumer Experience – the theme for the India challenge, Rajiv Rajgopal, Managing Director, AkzoNobel India says, “The Paint the Future India startup challenge aims to discover digital solutions that can boost the magic of Dulux paints and transform the way consumers experience our products and services.” 

Further Rajiv announced, “We’re thrilled to introduce our partner - NASSCOM Industry Partnership Program (NIPP) under 10,000 Startups. We’re confident that NIPP will boost Paint the Future and build bridges between industry leaders like AkzoNobel and startups to create new opportunities in India.” 

Sharing insights on how the challenge is a unique gateway to growth for Indian startups, Kritika Murugesan, Senior Director, NASSCOM 10,000 Startups added, “We are thrilled to collaborate with AkzoNobel India on this innovation initiative to further the startup ecosystem and propel them to build vibrant and digitally led actionable solutions. NASSCOM is committed to building startup-growth opportunities by exploring industry specific use cases and bringing the right tech innovative solutions offered by startups together. Digitalization has the power to reinvent the way we think and function. We are confident that Paint the Future India startup challenge 2022 will bring out practical digital solutions that can revolutionise the operations of the paint and coats industry. The challenge gives the tech startups an opportunity to explore their products across various use-cases in the industry and build for the future.”