Chennai: Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin on Wednesday inaugurated the first edition of the “Innovate in Tamil Nadu” (IN2TN) Intellectual Property Conclave at the Anna Centenary Library here, aiming to strengthen industry-academia collaboration in the state's innovation ecosystem.

Organised by the Tamil Nadu Technology (iTNT) Hub under the IT & Digital Services Department, the conclave was themed “Intellectual Powerhouse: Transforming Tamil Nadu into the Innovation Capital of India.”

The Deputy CM awarded seed fund cheques under the iTNT Hub's FOUNDATION Fund to five startups working in deep and emerging technologies incubated through the PATHFINDER programme. He also interacted with researchers from across the state exhibiting patented deep tech innovations.

A key highlight was the facilitation of four technology transfers between academic researchers and industries through the Tamil Nadu Technology Transfer Facilitation Centre (TNTTFC). Additionally, iTNT Hub signed seven MoUs with organisations including ASME India, NRDC, CDAC-Bangalore, Bosch India, and Mahindra & Mahindra.

Nearly 1,500 participants including patent holders, researchers, startups, investors and officials attended the event. Masterclasses on intellectual property rights, including filing, protection, licensing and commercialization, drew participation from 270 researchers, students and entrepreneurs.

The conclave also featured the BEACON graduation of 53 researchers from tier-2 and tier-3 engineering colleges, and the onboarding of 43 new startups into iTNT's incubation and acceleration cohorts.

IT Minister Dr. Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, State Planning Commission Vice Chairman Dr. J. Jeyaranjan, senior officials and industry leaders were present.