Two startups in India have won Paint the Future awards and the chance to continue working together with AkzoNobel to accelerate their solutions.

The winning submissions answered the company’s call for innovative ways to enhance the digital consumer experience for Dulux paints in India. The winners are:

• HyperRealityTechnologies, Bengaluru, India – Collaborative platform for inspiration and visualization of a space in the metaverse.
• Fluid AI, Mumbai, India – Multi-channel, conversational, immersive and interactive AI platform to guide consumers during their painting journey.

Having already signed letters of intent to work together on sustainable business opportunities, the two winners now join AkzoNobel’s accelerator program.

“Over the next six months, the goal is clear – to work together with our winners and develop a digital value proposition,” said Oscar Wezenbeek, managing director of AkzoNobel Decorative Paints in South East and South Asia and chair of AkzoNobel India. “The startups will have access to our global network of experts and resources leading up to ‘Demo Day’. That’s when they’ll showcase the results that will shape the future of their collaboration with AkzoNobel.”

“This startup challenge is about collaborating with equally passionate Indian startups to boost the magic of Dulux and paint the future of paint consumers’ digital experience,” said Rajiv Rajgopal, managing director of AkzoNobel India. “Innovation is key to AkzoNobel’s approach to sustainable business, and we see a lot of potential in these winning solutions.”

“From the depth of the expert sessions to the sheer amount of industry knowledge we’ve gained, this bootcamp has been a collaborative experience unlike any other,” said Sobin Thombra, CEO of HyperReality Technologies.

“We’re stoked about our win,” added the co-founders of Fluid AI, Abhinav Aggarwal and Raghav Aggarwal. “AkzoNobel’s astute understanding of our artificial intelligence solution is a gateway to bringing new consumer-centric disruptions in the paints sector.”