No. TRANSCEND is structured as an intensive, hands-on sprint, rather than a lecture series. Teams are expected to actively engage with potential customers, conduct interviews, complete assignments, attend workshops, and iterate based on market feedback.

Participants should expect to commit 15-20 hours a week.[cite: 1] Of this, 2 hours per week will be spent with us through mentor sessions, and cohort activities.
The remaining time can be broadly distributed across:

• 6–8 hours: Customer interviews and preparation
• 3–4 hours: Deliverable work
• 1–2 hours: Reading and frameworks

The programme is designed around this level of engagement, and consistent participation is important for teams to get meaningful outcomes. Weekly Associate check-ins and scheduled deliverables form part of the programme cadence.

Yes. Customer discovery is a core component of TRANSCEND.The objective is to understand whether the problem being addressed is real, significant, and commercially relevant.
Each team is expected to conduct 20–25 structured customer interviews. If your initial customer segment or ICP turns out to be wrong, that’s okay. Teams are encouraged to refine their ICP based on evidence.
Changing your ICP is a sign of learning, not failure.

The focus is on real potential customers within your target segments, rather than only colleagues, academic collaborators, or people who are already familiar with your research.

Not necessarily. TRANSCEND provides access to a Customer Access Network, including IIT Kanpur alumni, SIIC partners, and corporates who have agreed to participate in interviews.

The programme is divided into five phases:

• Phase 1 — Weeks 1–2: Problem Framing & ICP Hypothesis
• Phase 2 — Weeks 3–5: Customer Discovery
• Phase 3 — Weeks 6–7: Market Sizing, Positioning & Competitive Landscape
• Phase 4 — Weeks 8–9: Go-to-Market Strategy & Early Adopter Identification
• Phase 5 — Week 10: Venture Plan, Funding Landscape & Interest Pitch

Special guest interaction with experts on relevant topics.

Teams will develop a complete set of nine deliverables, including:

1. Problem Statement + ICP Sheet
2. Customer Insight Report
3. Market Sizing Sheet
4. Positioning Statement
5. GTM Roadmap
6. Business Model Canvas
7. 12-Month Readiness Roadmap
8. Funding Landscape Map
9. 7-Slide Interest Pitch

Each team gets access to:

• Dedicated Venture Associate: One Associate per team, providing weekly 1:1 support, interview coaching, question-guide preparation, and synthesis support.


• Domain Mentor A sector-relevant practitioner for structured sessions, bringing commercial experience and potentially helping teams access relevant interview contacts.

No. The Associate provides structure, guidance, and accountability, while the faculty team remains responsible for the thinking, decisions, customer conversations, and deliverables.

Depending on the team's readiness, possible next steps include:

• Company formation
• FEP application/process
• Technology Transfer
• Technology Licensing
• Further technology or market validation
• Application to the accelerator programme at SCALE (if you have a startup): SCALE-Catapult

TRANSCEND is designed to act as a feeder into SCALE for teams that develop sufficient readiness.

No. TRANSCEND helps teams understand and prepare for relevant funding pathways, but participation does not itself guarantee funding.

TRANSCEND is intentionally designed around iteration and evidence-based learning. If customer discovery shows that the original problem, customer segment, or positioning needs to change, teams are expected to adapt accordingly.

By the end of the programme, each team should have:

• Completed all nine deliverables
• Conducted 20–25 customer interviews
• Refined its ICP based on evidence
• Identified 3–5 specific early-adopter organisations
• Confirmed at least one follow-up conversation with an interviewee
• Delivered a 7-slide Interest Pitch

Each team can have up to 3 members, including at least 1 IIT Kanpur faculty member, students and researchers may also be part of the team.