AI Fellows · Summer 2026

Spend 8 weeks building
inside India's leading
AI startups.

15 fellows. 15 startups. 1st June to 24th July. Bangalore.
Applications close 15th May 2026.

Apply now →
Partner startups

Our host startups span foundation models, infrastructure, agentic systems, and vertical AI applications, including some of the most consequential AI companies being built in India today.

The Program

We're looking for 15 of the best student AI builders.

You'll spend 8 weeks embedded inside one of India's leading AI startups, working on real product and engineering problems alongside the founders and teams building what's next. You'll join a tight cohort of fellows who become peers, collaborators, and friends. You'll be paid. You'll ship.

This isn't a curriculum. It's a head start, a peer group, and the start of a relationship that compounds for years.

Who we're looking for

Cracked builders. People who ship, think fast, and have founder energy.

We don't filter by school, degree, or pedigree. We care about what you've made. You might be:

An undergrad at an IIT, IIIT, IISc, BITS, NIT, or anywhere else
A Master's or PhD researcher in India or abroad
A student at an international university, curious about what's going on in India
Self-taught, with a GitHub that speaks for itself

If you can vibe code your way into shipping something working in a few hours, you're our kind of person.

What you'll get
8 weeks inside a leading AI startup, working on real problems with senior engineers and founders
A senior operator as your mentor for the duration of the program
Access to Activate's ecosystem events during your 8 weeks — community dinners, technical meetups, and visiting founder talks happening across the summer
A cohort of 14 other fellows you'll build with, learn from, and stay close to
Direct exposure to the founders building India's AI frontier
A standard intern stipend, paid by your host startup
Long-term membership in the Activate ecosystem
Mentors

Five senior builders.

Founders, engineering leaders, and operators from across India's AI ecosystem. Each fellow is paired with a mentor for the duration of the program.

Pratyush Choudhury
Garvit Juniwal
Nirant Kasliwal
Debdoot Mukherjee
Sriram Rajamani
The Calendar
May 6Applications opennow
May 15Applications close
Late MayInterviews and matching
June 1Program begins
July 24Demo Day. Graduation.
How to apply
  1. 01Fill out a short application form.
  2. 02Record a 90-second intro video.
  3. 03Vibe code something that impresses us.
Apply here →
Finer points
You'll need to be in Bangalore for the full 8 weeks.
You will be paid a stipend by host startups.
You will need to figure out your own accommodation in Bangalore.

Questions? neha@letsactivatevc.ai