University of Birmingham alumnus Dr Amrit Chandan has been highlighted as a standout entrepreneur through his inclusion the prestigious Forbes 30 under 30 Europe list. On his way to that prestigious ranking, he has received extensive support from the University’s commercialisation team, through its high tech incubation services, offered by BizzInn.
Dr Chandan was recognised in the Science & Healthcare category for co-founding Aceleron, a cleantech startup looking at how lithium-ion batteries, which are commonly used in electric cars, can be repurposed for re-use for battery power in developing countries that are in need of cheap, rechargeable energy storage.
Dr Chandan first engaged with the University of Birmingham’s commercialisation services through the Medici Enterprise Training Programme when he was doing his PhD. This course is designed to enable academic researchers to understand how businesses work and what is involved in the commercialisation of research. He set up Blue Vine Consulting in 2013 to provide technical market intelligence about the automotive, energy and technology sectors.
Dr Chandan has received the following help from the BizzInn for Blue Vine Consulting (founded in 2013):
• Advice on intellectual property, company structure, accounting and market research
• Identifying critical barriers and ways to overcome them
• Identifying the customer base and finding ways to reach them
Dr Chandan co-founded Aceleron with Carlton Cummins in 2016, and the University’s Enterprise Acceleration team primed Dr Chandan and his business partner Carlton Cummins during the 2016 PitchFest West Midlands. PitchFest helps small companies develop their pitch through a series of workshops – and then practice it during the selection rounds, delivering directly to a panel of experts and industry professionals.
Dr Chandan is mentored by Dr James Wilkie, Director of Enterprise and Innovation at the University of Birmingham