Submit Applications for GNI Startups Lab India 2023

Created in partnership between the Google News Initiative (GNI) and AnyMind, the GNI Startups Lab India program is a 12-week program specifically tailored to the needs of news startups in India supporting high-quality reporting for local communities, niche audiences and/or previously underserved communities across India.

If you are an existing news founder or part of an early-stage digital news organization, then they want to hear from you!

What is the GNI Startups Lab?

The GNI Startups Lab is a journalistic startup acceleration program designed to help news startups to innovate and develop new, more inclusive and sustainable business models.

• Journalism First
  • This program is tailor-made for news startups dedicated to delivering high-quality journalistic content and innovative services for their local communities.
• Qualified Mentors
  • A network of experts ready to assist your startup in attaining its objectives by offering guidance customized to your unique requirements.
• Nationwide Reach
  • Designed to cater to news organizations at the local, regional, and national levels across India.

Why should you apply?

• If you want to hone the necessary skills to grow a digital news business, are committed to public-service reporting and want to explore a major strategic opportunity in digital media, you and your team are just who they are looking for!
• Here’s an overview of what’s in it for publishers:
  • Publisher sustainability diagnostic and 1:1 consulting
    • 10 finalists will receive a sustainability audit based on key organisational metrics to diagnose financial, journalistic and operational health
  • Workshops/Inspiration sessions
    • Workshops covering topics essential to operating a startup and, if applicable, scaling a digital news business, including:
      • Revenue models and business development
      • Product-market fit & tech enablement
      • Leadership and team development
      • Marketing & audience engagement
      • Budgeting & planning
      • Raising funds & pitching to investors
    • Inspirations sessions by successful news startups founders
  • 1:1 technical implementation support
    • Which will include the selected news startups digital asset diagnosis and implementation based on their specific needs:
      • Ad revenue
      • Audience Growth
      • UA to GA4 integration
      • Website Infrastructure

Eligibility Criteria

Ten applicants will be selected to be part of the program.

• Newsroom Eligibility
  • Your news startup business must be incorporated and registered in India.
  • Minimum of two full-time employee (FTE), up to a maximum of 20 FTEs.
  • Have a news product (website, newsletter, etc), with demonstrated traction via site visits, sign-ups, and/or earned revenue.
  • News startups focused on one or more of the following:
    • Public interest journalism
    • Filling an information gap
    • Engage audiences in innovative ways
    • Serving a geographic-bound or single subject community
    • Serving an underserved community
    • Exploring new ways to deliver and/or monetise information
  • Have produced original content for at least six months, but for no more than five to seven years
  • Composed by up to 4 founders, all over 18 years old. The program will be run virtually and in English, so participants are required to speak and write English effectively.
  • Applicant founders must be available to participate in the program during workshops, and consultation sessions held for the 12 weeks of the program.
  • They are especially interested in entrepreneurs who want to serve communities that don’t often see themselves or their stories reflected in their local news.
• Program Eligibility
  • Can assign 2-5 team members for the full duration of the Lab, including attending all live (virtual) sessions and weekly coaching calls: 5-10 hours/week
  • Willingness to share business insights and collaborate with fellow news entrepreneurs.

For more information, visit GNI.