Tamil Nadu Deputy CM Udhayanidhi Stalin Inaugurates First-Ever IN2TN Intellectual Property Conference

Chennai : Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin inaugurated the first-ever IN2TN Intellectual Property (IP) Conference on Wednesday at the Anna Centenary Library in Chennai, organized under the state’s Department of Information Technology and Digital Services. The event carried the theme “Knowledge is Power: Transforming Tamil Nadu into India’s Innovation Capital.”

As part of the inaugural ceremony, Udhayanidhi Stalin visited the technology exhibition showcasing 16 deep-tech patent-backed innovations developed by Tamil Nadu researchers. Interacting with the inventors, he lauded their work and urged them to create breakthroughs that would contribute significantly to Tamil Nadu’s trillion-dollar economy vision.

During the event, the Deputy CM also distributed grants totaling ₹53 lakh from the Tamil Nadu Technology (ITNT) Center’s Foundation Fund to five deep-tech and emerging-tech startups nurtured under the PathFinder programs.

In a landmark move to facilitate the commercialization of academic innovations, Udhayanidhi Stalin witnessed the signing of four Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) between academic researchers and technology firms under the aegis of the Tamil Nadu Technology Transfer Facilitation Center (TNTTFC). These agreements will allow patented technologies developed by educational institutions to be adopted by startups and industry players.

Additionally, the ITNT Center formalized partnerships with six key organizations to strengthen Tamil Nadu’s innovation ecosystem:

• American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) India
• National Research Development Corporation (NRDC)
• Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), Bengaluru
• Bosch India
• Mahindra & Mahindra
• Indian Science Technology and Engineering Facilities Map (ISTEM)

These collaborations aim to support deep-tech and emerging-tech ventures in scaling up with global best practices.

The conference brought together a wide spectrum of participants, including representatives from engineering colleges, startup incubators, startups, technology firms, investors, and government agencies involved in advanced and emerging technologies.

Prominent attendees included:

• Palaniivel Thiaga Rajan, Minister for Information Technology & Digital Services, Government of Tamil Nadu
• Dr. C. Jayaraman, Vice-Chairman, State Planning Commission
• Prasanna Navnit, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, IT & Digital Services
• Venkatesh Srinivasan, CEO, ITNT Center
• Commander Amithabh Sinha (Retd), Former MD & CEO, NRDC
• Sanjay Sapalkar, Director, Electronics, Zensar Technologies
• Natarajan Vallupillai, Group CEO, IIT Madras Research Park
• Chidambaram Padmanabhan, Global Director, Innovation & Technology Center, AstraZeneca India

Research scholars, college deans, academicians, and industry leaders from across Tamil Nadu also participated in the day-long sessions.

The IN2TN IP Conference marks a pivotal step in Tamil Nadu’s mission to position itself as India’s premier innovation hub by fostering academia-industry collaborations, deep-tech entrepreneurship, and commercialization of homegrown technologies.