Presenting the jury for The Economic Times Startup Awards 2026

The Economic Times Startup Awards 2026 will be judged by a distinguished panel of industry leaders. Chairman Rishad Premji leads the group, having served as executive chairman of IT giant Wipro since 2019. Premji co-founded Wipro Ventures, a $100-million fund investing in emerging startups and AI software.

Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma and One97 Communications CEO Sharma are also on the jury. Sharma launched Paytm in 2010 as a mobile payments platform, expanding it into digital payments and financial services. He went on to lead Anthropic India as managing director in 2026.

Flipkart cofounders Sachin Bansal and Mukesh Bansal, along with CaratLane founder Mithun Sacheti, round out the panel. Bansal and Sacheti are known for building successful consumer tech companies before transitioning into their current roles. Sacheti sold a 27% stake in CaratLane to Titan in 2023 for Rs 4,621 crore.

Other jurists include Abhiraj Singh Bhal, CEO of home services platform Urban Company; Adwaita Nayar, CEO of fashion e-commerce brand Nykaa Fashion; and Ajit Mohan, CBO of social media giant Snap. Paras Chopra, founder of AI research lab Lossfunk, and Aryaman Vikram Birla, former cricketer and founder of Aditya Birla Ventures, also serve on the jury.