Led by Yogeeta Kishor, the team is building a circular denim initiative that converts discarded denim and textile scraps into lifestyle products while creating livelihood opportunities for women artisans.

Watch Yogeeta share what reaching the Top 20 means to her and how she hopes to combine circularity, creativity and livelihoods.

Vatala Harila and Ritesh Routray are developing ParaSync, an AI-powered platform that analyses smartphone videos of para-athletes to assess sporting technique, track progress and help connect talent from underserved regions with scouts.

Watch the team share what reaching the Top 20 means to them and how they hope technology can help create new pathways for para-athletes.

Aditya Rai and Sparsh Ruhela are developing SARA AI, a voice-first study companion designed to help visually impaired students access textbooks, explanations, quizzes and personalised learning support without relying on a screen or keyboard.

Watch the team share what being among the Top 20 means to them and how they hope to make learning more accessible through technology.

What if someone who struggles to read a legal, financial or official document could understand what it says before putting their signature on it?

That question led young innovator Abhinav Jaiswal to begin developing a technology-led solution aimed at making important documents easier to understand for people with limited literacy.

For Abhinav, who grew up in the small town of Ballia and is now based in Varanasi, what began as an idea inspired by an everyday problem is gradually becoming something bigger.

His idea has taken him to the Top 20 of Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2026, Samsung’s flagship innovation programme for young people, where mentorship and exposure to experts are helping him think about how an early-stage idea can be developed into a real-world solution — and potentially, over time, a scalable venture.

Solving an Everyday Indian Problem

Abhinav has been fascinated by Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and STEM from an early age. But as his understanding of technology grew, so did his interest in using it to solve problems he could see around him.

One such problem was document literacy.

Legal agreements, financial documents and official paperwork can be difficult to understand, particularly for people who are illiterate or semi-literate. Complex language can leave people dependent on others to explain information before they sign or consent to something.

Abhinav began asking whether technology could help bridge this gap by making important information easier to understand.

That question became the starting point for Team ItzFOD.

Taking an Idea Beyond Technology

Being selected among the Top 20 teams at Samsung Solve for Tomorrow gave Abhinav an opportunity to take the idea beyond its initial technological concept.

At the SFT Bootcamp, conversations with mentors and experts pushed him to ask a different set of questions: Who exactly was he solving the problem for? How would people use the solution? What would make it relevant in the real world? And how could a prototype clearly demonstrate the connection between the problem and its potential impact?

“My idea needed guidance and mentorship on the prototype,” Abhinav said.

One of his biggest learnings was that a prototype should not simply demonstrate what technology can do. It should also tell the story of the problem it is trying to solve.

“I learnt that you should try to relate a story to the prototype,” he said.

For someone whose early interest was driven by a fascination with AI and Machine Learning, it marked an important shift — from thinking primarily about technology to thinking about the people who might eventually use it.

From Prototype to Potential Venture

The mentoring also encouraged Abhinav to reconsider the scale of the opportunity.

“My idea is too big. I realised I would be solving many issues,” he said.

He began to see that document literacy is not simply about translating or simplifying difficult words. It is also about access to information and helping people better understand what they are being asked to agree to.

His prototype continues to evolve, but Abhinav says the way he thinks about and communicates the idea has already changed significantly.

“The prototype may not have changed much, but my pitching has improved. I learnt a lot from the suggestions given by the mentors,” he said.

That evolution is also helping him understand something fundamental to entrepreneurship: an idea rarely begins as a finished product.

It has to be questioned, tested, explained, refined and sometimes reimagined before it can become a solution capable of operating at scale.

Small Towns, Big Ideas

Abhinav’s journey also reflects a larger story emerging from Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2026.

More than half of the Top 20 teams this year come from Tier 2 and Tier 3 India, with finalists representing 18 cities across 12 states. Many of their ideas are rooted in problems they have encountered in their own communities.

Through Samsung Solve for Tomorrow, these young innovators are gaining access to mentorship, technology expertise and a national platform to develop those ideas further.

The Top 20 finalists are being mentored by experts from Samsung and the Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer (FITT) at IIT Delhi as they refine their prototypes and prepare for the next stage of the programme.

For young innovators from smaller cities and towns, that exposure can help bridge an important distance — between identifying a problem and understanding how an idea might eventually become a viable solution or venture.

For Abhinav, the experience has already changed the way he looks at innovation.

“I realised something — trying is the most important thing. No idea is smaller,” he said.

From growing up in Ballia to developing his idea in Varanasi and taking it to a national innovation platform, Abhinav’s journey is still at an early stage.

But that is also the point.

Potential startups do not always begin in established innovation hubs or with fully formed business plans. Sometimes they begin with a young person in a smaller town noticing a problem that others have learned to live with — and deciding to try to solve it.

For Abhinav and Team ItzFOD, Samsung Solve for Tomorrow is helping turn that first attempt into something more: a sharper problem statement, an evolving prototype and an idea with the potential to grow much further.

The growth of Sriperumbudur as a major manufacturing hub is creating opportunities well beyond factory floors, with local small businesses benefiting from the expanding workforce, residential communities and demand for everyday goods and services around the industrial corridor.

From tea shops, grocery and hardware stores to drinking-water suppliers, mechanics and local transport operators, entrepreneurs across Sriperumbudur say their businesses have grown as the town has expanded. The presence of major manufacturers, including Samsung’s Chennai plant, has been part of a broader industrial ecosystem that has brought more jobs, people and economic activity to the area.

Samsung established its Chennai manufacturing facility in Sriperumbudur in 2007. In the years since, the area has seen the growth of factories, housing and supporting services, creating a larger customer base for businesses serving the everyday needs of workers and families.

For longtime local entrepreneurs, the transformation is visible in the businesses they run.

Rajan, who has operated a tea shop in Sriperumbudur for nearly three decades, remembers a very different town.

“When I started, the customer base was small and the surrounding area was far less developed. Today, small houses have given way to flats, more companies and agencies have emerged, and a much larger population now lives and works in the area,” Rajan said.

His shop has grown alongside the neighbourhood, with the steady flow of customers reflecting the wider transformation taking place around him.

A Growing Industrial Hub, a Growing Local Economy

The same evolution can be seen in businesses catering to everyday household needs.

Sathish Kumar, who runs an electrical and hardware store, has seen demand increase as more families and workers have settled in the area.

“As more people settled here, the need for everyday products grew,” he said.

For Santhosh, the transformation has changed the scale of his grocery business. What began as a neighbourhood store now serves a much larger community, including employees working at companies nearby. As demand increased, he expanded his inventory and introduced deliveries.

“What began as a small neighbourhood store has become part of the daily rhythm of a much larger community,” he said.

New Needs, New Opportunities

The economic activity surrounding an industrial hub extends well beyond retail.

More people mean greater demand for housing, drinking water, cooking gas, transportation, vehicle repairs and other essential services. Across Sriperumbudur, local entrepreneurs have stepped in to meet these everyday needs.

Mastaan, who operates a drinking-water supply business, has seen demand rise as residential settlements have grown.

“With companies and industrial establishments bringing more housing settlements into the area, supplying water in larger quantities has become an increasingly important part of my business,” he said.

Local LPG distribution companies such as Prem Kumar’s and delivery services have similarly grown with the increasing number of households. Automobile repair stations, including Babu’s workshop, are serving more vehicles as economic and commuting activity increases across the area.

Transportation has also become an important part of Sriperumbudur’s expanding local ecosystem.

Govindaraj, a longtime resident who operates a bus service, has witnessed the town’s changing mobility needs first-hand.

“Today, my bus carries children going to school and people travelling to work. The growth in the area has increased the need for transportation, connecting homes, workplaces and communities,” he said.

Autorickshaw driver Manikandan has experienced a similar shift, with greater industrial and commercial activity bringing more passengers and more movement across Sriperumbudur.

Beyond the Factory Gates

The experiences of these entrepreneurs illustrate how the impact of manufacturing can extend beyond the workplace. A large industrial facility creates employment within its operations, while the people and economic activity around it can also generate demand for a wider network of local businesses.

In Sriperumbudur, that network can be seen every day.

It is the tea shop serving workers in the morning. The grocery store delivering essentials to nearby homes. The mechanic repairing vehicles. The autorickshaw and bus drivers connecting people with workplaces and schools. And the entrepreneurs supplying water, LPG, electrical goods and household products.

Together, they are part of the wider community that has grown around Sriperumbudur’s industrial development.

For entrepreneurs who have lived and worked here for decades, the transformation is visible not just in factories, buildings or infrastructure. It can be seen in the customers walking through their doors, the communities they serve and the businesses they have built over the years.

Nearly two decades after Samsung began manufacturing in Sriperumbudur, its Chennai plant is part of a much larger industrial and community ecosystem.

Beyond the factory gates, local entrepreneurs are building livelihoods around the everyday needs of a growing Sriperumbudur—showing how the expansion of manufacturing can create opportunities that ripple through the communities around it.

Led by 21-year-old Akul Attre and 20-year-old Saksham Shreyans, the team is developing an AI-based cybersecurity solution designed to identify encryption vulnerabilities and help organisations prepare their digital systems for emerging risks associated with quantum computing.

Watch Akul and Saksham share what making it to the Top 20 means to them—and how they hope to strengthen digital security through their innovation.

Their AI-based platform explores how sugarcane bagasse can be transformed into protein-rich mycoprotein using bioreactors—bringing together innovation, sustainability and nutrition.

For Gulshan Kumar and Nitish Kumar, making it to the Top 20 has been a journey of learning and discovery. With mentorship and prototyping support, the team has strengthened its idea and explored how a local agricultural challenge can be translated into a practical innovation.

Watch Kinva Bio share what being among the Top 20 means to them—and what they hope to build next.

Led by 21-year-old Homanshika Reddy Pullagurla, the team is developing a wearable system that uses sensors to track spinal movement in real time. Initially being explored for rifle shooters, the solution aims to help athletes and coaches understand movement patterns and assess potential injury risks during training.

Watch Homanshika share what making it to the Top 20 means to her and how she hopes to take the idea forward.

Samsung India today announced the launch of Samsung Innovation Campus (SIC) 2026 in Karnataka to train 2000 youth with industry-relevant Artificial Intelligence (AI) skills. The launch of the flagship global education and skilling programme was attended by Shri Basavaraj Rayareddy, Hon’ble Minister for Higher Education, Government of Karnataka, as Chief Guest along with senior academicians from Nrupathunga University, Bengaluru.

Launched in partnership with Nrupathunga University, Bengaluru, the programme supports Karnataka’s ambition to build an AI-native ecosystem by expanding access to practical AI education and helping develop a future-ready technology workforce. In Karnataka, the programme has trained over 3000 people to date.

Samsung Innovation Campus is a global education programme that empowers young people with skills for emerging technology careers. Now in its fourth year in India, SIC provides youth aged 18–25 with hands-on AI training, enabling participants to apply their learning to practical challenges while strengthening their career readiness.

The Karnataka launch comes as the state strengthens its focus on AI-led innovation. Samsung’s commitment to train 2,000 youth in the state this year will bring industry-relevant AI learning closer to aspiring students and contribute to the development of Karnataka’s technology talent pool. The initiative forms part of Samsung’s broader commitment to empower 20,000 youth across 10 states through SIC 2026.

“India has one of the world’s largest pools of young talent, and the opportunity before us is to equip this generation with the skills to shape an increasingly AI-driven economy. As technology transforms industries and creates new possibilities, building future-ready capabilities at scale will be critical to India’s next phase of growth. Through Samsung Innovation Campus, we want to help expand access to emerging technology skills and enable young people to become active contributors to India’s innovation economy. As Samsung marks 30 years in India, investing in the potential of young Indians remains an important part of our commitment to the country,” said Shubham Mukherjee, Head, Corporate Communications & CSR, Samsung South West Asia.

“With Artificial Intelligence transforming industries and creating new opportunities, developing a strong pool of skilled young talent will be critical to Karnataka’s continued leadership in technology and innovation. Samsung Innovation Campus complements the state’s efforts to build an AI-native ecosystem by giving youth access to practical, industry-relevant learning. Such collaborations between academia and industry can equip our students with the capabilities they need to participate meaningfully in the opportunities being created by emerging technologies,” said Shri Basavaraj Rayareddy, Hon’ble Minister for Higher Education, Government of Karnataka.

Strengthening India’s Future AI Talent
SIC 2026 is being implemented in collaboration with the Electronics Sector Skills Council of India (ESSCI) and the Telecom Sector Skill Council (TSSC). The programme focuses on industry-relevant AI and Generative AI education through structured learning, practical application and mentorship.

In 2025, SIC trained more than 20,000 participants across India, with women accounting for 48% of participation. The 2026 edition builds on this foundation by extending advanced technology education to more young people and helping develop skills relevant to India’s rapidly evolving digital economy.

Guided by its global CSR vision, “Together for Tomorrow! Enabling People,” Samsung India focuses its citizenship initiatives on Smart Education and Skilling Youth, providing young people with access to knowledge, skills and opportunities that can help them shape their future.

SIC forms part of Samsung’s wider efforts to strengthen India’s skilling and innovation ecosystem. Alongside Samsung Solve for Tomorrow, which enables young people to develop innovative solutions to real-world challenges, and Samsung DOST, which builds industry-ready skills for sales and technical service roles, the programme reflects Samsung’s long-term commitment to empowering India’s next generation through education, skills and technology.

After making it to the national Top 40, Ananya Agrawal and Adityasai Bakthashanmuganandam have taken another step forward with their technology-led idea exploring a more inclusive approach to recognising emotional cues among autistic individuals experiencing alexithymia.

In this video, the young innovators share how they feel about making it to the Top 20, what the journey so far has meant to them, and what they are looking forward to as they take their idea to the next stage.

Watch team morphism talk about their Top 20 milestone and their journey with Samsung Solve for Tomorrow.