New Delhi — Google on Monday announced the 2026 cohort of its Play Accelerator India program, selecting 20 artificial intelligence-powered startups working across education, healthcare, gaming, agriculture, finance, e-commerce, productivity, lifestyle and entertainment.
The three-month, equity-free program will provide participating companies with hands-on support in AI integration, app quality, security, growth and monetization.
Google said the initiative combines Google Play’s product expertise with technologies from across the company’s broader ecosystem to help Indian developers create trusted, scalable products for domestic and international markets.
The selected startups are using AI to address a range of challenges, including expanding access to healthcare, supporting farmers, personalizing exam preparation, improving sports coaching, helping small businesses receive payments faster and developing new gaming and entertainment experiences.
“India’s next wave of app innovation is being built with AI at the centre. Through Google Play Accelerator India, we want to support founders across the full journey, from product quality and AI integration to growth, security, monetisation and global scale,” said Aditya Swamy, Managing Director of Google Play Partnerships.
Paul Ravindranath, Regional Lead for Developer and Startup Programs at Google, said the program is intended to provide practical assistance to high-potential app and gaming startups at a critical stage of their development.
“Over the next three months, we will work closely with these founders on product quality, responsible AI integration, security, growth and monetisation, helping them strengthen their apps for users in India and global markets,” Ravindranath said.
The startups selected for the 2026 cohort are Chaupal, ChennaiGames, Dalvoy, Frontier Markets, GAPE Labs, Grape, HeyDoc AI, Kisanwala, Lingopanda, LUZO, Machaxi, MetaShot, MindYourLogic Studios, MrMed, Plutus Labs, Regain, Swipe, UrbanPro, Zave AI and Zet.
Google said the accelerator will help the companies improve product quality, strengthen security standards, expand their user bases and pursue opportunities in global markets.
Google Play Accelerator India supports promising Indian app and gaming startups through mentorship and guidance in product development, AI integration, growth strategy and monetization. (Source: IANS)
