IICT launches strategic collaborations with JioStar, Adobe, Google, YouTube, Meta leaders

New Delhi: The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, in collaboration with FICCI and CII, has unveiled the Indian Institute of Creative Technology (IICT)—a National Centre of Excellence dedicated exclusively to the AVGC-XR sector.

The announcement that was made at the inauguration of WAVES 2025 was formalised today by the Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Ashwini Vaishnaw, during the ongoing WAVES Summit in Mumbai. 

The Union Minister informed that IICT will follow the same template as the IITs and IIMs in India to transform itself into a massive world-class education and training hub for students who aspire to be professionals in the AVGC-XR sector.

“We have started an initiative that is completely novel in the world of film and entertainment. This (initiative) follows the vision of our Prime Minister that India can take the global lead in the world in the media and entertainment sector,” said the Minister.

The Minister heartily thanked the industry partners who have expressed their willingness to collaborate, as he announced that leading global companies have agreed to partner with IICT to provide support in curriculum development, internships, scholarships, startup funding, and job placements.

“I thank all the industry partners and their top management with whom I have spoken to, for expressing their willingness to partner with us for this initiative. They will help us build this institution and help us sustain long-term growth. I hope the IICT grows into a large educational infrastructure for the (AVGC-XR) sector. We will be following the same template that we have created for the IITs and IIMs in our country to make it into a world-class institution,” the minister added.

Some companies that have extended their hands for long-term collaborations are JioStar, Adobe, Google & YouTube, Meta, Wacom, Microsoft and NVIDIA.

The industry leaders who were present in this ceremony included Richard Kerris, (VP & GM, Media & Entertainment, Nvidia), Sanjog Gupta (CEO, Sports & Live Experiences, Jio Star), Mala Sharma (VP & GM - Education, Adobe), Preeti Lobana (Country Head & VP, Google India), Rajiv Malik (Senior Director, WACOM), Sandeep Bandibekar (Head of Sales, State Govt. & Healthcare), Sandeep Bandivdekar (Director, Mainstream Services Partners, Microsoft) and Sunil Abraham (Director, Public policy, Meta).

“IICT’s launch at WAVES 2025 marks a progressive step towards making India a global creative powerhouse, since quality talent is the most fundamental building block of the creative economy. At JioStar, we believe in the power of connectivity combined with the forces of creativity to unlock infinite possibilities. We are proud to support this mission to build a global centre of excellence in Mumbai to drive media innovation. The convergence of talent, technology, and policy will not only redefine the future of consumer immersion, connections and experiences but also cultivate the next generation of high-quality talent ready to lead on the world stage,” said Sanjog Gupta, CEO – Sports & Live Experiences, JioStar

Board members and governing council members of IICT who were present today were Ashish Kulkarni, Biren Ghosh, Manvendra Shukul, Munjal Shroff, Chaitanya Chinchlikar, and Subhash Sapru. The Executive Team of IICT includes Dr. Vishwas Deoskar, IICT CEO, Ninad Raikar, IICT COO and Shweta Verma Lead Marketing IICT

During the session, representatives from IICT and leading industry partners came together to exchange Letters of Intent (LoIs), marking the launch of long-term collaborative efforts aimed at advancing the AVGC-XR ecosystem in India. The signings involved prominent global industry leaders, including Jiostar, Adobe, Google, YouTube, and Meta.

These alliances are designed to boost education, R&D and innovation across animation, visual effects, gaming, comics, film, and extended reality. The goal is to replicate India’s successful IT model within the creative and digital media space, developing a sustainable ecosystem for future growth.

Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, Dr. L. Murugan; Secretary, Ministry of I&B, Shri Sanjay Jaju; and Principal Director General, Press Information Bureau, Shri Dhirendra Ojha were also present at the exchange of agreements.