GDAI Launches 'Supernova' to Build India's Next Generation of Investable Gaming Studios

The Game Developer Association of India (GDAI), India’s apex industry body representing the Indian gaming ecosystem, today announced Supernova, a national incubation program designed to scale Indian gaming studios from development to publishing. 

GDAI’s Supernova bridges the gap in India’s Indie game development segment of access to structured mentorship, venture funding, publishers, and guidance on integrating AI into production pipelines. The incubation program is developed with global industry partners like Tencent, PhonePe’s Indus Appstore, 1312 Interactive, Sanchi Connect and more, making it one of the largest programs facilitated by GDAI to enable ecosystem growth. In its inaugural year, Supernova will support 40 high-potential studios selected nationally, with applications opening today.

Designed for studios across different stages of development, from student teams and early prototypes to publisher-ready and investment-ready companies, the incubation program will provide founders with stage-specific mentorship from experienced game industry leaders, publisher and investor readiness support, and AI-focused game development workflows and technical guidance. The program also offers business, legal and IP advisory, cloud infrastructure, startup tools and technology benefits, and direct connections to publishers, platform holders and ecosystem partners.

According to Mintegral's India Gaming Growth Outlook 2026, India has one of the world's largest gaming audiences; the next challenge is enabling studios to scale sustainably through better publishing, growth, monetisation, and access to global markets. As per the MIXI Global Investments’ India’s State of Play report, India’s gaming market is maturing with combined in-app and advertising revenue projected to reach USD 2.4 billion by 2029. GDAI’s Supernova incubation program will aid India’s expanding developer ecosystem of more than 2000 companies employing 130,000 talented professionals, and GDAI’s vision to create 2 million+ jobs in gaming by 2034.  

Speaking on the launch, Rajan Navani, Board Member and Chairperson, GDAI Incubation Subcommittee, added, “India has all the ingredients to become a global powerhouse for game development, be it creative talent or entrepreneurial energy, and a rapidly growing domestic market. The next phase of growth will depend on our ability to help founders build sustainable studios capable of creating globally successful IP. Supernova is an important step towards building that long-term ecosystem."

Shruti Verma, CEO, GDAI, said, “Over the past few months, our conversations with founders across India have revealed a common set of challenges. Many studios struggle to move from building games to building sustainable businesses, securing publisher access, raising growth capital, adopting AI-driven production workflows, and navigating the path from prototype to commercial success. Through Supernova, we're bringing together mentorship, publishing access, AI expertise and industry networks to help founders build investment-ready, globally competitive game studios." 

The incubator will conclude with a Demo Day at the India Game Developer Conference (IGDC) 2026, where participating studios will showcase their games to publishers, investors and industry leaders from India and around the world.

The first cohort will be announced by August 2026. The last day to apply is 31st July 2026. Interested studios may apply here.

About GDAI
The Game Developer Association of India (GDAI) is India’s apex industry body for the video gaming ecosystem and a non-profit organisation that unites game developers across every state into one shared national ecosystem. GDAI is committed to enabling business opportunities, upskilling of talent, and shaping policy framework with the government to position India as a global hub for game development. GDAI is supporting the journey from individual talent to strong studios with access to global markets, incubating 5,000 game start-ups and impacting 25,000+ students nationwide in choosing games as a career.