IIT Kanpur plans to allocate ₹5,000 crore towards research infrastructure and institutional expansion and ₹3,000 crore towards students, researchers and faculty as part of its $1 billion (about ₹9,000 crore) fundraising campaign, Greater Than Us.
The institute said ₹4,155 crore had already been committed by alumni, donors, industry and government partners ahead of the public launch, making it the largest fundraising campaign undertaken by an Indian Institute of Technology. The campaign, launched by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, aims to mobilise the remaining funds by March 2029.
The proposed spending offers a view of how IIT Kanpur intends to expand its research capacity, attract academic talent and strengthen student support, while investing in emerging technology areas.
The ₹5,000 crore Foundation allocation will support major research facilities and campus infrastructure. A key component is a ₹524 crore Central Research Facility, designed to provide researchers with shared access to advanced equipment. This will include a ₹160 crore semiconductor and device processing centre with a clean room, along with advanced spectroscopy and microscopy facilities.
The institute also plans to establish a ₹200 crore high-performance computing facility equipped with advanced graphics processing units (GPUs) to support artificial intelligence research and scientific simulations.
Campus expansion forms another part of the plan. Four new halls of residence, each with a capacity of 1,000 students, are under way, with the first expected to be ready by June 2027. The institute is also developing 96 faculty apartments and a Centre for Mental Health & Wellbeing.
The ₹3,000 crore Talent allocation will focus on scholarships, doctoral fellowships, faculty recruitment and research opportunities. IIT Kanpur aims to provide financial support to every eligible student, while expanding doctoral funding and creating faculty chairs, young faculty fellowships and a global visiting faculty programme.
The institute has also been experimenting with changes to faculty recruitment and student admissions. Market-linked faculty hiring, first used at the Gangwal School, is part of its plans, with 150 positions planned. Admission routes through hackathons and olympiads are intended to identify students with demonstrated aptitude beyond conventional selection pathways.
A further priority is student entrepreneurship, with support planned for young founders working in areas including defence, aerospace, medical technology, clean technology and agricultural technology.
The third pillar, Frontier, covers investments in areas such as artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, cybersecurity, semiconductors, drones, medical technology and sustainability. Although its original target was ₹1,000 crore, the institute said commitments had reached ₹1,556 crore.
Planned projects include a Quantum Technology Centre bringing quantum hardware and software development together, a Centre of Excellence for Semiconductor Packaging, a medical devices prototyping and testing facility, and a drug discovery programme focused on cancer, metabolic and neurodegenerative diseases.
The campaign also includes a ₹180 crore commitment from alumnus Rahul Gautam to establish the Gautam School of Innovation & Entrepreneurship (G-SINE) at IIT Kanpur’s Noida campus. An MoU for the school was signed at the launch. G-SINE is scheduled to begin in July 2027 with an MBA in Technology & Entrepreneurship, targeting sectors such as AI, cybersecurity, digital health, biotechnology, drones and advanced manufacturing.
The fundraising effort builds on IIT Kanpur’s existing research and innovation ecosystem. The institute said its AI engine powers the government’s Centralised Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS), while its cybersecurity researchers operate a security operations centre at Bhilai Steel Plant. Faculty-led startups have also developed heavy-payload logistics and strike drones.
With nearly half of its overall fundraising target committed before the public launch, the institute’s next challenge will be converting the campaign’s commitments into facilities, financial support and research capacity by the March 2029 deadline.
