Xccelerator fosters industry-academia collaboration to co-create solutions
Helps entire cohort to secure placements with higher salaries
Bengaluru, 19 September 2025: The Sona Group of Institutions, the 100-year-old premier family business group, today felicitated its students from Sona College of Technology, Salem, for completing Xccelerator 2.0 programme. The programme was conducted in collaboration with Unreal Engine, the most powerful 3-D creation tool, and 3DX by Dassault Systèmes.
Sona Group of Institutions is known for its strong focus on innovation and applied research. Sona has consistently nurtured industry-ready professionals across engineering, technology, and management. Through initiatives such as the Xccelerator, the group continues to create pathways that align education with industry needs, ensuring its students are equipped with skills relevant to rapidly evolving global demands.
Mr.Rabindra Sah,Chief Technology Officer, Indian Register of Shipping. Mumbai Industry Expert & Mentor, said, “The way technology and industries are evolving is truly remarkable. By identifying real problems and finding the right technological solutions, we are not only elevating the sector but also creating unheard-of outcomes in placements. This progress reflects the commendable work being done and the culture of innovation driving us forward.”
Adding to this, Mr. Thyagu Valliappa, Vice Chairman, Sona Group of Institutions, said, “The success of Xccelerator 1.0 and the remarkable creativity we saw in Xccelerator 2.0 reaffirm Sona’s philosophy of hands-on learning. These projects were not just academic exercises—they showcased how students, when given the right ecosystem, could create solutions that have relevance for industry and society alike.”
Nearly all of the students from the first cohort of Xccelerator 1.0 secured placements in leading companies at higher packages. Building on this foundation, Xccelerator 2.0 introduced a new set of projects that reflected both creativity and technical depth, including an automatic sambar dispenser, Virtual Roller Wheel Boat, an automatic vegetable cutting machine, an ergonomic replantation device, and an AI-powered model for detecting coffee plant diseases.
Through initiatives like the Xccelerator, the Sona Group positions itself at the forefront of industry-academia collaboration, offering a platform where students, researchers, and companies can co-create solutions. The program also underscored the group’s commitment to strengthening India’s innovation ecosystem by producing engineers who are globally competent yet locally relevant.
The Xccelerator initiative, launched in September 2023, was part of Sona’s ongoing effort to bridge the gap between classroom learning and real-world application. By focusing on project-based learning in advanced digital technologies, the program equipped students to tackle complex challenges with practical, innovative solutions.
