The 23rd edition of ICTACT Bridge 2016 held at Hotel Le Meridian, Coimbatore on 22nd June 2016.

The conference was a part of Industry-Institute interaction initiative by ICTACT. It was a platform to connect Industry, Academia and Government for collaborative education and to reduce the skill gap in academic output and industry requirements.

The Coimbatore edition was themed "Igniting Startup India" and discussions were on providing appropriate guidance and insights to the young entrepreneurs and students to evolve as a successful entrepreneur. The conference had a mix of speakers representing Academicians, Industry leaders and Government bureaucrats.

Calling for increasing courses on entrepreneurship, innovation, research, Dr. Anil Sahasrabudhe, Chairman of AICTE said that colleges that had the autonomy to change curriculum should do so often – say every two or three years or even every year if the situation warranted. Thiru. K. Rajaraman, Principal Secretary, Entrepreneurship Development Institute, Government of Tamil Nadu, said colleges should introduce courses on entrepreneurship right from the first year and groom students through the next two or three years to be entrepreneurs. He also called colleges to network with peer institutions and industry to promote entrepreneurship. Where, Mr. Jayaram Pillai, Managing Director of National Instruments spoke on importance of innovation in entrepreneurship.

The conference was attended by more than 500 people and also had stalls displaying the various courses offered by ICTACT to colleges in association with corporate like Palo Alto, Oracle Academy, Horton Works and VMware.