It has been a September to remember. It was like ticking everything off a bucket list: new rounds by portfolio companies, big launches, world-sitting-up-and-taking-notice recognitions, and, as usual, tons of great press coverage.
You feel good. That feeling of the heart being full. That’s us right now.
With that heady feeling, we have a request for all our readers—yes, you.
We are conducting our annual readership survey. We want to hear from you on what you like about our content and what you don’t. It would mean the world to us if you could take 60 seconds to complete our readership survey.
We look forward to tons of feedback.
Now, let’s dive into what all transpired in September.
Funding and More Funding
Kaleidofin secures $13.8M (~Rs 116 cr) to bring more small businesses and underserved individuals into the financial mainstream
Kaleidofin (Blume Fund II), a Chennai-based financial services platform, raised $13.8M (~Rs 116 cr) in a new round. Netherlands-based Rabo Partnerships B.V. led the round with an $11M (~Rs 92 cr) investment. Existing investors, including the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, Oikocredit, Omidyar Network India, and Flourish, also participated in the round.
Established in 2017, Kaleidofin enables lenders to provide finance for low-income customers in the informal economy.
The fresh capital will be used to scale its lending portfolio, expand credit scoring capabilities, and enhance middleware and risk services. This investment will support rural and agri-focused lenders, including large commercial banks, in offering more specialized loans and implementing risk-based pricing.
Puneet Gupta, director and co-founder of Kaleidofin, told VCCircle, "We are very close to breaking even. The latest equity infusion will help us break even and build a pipeline." The company expects to reach break-even on a month-on-month basis by March, currently operating at a monthly burn of Rs 1 crore.
Dell-ightful Funding Boosts Futwork
Sales outreach platform Futwork (Blume Fund II) has secured Rs 21 crore (~$2.5M) in a new funding round, led by the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation and Artha Venture Fund. This follows their $1 million round in April 2022, co-led by Blume Ventures.
Founded in 2015 by Armaan Vananchal, Niranjan Nakhate, and Sri Ganapathy, Futwork is revolutionizing sales outreach with its AI-driven platform that helps businesses establish outbound calling teams without fixed costs.
The fresh capital will be used to scale Futwork's product, launch AI-driven solutions for full-stack customer communication across voice, chat, email, and WhatsApp, and expand into international markets.
Serving clients from startups like Purplle and BharatPe to larger enterprises such as Flipkart and DTDC, Futwork is poised to make a significant impact in the sales outreach space while creating opportunities for India's youth in the tech sector.
Co-founder Armaan Vananchal emphasized the company's vision: "We believe in a human + AI future, and we will use the funds to build AI tools that can assist in delivering better performance on calls, improve quality, and assist in training our agents."
Chain Reaction: ‘Atom’icwork Energizes Growth with $3M Boost
Conversational ITSM software and AI service desk platform provider Atomicwork (Blume Fund IV) has secured $3M (~Rs 25 cr) in new funding from 40+ industry leaders, bringing its total funding to $14M (~Rs 118 cr) over the past year.
The company, which provides tools to enhance employee experience by seamlessly connecting various software applications, is experiencing rapid growth and expanding its product offerings.
Founded in 2022, Atomicwork was inspired by the post-COVID-19 remote work environment. The company's innovative solution addresses the productivity challenges of working with multiple applications, a problem that persists even as more employees return to office settings.
Vijay Rayapati, co-founder and CEO, reports that Atomicwork has signed its first enterprise customers and expects to surpass $1 million in annual revenue by year-end. He projects quadrupling this figure in 2024, supported by the new investment.
The funding round attracted notable investors, including Abhinav Dhar, former CIO of TransUnion, and Avanish Sahai, who has held senior roles at Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Google Cloud. Rayapati emphasizes the value of the "network effect" created by these influential investors across North America.
The World is Taking Notice
Pixxel-Perfect: NASA Snaps Up India's Stellar Startup for Earth Observation
Blume Fund III spacetech company Pixxel has achieved a significant milestone: It has secured a place in NASA's $476 million Commercial SmallSat Data Acquisition Program. This achievement positions Pixxel, the youngest company selected, alongside global leaders in Earth Observation.
Key highlights:
Pixxel will provide NASA and its partners advanced Earth observation data across hundreds of narrow wavelengths.
NASA contract runs through November 2028, validating Pixxel's hyperspectral imaging technology.
Pixxel’s datasets can unravel granular insights on climate change, agriculture, biodiversity, resource management, etc.
The company is also preparing to launch its Fireflies satellites, offering a 5-meter resolution—the highest in hyperspectral imaging. Fireflies will capture data across 250+ spectral bands with a 40 km swath width and 24-hour global revisit frequency.
Pixxel plans to expand its constellation to 24 satellites, making hyperspectral data more accessible across industries and governments.
Awais Ahmed, Co-founder and CEO of Pixxel emphasized the significance of this contract: "Being selected for this NASA contract is a monumental achievement for Pixxel and further validates that hyperspectral imaging will be integral to the future of space-based Earth observation and enable us to truly build a health monitor for the planet."
Healthify Boosts User Experience with OpenAI's Real-time API Integration
OpenAI showcased the personalized health and fitness coaching app Healthify (Blume Fund II) in their Dev Day keynote. Healthify is an early adopter of OpenAI’s real-time API, which powers the new multi-lingual version of Ria, Healthify’s AI coach. Realtime API enables natural conversations with its AI coach Ria, while involving human dieticians when needed for personalized support.
Learn more about how Healthify is leveraging OpenAI to make the world healthier.
Atomicwork Shines in Microsoft Spotlight: Reimagining Digital Workplace Experience
Microsoft highlighted Atomicwork (Blume Fund IV) for its innovative approach to revolutionizing the digital workplace experience.
The company's solution uniquely combines a conversational assistant, Atom, a modern service management system, and a workflow automation platform.
Deeply integrated with Microsoft services, Atomicwork leverages Azure and OpenAI for its AI capabilities, seamlessly working with Microsoft 365, Teams, Intune, Entra, and SharePoint.
Microsoft, in its detailed write-up, recognizes Atomicwork's strategic advantage in the market, noting how the platform allows Microsoft customers to maximize their existing infrastructure investments. The company's participation in Microsoft's Founders Hub has accelerated its product development and market entry.
As the company sets its sights on larger enterprises and more complex use cases, this recognition by Microsoft underscores Atomicwork's potential to reshape service management practices on a global scale.
LambdaTest Recognized in G2’s 2024 Top 100 Global Software Companies
Leading cloud-based unified testing platform LambdaTest (Blume Fund III) has secured a spot in G2’s prestigious 2024 list of the top 100 global software companies. This recognition highlights the company’s commitment to innovation in the field of continuous quality testing.
With over 10,000 enterprise customers and 2 million users worldwide, LambdaTest is transforming the digital testing landscape by helping developers and testers deliver top-notch products more efficiently.
View the full list of G2’s global leaders here.
Company Milestones
Euler takes the LCV Market by "Storm."
Electric commercial vehicle manufacturer Euler Motors (Blume Fund III) has launched its Storm EV series, making a bold entry into the electric 4-wheeler Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) market.
With this, Euler Motors also introduces ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance System) for the first time in the LCV segment in India, along with ten other segment-first features.
Key highlights:
Two models launched: Storm EV T1250 (priced at Rs 8.99 Lakhs) and Storm EV LongRange 200 (priced at Rs 12.99 Lakhs)
Rs 100 crore invested in development, with an initial production capacity of 1,000 units per month
Initial rollout in seven major cities, including Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai, and Hyderabad
Saurav Kumar, Founder and CEO, emphasized the company's strategy: "We came up with a ground-up EV rather than retrofitting an existing ICE truck." Euler Motors plans to leverage its success in the electric three-wheeler market, where it has captured a 20% market share, to grow in the LCV segment.
The company recently raised Rs 200 crore in a Series C funding round, with Blume Ventures and Green Frontier Capital among the investors. Euler continues to eye further growth and potential public listing in the future, positioning itself as a key player in India's evolving electric commercial vehicle landscape.
Ultrahuman Rings Up Success: Ring AIR Now Available on Costco.com
Fitness wearable company Ultrahuman (Blume Fund III) has achieved a significant milestone with its Ring AIR product, now available at Costco. This partnership with one of America's largest retailers marks a major expansion in Ultrahuman's distribution strategy.
As the health tech market grows, Ultrahuman's presence on a major retail platform positions the company for accelerated growth and wider adoption of its AI-powered health monitoring solutions. This development underscores Ultrahuman's evolving strategy to make cutting-edge health technology more accessible to mainstream consumers.
BHIVE Appoints Venkatesh Shenoy as COO to Spearhead Ambitious Expansion Plans
BHIVE (Blume Fund II), a leading managed office spaces and enterprise coworking solutions provider, has announced the appointment of Venkatesh Shenoy as its new Chief Operating Officer (COO). This strategic move comes as BHIVE gears up for significant growth and expansion across India.
Shenoy, with over 18 years of experience in operations and supply chain management, brings a wealth of expertise from his previous roles at Delhivery, Ecom Express, Bajaj Auto, and the RPG Group.
The Bengaluru-based firm, currently earning over Rs 168 crore in annual rental income, has ambitious plans to add 3 million sq ft of managed office space in key markets like Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, and Mumbai. The firm currently has 28,000 operational desks and plans to add 60,000 desks, totalling 4.8 million sq ft by FY26.
Procol Scales to $1B Monthly Procurement Volume
Procol (Blume Fund III), a leader in procurement automation, processed $1 billion in total procurement volume (TPV) in a single month - a feat that previously took four years since inception to accomplish.
This achievement underscores Procol's rapid growth and the increasing demand for efficient procurement solutions in today's fast-paced business environment. As Baheti notes, procurement automation is no longer just a dream but a "must-have" for companies aiming to stay competitive and optimize their operations.
Namma Yatri Accelerates Women's Empowerment with Electric Auto Training Expansion
Namma Yatri (Blume Fund IV) is making strides in women's empowerment with the expansion of its Mahila Shakti Electric Auto Driving Training Program in Bengaluru. This initiative is transforming lives by equipping women with the skills to become professional auto drivers and achieve financial independence.
The comprehensive 5-6 week program covers classroom instruction, on-road driving lessons, vehicle parts knowledge, safety protocols, customer service skills, and basic repair techniques.
Starting with just one hour of training per day and gradually increasing, the program also assists participants in obtaining their learner's licenses. Upon completion, Namma Yatri supports the women in purchasing their own electric autos, paving the way for sustainable careers.
With over 100 women already completed the program and earning stable incomes, Namma Yatri's expansion promises to create even more opportunities for women in Bengaluru's transportation sector.
All Over the Press
LoveLocal Revolutionizes Kirana Stores with Video Commerce
LoveLocal (Blume Fund II), founded by Akanksha Hazari, was featured in Mint’s Founder Diaries Podcast Series. Akanksha envisions LoveLocal as "the baby of e-commerce and Instagram," emphasizing the platform's unique blend of digital commerce and social media elements.
Highlights from the interview:
LoveLocal has raised close to $30 million from notable investors
Recently introduced video-based shopping, inspired by content-commerce trends in China.
Currently assists retailers with video creation, a first-of-its-kind model in India.
Plans to enable kirana store owners to create their own content within the next year.
Expanding services to include live selling within the application.
Read it all and watch it here.
IDfy CEO Ashok Hariharan Advocates for "Right KYC" Over "Fast KYC"
Ashok Hariharan, CEO of IDfy (Blume Fund I), an ID verification and onboarding solutions, has shared critical insights on the importance of robust Know Your Customer (KYC) processes in the digital age.
Responding to ongoing discussions about simplifying KYC for faster user onboarding, Hariharan emphasizes that the primary purpose of KYC is fraud prevention, not accelerated onboarding.
Drawing an analogy, Hariharan states, "When you invent the ship, you also invent the shipwreck," highlighting how digitization of KYC, while beneficial, has introduced new challenges.
He stresses that the focus should be on implementing "Right KYC" rather than "Fast KYC," asserting that regulators don't impose these requirements arbitrarily, but to protect the financial ecosystem from fraudsters.
SquadStack's Apurv Agrawal Envisions AI-Powered Future of Telecalling
Apurv Agrawal, CEO and Founder of SquadStack (Blume Fund II), a SaaS enabled talent marketplace, has shared his perspective on the future of telecalling in a recent article published by ETInsights.
Agrawal positions AI not as a replacement for human agents but as a powerful enhancement to their capabilities, likening it to "J.A.R.V.I.S. to Tony Stark's Iron Man." SquadStack's innovative "AI-verse" is at the forefront of this revolution, offering a vertically integrated solution.
He emphasizes that companies embracing this integrated AI approach will gain a significant competitive advantage, managing larger call volumes without sacrificing quality while reducing operational costs.
Multipl's Vikas Jain Unpacks Personal Finance Insights on "Figuring Out" Podcast
Multipl (Blume Fund IV) co-founder and CIO, Vikas Jain, recently featured on the "Figuring Out" podcast with host Raj Shamani, offering valuable insights into personal finance and the financial industry landscape.
Key highlights from the discussion include:
Exploring reasons behind wealth disparities and poor personal finances despite good saving habits
Take on current practices in the finance industry
Sharing budgeting thumb rules and discussing recent SEBI news
Analyzing industry transparency and fastest-growing markets
Insights into Jain's investment experiences and research methods
Jain also shed light on Multipl's unique offerings, explaining how the company's services benefit consumers and how they compare to traditional financial products like credit cards and bank savings.