Indian AI Startups Chase US Venture Capital as Cloud Capacity Runs Thin

More Indian artificial intelligence startups are raising money in the United States, where venture capitalists have taken notice of the returns and the Indian government's push to develop advanced technology for both domestic and export markets, according to the CEO of one such company.

Anirudh Arun, founder and CEO of Agentic Universe, a Bangalore-based AI startup focused on banking, financial services and insurance products, said his company and others are pitching for funds in San Francisco. "We are seeing an increasing number of Indian AI companies pitching for funds in San Francisco, where venture capitalists and equity investors have been closely monitoring the potential of innovations created in India," Arun said.

Agentic Universe raised $165,000 in seed money in 2023. The company now expects to close a $10 million second fundraising round by the end of this year. The money is earmarked for scaling infrastructure. "We are already running out of cloud capacity, and the new fund is to scale infrastructure for global enterprises," said Arun, who is 23 years old and spent three years building the startup on that initial seed capital.