January 6, 2025: Bangalore, India: Global venture capital firm Accel has raised $650 million early-stage fund aimed at accelerating the next generation of category-defining startups across India and Southeast Asia. With a focus on artificial intelligence (AI), consumer, fintech, and manufacturing, Accel plans to invest in disruptive startups that are poised to transform industries and address the evolving needs of the market.
This is Accel’s eighth fund in the region, continuing its long-term commitment to partnering with early-stage founders and fueling innovation.
The venture firm’s latest fund targets AI-powered platforms, vertical AI applications, and Services as Software startups, while also exploring opportunities within India’s consumer market, particularly in Bharat—tier 2 and 3 regions—and among Gen Z consumers. The fintech space will focus on wealth management, fintech infrastructure, and the digital distribution of financial products, while the manufacturing sector will focus on Industry 5.0 innovations, high-quality production, and supply chain diversification.
The Venture Firm’s track record includes early investments in some of India’s most successful companies, including Flipkart, Swiggy, Freshworks, Urban Company, and Zetwerk. These investments have underscored the firm’s ability to spot high-potential startups and help them scale into industry leaders.
Strategic Areas of Focus for Accel Venture Fund : AI, Fintech, Consumer, and Manufacturing Startups
Artificial Intelligence: Investments will prioritize startups working on enterprise AI use cases, large language models (LLMs), and vertical AI solutions that leverage India’s tech talent pool.
Consumer: Focus on startups serving India’s Bharat market, India-native consumers, and the aspirational Gen Z demographic with high-quality, service-oriented offerings.
Fintech: Backing digital wealth management platforms, fintech infrastructure solutions, and startups utilizing India’s digital public infrastructure for product distribution.
Manufacturing: Investing in Industry 5.0 technologies, supply chain diversification, and IP-driven manufacturing to meet global demand for high-quality, efficient production.
India is poised to become the world’s fastest-growing major economy, with GDP per capita expected to rise by 60% by 2029. The Venture Firm’s deep understanding of the region’s growth potential positions it uniquely to back innovative founders who are redefining industries through technology.
As India’s public markets embrace tech-driven businesses, the Venture Firm’s portfolio companies like BlackBuck and Swiggy have already achieved significant public market success, further highlighting the opportunities in India’s evolving ecosystem.
“We are at a critical inflection point in India’s economic story,” said Prayank Swaroop, Partner at Accel. “The next decade will see India emerge as a global economic leader, and this fund will support the founders who are building transformative businesses that will drive this change.”
With over 16 years of experience in India and Southeast Asia, the VC firm has been a driving force behind successful startups like Amagi, Acko, BlueStone, and Cult.Fit. The firm has been a consistent first institutional investor in 80% of its portfolio companies, helping to scale disruptive businesses across multiple sectors.
“Indian founders are building resilient, enduring companies that are not only embraced by the public markets but are transforming industries globally,” said Shekhar Kirani, Partner at Accel. “We are committed to partnering with visionary entrepreneurs and supporting them as they take on some of the world’s most pressing challenges.”
Accel Launches SeedToScale Community Platform
The Venture Firm has also launched key initiatives like SeedToScale—a community platform providing actionable insights for founders—and Accel Atoms, a scaling program that has helped 36 startups raise over $200 million. The VC continues to focus on making the founder’s journey smoother and empowering the next wave of impactful businesses.
In the past two years alone, the VC has invested in over 27 AI startups in India or by Indian-origin founders, further reinforcing its commitment to the AI-driven future of the region.
