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Accel, the Silicon Valley venture capital firm that placed some of the earliest bets on Flipkart and Swiggy, is deepening its commitment to India as artificial intelligence reshapes how startups are built.
The firm has raised $550 million for its ninth early stage India fund, part of a $3.5 billion haul across four new global vehicles, including a $1.35 billion growth fund to back companies from seed to IPO.
Accel has now raised $1.2 billion for India in 18 months, a record pace for fundraising at this scale in the country, even as war in West Asia makes some global investors more cautious about committing fresh capital.
Shekhar Kirani, partner at Accel, said what's different this time is that AI is arriving in India at the same moment it is arriving everywhere else.
-- Peerzada Abrar, Business Standard
