India Funding Roundup: Electronics and Bike Service Platforms, Personal assistants, and More

Our latest funding roundup compiles early and late stage investments in Indian startups with business models centred around personal assistant apps, logistics, media streaming, real-estate, as well as bike and electronics service platforms.

Haptik
Personal assistant app Haptik announced Tuesday that it had raised an undisclosed sum in its Series B round from Times Internet. Founded in 2013 by Aakrit Vaish and Swapan Rajdev, the startup said that it processes over half a million requests per month, out of which 25 percent are completed using artificial intelligence. The funds will be used for product development, improving artificial intelligence capabilities and business operations, the startup said.

(Also read: Roundup: Indian Apps to Outsource Your Everyday Tasks)

Shipsy
Logistics major DTDC Express has picked up a 20 percent stake in Gurgaon-based Llama Logisol, which operates logistics solutions provider Shipsy, for over $1 million (roughly Rs. 6.65 crores). Founded in June 2015 by IIT graduates, Soham Chokshi, Dhruv Agrawal, Maharshi Devraj and Himanshu Gupta, Shipsy had received angel funding from Dheeraj Jain, the managing partner of Redcliffe Capital. “With Shipsy, we want to help make smarter decisions using the vast amount of ambient data available like location intelligence, last mile delivery optimisation and supply chain planning,” Chokshi said.

Hungama
Chinese consumer electronics company Xiaomi announced Monday its first investment of $25 million (roughly Rs. 166.59 crores) investment into streaming content provider Hungama Digital Media Entertainment, with participation from existing investors Intel Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Indian billionaire Rakesh Jhunjhunwala. Xiaomi said that the investment marks the deepening of the company’s strategy to introduce localised Internet services on its smartphones in India.

Housing
Online real estate platform housing.com Monday announced that former business head of 99Acres.com Vineet Singh has invested an undisclosed sum in the company, and will be working with the Housing.com management team in a senior advisory role.

Gear6
Bengaluru-based Gear6.in, an online bike service platform has reportedly raised $500,000 (roughly Rs. 3.3 crores) in a seed round funding from Ninestarter, an early-stage seed investment company. Founded in 2016 by Bits Pilani alumni, the startup reportedly sees 500 transactions a month.

Servify
Mumbai-based Servify, a tech startup that offers services through an app for electronics and appliances through a brand authorised service ecosystem, has received an undisclosed sum of funding from Blume Ventures, Germany’s Barkawi Holdings GmbH and TM Service Technology Holdings GmbH. Servify provides apps for Android and iOS, which enables users to add all their household devices, upload bills and invoices, access brand authorised service with a few taps, and them track the status of the service request till its closure.

With inputs from PTI