Industry leaders join forces to form startup fund

IT industry leaders like Mohandas Pai, B V Naidu and J A Chowdary have come together to set up a seed funding company 'StartupXseed Ventures', to invest in startups working in areas like security, semi conductors and embedded devices.
StartupXseed Ventures has launched a Rs 30-crore Aaruha Technology Fund (ATF) that will provide end-to-end support to seed-level companies.
"Startups often face challenges like low key infrastructure, loosely coupled mentorship, lower investment from angels and lack of exposure to international partnerships and VC partners. It is necessary to build a stronger and holistic system at the seed level which is missing," StartupXseed Managing Partner B V Naidu told PTI.

He added that through ATF, StartupXseed aims to build a more holistic support system for aspiring entrepreneurs.
There is a lot of interest among IT industry leaders to be a part of startups. Many professionals like Google's Rajan Anandan and Infosys co-founder N R Narayana Murthy have invested in such ventures in their personal capacities.
Former Infosys Director T V Mohandas Pai has also invested in startups, including GetActive (a wearable technology start-up) and TheBetterIndia.

Naidu said the ATF will invest anywhere between a few lakh to a crore in a venture.
"The total fund size is about Rs 30 crore and this will be invested over the next 18-24 months," he added.

StartupXseed has also partnered with VC players like Aarin Capital and Exfinity Ventures to provide future funding to these startups after they grow to a certain size.
"The model of incubation and seed investment coupled with strategic support differentiates Startupxseed from any other current seed fund companies," he said. StartupXseed will provide seed fund, strategic support, market access, mentorship and help transform startups into real businesses making significant impact on society at large, he added.
It has made its first investment in ShieldSquare, which operates in the area of BOT prevention and Internet security. The Fund will announce two more names in the coming weeks.

StartupXseed also inked agreements with incubators in Bengaluru set up by IIITB, Dayanand Sagar University and eHealth Technology Business Incubator in PES University.