 "Sequoia Capital")
Surge, Sequoia Capital India’s programme for start-ups in India and Southeast Asia, has launched its sixth cohort for 20 early-stage firms that will vie for funding amounting to $60 million.
The rapid scale-up programme, over the past three years, has evaluated more than 10,000 companies. The sixth cohort—funded by Surge and co-investors--includes 246 founders from 112 start-ups across more than 15 sectors.
About 45 companies from the first four cohorts comprising 69 companies have raised follow-on funding. “The exceptional calibre and talent displayed by the founders of each new Surge cohort continue to humble us. Every founder brings with them the kind of bold innovation and purpose the world needs to solve some of the most pressing problems today,” said Rajan Anandan, Managing Director, Surge & Sequoia India.
Surge 06 has two new start-ups from Bangladesh, as well as debut companies from Malaysia, Thailand and Taiwan. As many as 13 out of the 20 start-ups are building an audience beyond their home markets.
Surge 06 includes the largest number of software start-ups so far in its history. More than half the start-ups in this cohort build and provide cloud infrastructure, developer tools, data security and software as a service for global customers, said a blog by Sequoia Capital India.
The cohort also features a significant number of software startups focusing on cybersecurity, customer engagement, talent development, payments and more. As products and services continue to move online, these startups are playing a pivotal role in supporting SME growth and helping them navigate an increasingly borderless and digitised world.
Several companies in the cohort are also from agriculture technology, education technology and finance technology, direct-to-consumer and e-commerce sectors. Surge 06 will kick off on January 27, where start-up founders will go through a 16-week virtual programme.
