Indian VCs build 'bridges to America' as AI startups look westward

Venture capital firms in India are creating structured programmes to help AI startups enter the US market, offering capital, relocation support, and access to networks and customers

A growing number of venture capital (VC) firms are no longer just writing cheques; they are, instead, building structured pathways to assist homegrown artificial intelligence (AI) startups put down roots in the United States (US).

 

For such firms, which include Antler India, All In Capital, and India Accelerator, the playbook involves not just providing early capital but also pairing it with hands-on support to crack the US market. The support can be in the form of relocation, introductions to investors and customers, and on-ground access to networks and infrastructure in Silicon Valley.

 

Exemplifying this shift is VC firm Antler India’s 'Embark' programme. Launched in May 2025, 'Embark' is a structured, multi-week immersion designed to help homegrown founders build confidence and traction on foreign ground.

 

Nitin Sharma, a partner at Antler India, said the programme was created for founders building AI and SaaS (software-as-a-service) products who see the US as their primary market but are unsure about how to get their foot in the door. “What they need is more than connections, they need to feel like they can crack the US market,” he said. Since inception, Embark has taken 23 startups to the US for exposure, with another cohort of around 16 scheduled in the coming months. During this programme, participants spend three to four weeks meeting potential customers, attending industry events, and refining go-to-market (GTM) strategies.

 

For the firm, the results so far suggest tangible momentum as roughly 60 per cent of participating startups have decided to set up their base in the US, Sharma said. He added that for startups such as Hexo, DodgeAI, Kubo Care, JigsawStack, Nudge, Meetstream, Infer, SignalsHQ, Adaptive, Naptick, and Project Mirage, at least one founder is currently building in the US and camping with their US customers.

 

The logic behind such programmes is straightforward: the US remains the largest and most mature market for enterprise AI. Based on the latest data from market intelligence platform Tracxn, while there are nearly 11,800 native AI startups in the US currently, the count in India stands at approximately 2,320.

 

A few AI startups that have recently shifted their base from India to the US include Broccoli AI, Composio, Potpie AI, Meetstream AI, Smallest AI, and GetCrux.

 

At VC firm All In Capital, co-founder and partner Kushal Bhagia frames the trend not as a “brain drain” but as a natural evolution of global business. “If your AI startup ignores that market, you’re leaving money on the table,” he said.

 

Bhagia added that Indian AI founders moving to the US is not worrying, in fact, it’s a bullish signal for India. He said that the software spending of the US stands at $368 billion which is more than half of the global total.

 

All in had announced the firm’s “Golden Ticket” programme in February this year. As part of the first cohort, it plans to select 20-30 startups. The selected teams will be eligible for pre-seed funding of up to $300,000 per company, with total capital deployment of up to $1 million. In its first investment, the firm put $350,000 into Vasuki AI as part of its pre-seed stage funding.

 

However, VC firms aren't operating in silos, launching programmes and encouraging startups to shift their bases to the US. The idea of setting up such programmes, for many firms, has germinated after several conversations with founders who perceive the US market can provide better access to capital, connections, and customers. The numbers narrate the story as in the case of All in, within a week of launch of Golden Ticket, the firm received more than 750 applications. For Antler’s Embark programme, they received nearly 1,200 applications for this first cohort.

 

Explaining the trend further, Ashish Bhatia, founder and chief executive officer of India Accelerator, said the US currently offers a significantly deeper AI-focused venture capital both in deal size and the strategic value investors bring.

 

“The US also has larger enterprise budgets (US buyers pay more, decide faster, and have higher tolerance for early-stage AI products), denser operator and GTM talent, meaning people who have scaled AI SaaS companies before and can open doors quickly, and global credibility (a US customer or US VC backing accelerates trust with buyers everywhere, including back in India),” Bhatia said.

 

However, Bhatia mentioned that the ideal model for most Indian AI founders is not to relocate entirely but to build a US-facing GTM layer which includes sales, business development, and customer success in the US while retaining engineering and product in India. This keeps burn low while unlocking US market access, he added.

 

The firm has also established a programme that is specifically designed to help Indian AI companies expand into the US market. So far, it has supported several Indian AI companies, including Aquila Clouds, Saleassist, and Constems AI, through this programme. “We are actively growing this cohort and onboarding more companies that are ready for US expansion,” Bhatia said.

 

While several investors already have programmes to help homegrown startups move or expand to the US, a few other VC firms are also likely to devise similar plans.

 

At Arya Ventures, which focuses on Indian-origin founders globally, limited partner Nandagopal P said the firm is not currently running a structured programme to move India-based startups abroad. However, the firm is open to such an initiative based on the demand and aspirations of companies it invests in. The firm is currently raising for its $10 million fund.

 

A few AI companies it has already invested in are Knowyourdosh, Prescribe Life, Reform AI, Komerz, Freedom VAs, VitalFrnd, Srve, Invntz, Sportbuddy, Quickbuzz, Brightstead Technologies, Relayto AI, ACG Arenas, Vercida, and Please Bee.