January 2024

January 11, 2024

“Chase the vision, not the money, the money will end up following you.”

— Tony Hsieh, Zappos CEO

Taking the above quote, inspite of 2023 being a tough year for HA invested portfolios in terms of fund raising, they have shown resilience in showing growth and worked towards the path to profitability. Few of our portfolios were also able to raise funding during the year 2023. HA members have been instrumental for this support and contribution both in terms of investment and providing right guidance both to startup founders and team working at HA.

We’re proud to share some of the key highlights from 2023:

Investments

In the last year, we invested in 11 opportunities from across sectors aligning with VC’s investment thesis and fresh dry powder getting generated.

Some of the sectors include:

DeepTech

Health & Wellness

D2C brands

CleanTech

Few of our investments are:

BreatheESG

Immersive Labz

WickedGud

Proost 69

Legalpay

Livo.Al

LEMME BE

VS Mani & Co

Findr

We are also delighted to share that our investments till date, have crossed 70+ companies in the last 10 years.

Portfolio

As informed our Portfolio’s has shown a few shades:

Raising Money in this Dry Market:

Blusmart
(Bridget to Series B)

Planetspark
(Bridge to Series C)

Innovapptive
(Series B)

Freed

Expertrons

EyemyEye

BEYOBO

Livo.ai

Proost 69

Legalpay

Tracex

Glamplus

My3DMeta

VS Mani & Co.

Turnaround Stories:

Our portfolio companies which have shown remarkable turnaround from going down to turning profitable and moving for next round of fundings.

DheeYantra

Flexmo

Spareshub

Exits

Some of our investors have received handsome returns from exits in companies such as Metamorphosis & Thrillophilia. We have a few potential exists in pipeline which are expected to see good returns during the 1st quarter of 2024.

Metamorphosis

Thrillophilia

Members

During the past year, with a change in guard in the startup investment landscape, we have added 20+ members in 2023 to our ever-growing investors community.

Portfolio in News

Synersoft Technologies, innovator of BLACKbox for SMEs, reports significant milestones, strengthening its market leadership. Implementations for Anish Pharma Group and I-Tech Group achieved a 60% reduction in hardware and software costs. Anish Pharma covered 150 users, enhancing data security, while I-Tech’s deployment for 20 users also saved 70% on G-Suite expenses. CEO Vishal Prakash Shah highlights these achievements as pivotal in advancing digital progress for MSMEs.

BluSmart, India’s premier all-electric ride-hailing service, partners with EaseMyTrip to offer eco-friendly airport transfers in Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru. With 250+ million electric kilometers and 7.5+ million trips since 2019, BluSmart leads in sustainable mobility, aiming to decarbonize India’s cities. This collaboration enhances green transportation, making a significant impact on reducing carbon emissions.

BluSmart, leading India’s electric mobility, achieves a milestone as the first mobility company to receive carbon credit certification from Verra. Recognized for reducing CO2 emissions with its EV fleet, BluSmart has completed over 300 million electric kilometers and 9.5 million trips. Operating 5000+ EVs in Delhi NCR and Bengaluru, it pioneers sustainable transportation in India’s urban megacities.

New Product Launches

Innovapptive:

Innovapptive, in collaboration with Deloitte Australia, unveils an AI-Connected Worker Platform, blending mobile inspection solutions with AI technology for real-time equipment analysis and feedback. This innovation enhances maintenance, reliability, and operational efficiency in asset management. It seamlessly integrates with major ERP systems, marking a significant advancement in enterprise asset management, set to debut at the Mastering SAP Conference.

Sid’s Farm:

Sid’s Farm, a leading D2C dairy brand, has launched a new range of salted butter in Hyderabad and Bengaluru. Emphasizing purity, the butter, available in Cow and Buffalo varieties, is free from antibiotics, preservatives, and hormones. Adhering to rigorous quality standards since 2016, Sid’s Farm ensures its dairy products are thoroughly tested and free from adulterants, reflecting its commitment to offering pure, healthy, and traditionally made dairy products.

DheeYantra:

DheeYantra launches the DheeYantra Edge server, revolutionizing enterprise telephony with advanced conversational AI. This cutting-edge server enhances natural language processing and reduces latency for improved AI-human interactions. Customizable for 25 to 500 channels, it integrates seamlessly with the Dhee.AI platform, offering on-premise deployment for enhanced control and security in AI-enabled communication.

Synersoft:

Synersoft has introduced a Hybrid Email System for Indian MSMEs, designed to cut yearly email subscription costs by 50% to 70%. This innovative solution allows businesses to mix premium services like Gmail or MS365 for key users with more affordable options for others, efficiently balancing needs and costs. Utilizing DNS Splitting Technology, it enables single-domain email management while significantly reducing annual email expenses, offering a tailored, cost-effective approach for MSME email systems.

Awards

BluSmart Mobility, India’s first all-electric ride-hailing service, was awarded ‘Young Turk Startup of the Year’ at IBLA 2023. Growing rapidly since its 2019 inception, it operates nearly 6,000 cars in key cities, competing with major players. Having received $109 million in funding, BluSmart is recognized for its environmental impact, reducing over 21,000 tonnes of CO2 with 10 million clean rides, marking its success and commitment to sustainable transportation.

Synersoft Technologies has been recognized in Forbes India’s top 200 companies with global business potential, announced at DGEMS 2023. Specializing in cybersecurity for MSMEs, its flagship product, BLACKbox, provides comprehensive data protection and IT compliance solutions. This accolade highlights Synersoft’s market leadership in India and its potential for global expansion in the digital security sector.

Synersoft Technologies was honored with the prestigious Aegis Graham Bell Award, recognizing its innovation in the SME sector. Awarded on 24th February 2023, this accolade underscores the company’s journey from a startup to a leader in SME-focused products. CEO Vishal Prakash Shah expressed gratitude, highlighting Synersoft’s commitment to leading the MSME market with innovative solutions.

Session AI, a leader in in-session marketing, has been certified as a Most Loved Workplace by Best Practice Institute, based on its high scores in the Love of Workplace Index™. This recognition, emphasizing the company’s inclusive and supportive work environment, places Session AI as a contender for Newsweek’s 2024 Top 100 Most Loved Workplaces. CEO Debjani Deb credits their dedicated team for building a strong workplace culture and contributing to the company’s success.

Bid farewell to 2023, we eagerly welcome 2024 with open arms and hearts full of gratitude. This year promises new opportunities, fresh collaborations, and continued growth, and we couldn’t be more excited to share it with you.

Chairman's Note

As we usher in the new year, I extend my heartfelt wishes to each one of you. May the upcoming year be filled with growth, success, and remarkable returns on our collective ventures. Your commitment and trust in our Angel Investment Network continue to be the driving force behind our shared accomplishments.

From the seed stage to Series A and beyond, you empower the journey. May 2024 be the year your investments blossom into extraordinary ventures. Happy investing!

Roelof Botha, co-founder of Sequoia Capital, remarked, “The current environment is compelling startups to prioritize unit economics and profitability, which is ultimately beneficial for the long-term health of the ecosystem.”

As you know, it has been a challenging year for both startup founders and investors due to the sudden change in the funding ecosystem. The startup funding situation in India in 2023 has been quite bleak, reflecting the global slowdown. According to various sources, total funding in India plummeted by 72% to $7-10 billion compared to $25 billion in 2022. Even the global ranking of India fell from 4th to 5th place, in terms of global funding destinations.

Key funding sectors in the past, such as E-commerce (including D2C), Fintech, Enterprise SAAS, Edtech, etc., have slowed down as the focus shifted to unit economics and profitability. In contrast, we have observed growth in Environmental Tech and Space Tech, emerging as relatively bright spots with a 50% and 225% increase in funding compared to the previous year. This year also saw only one unicorn in India compared to 21 in 2022 and 46 in 2021.

We always view this global meltdown as an opportunity to enter into early-stage emerging companies with good valuation potential to fund during this period. We have funded around 11 companies this year, in line with our continuous support to startups and a slightly better number of companies supported. This year also witnessed the exits of two companies, and we have the potential for another three companies to exit, which may happen during the first quarter of 2024.

According to our internal thesis and advisory, which we continuously monitor and modify in line with market conditions, we predict that 2024 will be the first step to rebound with an increase in startup investment funding. However, companies that continue to focus on strong business models, good traction, and profitability stand a better chance of attracting investors.

One positive note: as per the information on the SEBI website from 2023 till October, we have 850 AIFs approved, managing approximately ₹6 lakh crores as of the current date. We are pleased to share that Hyderabad Angels also established an AIF Cat 1 Regular fund, and the required approvals were received in August 2023. We will be announcing our first close soon.

Once again, we wish a happy new year to all our partners, startup founders, and investors who are contributing continuously to the growth of startups in India.

Vice-Chairman's Note

May 2024 be the year your vision ignites, your impact expands, and your venture soars beyond moonshot. Happy building, founders!

As we foresaw, 2023 proved to be a challenging year. At HA, we directed our focus towards our portfolio companies while also deepening relationships with key players in our ecosystem. HA diligently worked on establishing robust connections with accelerators, investors, and industry bodies. These strengthened relationships provide access to crucial resources, valuable guidance, and increased visibility, ultimately accelerating your growth journey.

Despite the funding challenges during this winter season, we are pleased to note that a significant number of our portfolio companies successfully raised funds, including Series A and B rounds, thereby enhancing the valuation multiple for our member investors.
In the words of Gaurav Munjal, founder of Unacademy, “Fundraising in 2023 is like climbing Mount Everest. It’s tough, but the view from the top is worth it.”

This period also served as an opportunity to fortify our internal systems. We established various committees comprising experienced investors who have been with HA for the past decade. Furthermore, we witnessed a growth of over 120% in new members compared to last year, a positive indicator for the sustained brand building we are fostering for at least another two decades.

We eagerly anticipate the continued support from our members, portfolio startup founders, ecosystem players, employees, and vendors of HA.

As we enter the new year 2024 with renewed vigour, I take this opportunity to wish a very happy healthy and prosperous new year to all.