Riceberg Ventures, a global early-stage venture capital firm with presence in Bangalore, Zurich and San Francisco, has floated a $20 million fund to support deep tech start-ups, including space tech-focused start-ups.
The fund plans to support 25-30 Indian companies in sectors such as space tech, life sciences/MedTech, cybersecurity, AI, robotics, novel energy, semiconductors and quantum computing, with an average funding of $0.5 million.
Founded in 2023 by Ankit Anand, Mredul Sarda, Shubham Raj and Lino Gandola, the firm has currently invested in startups like Manastu Space, Signatur Biosciences, EtherealX, Keyron Medical and Arch0. One of the companies — Manastu Space — is working on green propulsion engines for satellites.
The VC firm is supported by advisers, including Uday Desai, founding director of IIT Hyderabad and seasoned banker Prasad Chaganti.
The VC firm in a statement on Tuesday said that Deeptech start-ups in the country face significant challenges in getting funding from investors because of their long research and development cycles and incubation period. It also said that its presence in the US and Europe provides portfolio companies access to global VCs and facilitate co-investments and follow-on funding.
“This fund is our commitment to supporting Deeptech entrepreneurs tackling complex global challenges,” said Ankit Anand, founding partner, Riceberg Ventures.
“The Indian diaspora has played a pivotal role in some of the world’s most significant innovations. Yet, many Indian founders have historically operated in the background due to systemic challenges and limited access to early-stage capital,” said Lino Gandola, founding partner at Riceberg.
According to the draft National Deep Tech Startup policy, there were over 10,298 DPIIT-recognised startups classified across various subsectors within the deep tech space.
The VC firm said that in collaboration with E2MC Ventures, it operates KickSky, whose second cohort is set to go live in January.