Having backed over 50 high-growth startups across three funds, including unicorns like Licious, Arise Ventures is carving a niche for itself as a catalyst for early-stage innovation in sectors like enterprise AI, health-tech, and climate-tech, says Ankita Vashishtha, founder and Managing Partner.
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How much funding have you raised till date?
We are currently raising our third fund of ₹500 crore.
We have invested in over 50 startups across three funds, focusing on early-stage tech businesses that exhibit inclusive innovation and cross-border scalability. We intend to support startups in India and abroad that are at the intersection of enterprise AI, SaaS, health-tech, consumer-tech, climate-tech, and digital infrastructure.
What is the strength of your current portfolio?
We have more than 50 technology-driven, high-growth startups that span consumer brands, SaaS, health-tech, enterprise AI, and digital infrastructure.
More than 60 per cent of the companies are led by female tech founders. Furthermore, we have set up global acceleration programmes, supporting more than 350 entrepreneurs in the last 12 months alone.
How many funds have you deployed till now?
We are currently deploying from Fund III, and have invested in 10 high-potential companies so far. While deliberately taking part in some follow-on rounds, where we can provide disproportionate strategic value, the fund’s focus is still on early-stage deals.
What is your investment thesis?
Our investment thesis centres on backing bold and visionary founders building tech-enabled, scalable, and sustainable businesses. A core component of our strategy is to support inclusive and diverse innovation, with a long-term view on high-impact sectors. We support businesses that are addressing urgent global issues.
What is the time horizon for your investments?
We follow an investment horizon of 4-7 years, staying actively involved through early growth, scale-up phases, and strategic inflection points.
Beyond capital, we invest resources in coaching, community, mentorship, and market access, to facilitate successful exits.
What is the average cheque size you deploy?
Our investment cheques typically range from $250,000 to $2 million, depending on the stage, sector, and scale of the opportunity. We have also created dedicated capital allocation for accelerator-led early-stage investments, offering flexible ticket sizes to fast-track promising ventures in their formative phases.
What sort of exit do you prefer?
We have had several successful exits — full and partial — including from unicorns like Licious and Uniphore. A few of our portfolio companies have gone public or are doing so.
Our preferred exit routes include strategic acquisitions, secondary exits, and public listings that deliver sustained value to founders and investors, and allow companies to retain their mission and long-term impact potential.