Indian generative artificial intelligence (AI) startup, Sarvam AI, has raised a substantial $41 million in its Series A funding round, marking a significant stride forward in the realm of AI innovation. Lightspeed Ventures spearheaded the funding, joined by esteemed participants Peak XV Partners and Khosla Ventures. The infusion of capital is earmarked for steering Sarvam AI toward India-specific initiatives, particularly in the domain of training AI models to proficiently support the vast array of Indian languages and the implementation of voice-first interfaces. This strategic focus is aligned with the startup’s mission to cater to the unique linguistic and cultural landscape of India.
Established in July 2023 by Vivek Raghavan and Pratyush Kumar, Sarvam AI specializes in developing a comprehensive offering for Generative AI. Their spectrum of services encompasses research-led innovations in custom AI model training, extending to an enterprise-grade platform for authoring and deployment. Raghavan, an entrepreneur and technologist with a pivotal role in building Aadhaar India digital ID system), expressed Sarvam’s commitment to collaborating with Indian enterprises. The objective is to co-develop domain-specific AI models by harnessing the power of their data, thereby tailoring AI applications to meet specific industry needs.
The startup envisions making a population-scale impact by integrating Generative AI (Gen AI) into the highly successful India stack, focusing on applications that serve public goods. Gen AI, a transformative AI technology, can generate diverse content types, including text, imagery, audio, synthetic data, and conversational AI, which includes interactive technologies like chatbots or virtual agents.
Sarvam AI, with its freshly acquired funds, is poised to contribute substantially to the evolving landscape of AI innovation in India, addressing the unique challenges and opportunities presented by the diverse Indian market. As the generative AI momentum continues to build, Sarvam stands at the forefront of driving impactful and tailored AI solutions for the nation.
