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Article: Peak XV alumni’s new fund; Snabbit, Scapia to raise funds

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Business News›Tech›Newsletters›Morning Dispatch›Peak XV alumni’s new fund; Snabbit, Scapia to raise funds
Peak XV alumni’s new fund; Snabbit, Scapia to raise funds
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Happy Monday! Former Peak XV Partners executives have launched a new early-stage venture fund. This and more in today’s ETtech Morning Dispatch.
Also in the letter:
■ Unacademy to join Upgrad
■ Google AI Fund chief interview
■ KC Ang quits Tata Semicon
(L-R) Ambition Capital partners Harshjit Sethi, Shailesh Lakhani and Mayank Porwal
Former Peak XV Partners managing directors Shailesh Lakhani and Harshjit Sethi are launching Ambition Capital, an early-stage venture fund targeting a $250 million corpus.
The pair is joined by Mayank Porwal, who was with Peak XV until 2023.
Investment focus: The Bengaluru-based fund will back seed and Series A startups across sectors, including AI, fintech, deeptech, and consumer technology.
The firm plans to make 26-30 investments, with themes such as digital sovereignty and India-specific innovation guiding its strategy.
Founders’ track record:
ET had first reported in September that the two investors were preparing to launch an independent fund.
Industry shift: The move comes amid a broader wave of venture capital spinouts, as senior investors establish independent firms following exits and liquidity events (read: IPO) in the startup ecosystem.
LP interest: Global limited partners visiting India are increasingly evaluating first-time funds, drawn by the country's expanding startup ecosystem and a rising number of exits and realised returns.
Also Read: Peak XV Partners raises $1.3 billion for first independent India fund post Sequoia split
Aayush Agarwal, founder, Snabbit
On-demand home help startup Snabbit is raising $50-60 million (about Rs 463-555 crore) in fresh funding led by South Korea’s Mirae Asset Venture Investments and existing backer Bertelsmann India Investments (BII), people familiar with the matter told us.
Tell me more:
Also Read: Househelp apps top 2 million monthly orders amid profitability questions
Demand uptick:
The segment’s monthly cash burn more than doubled to $7-8 million between August and December 2025, up from $2-3 million, as platforms scale supply and offer other incentives to acquire customers.
Anil Goteti, CEO, Scapia
Travel fintech startup Scapia is in early discussions to raise $50-60 million in a funding round led by General Catalyst.
Funding snapshot: The Bengaluru-based company raised $40 million last year from Peak XV Partners, Elevation Capital, Z47 and Three State Capital. Since its founding, Scapia has raised about $72 million in total funding.
Scapia’s business model: Founded by former Flipkart executive Anil Goteti, Scapia offers a travel-focused co-branded credit card and booking platform aimed at young international travellers. It competes with fintech players such as Uni Cards, Niyo and Jupiter.
Financials: According to filings with the Registrar of Companies, the company's revenue from operations rose 71% to Rs 40.4 crore in FY25, while net loss narrowed 5.6% to Rs 83 crore.
Why it matters: The potential round comes as General Catalyst expands its India investments under a recently announced $5 billion global deployment plan.
Ronnie Screwvala (left) and Unacademy founder Gaurav Munjal
Ronnie Screwvala-led Upgrad will acquire Unacademy in an all-stock transaction, according to the SoftBank-backed test prep company's founder, Gaurav Munjal.
On and off: Upgrad had evaluated Unacademy earlier but stepped back from talks due to valuation differences. Initial discussions were centred on an all-stock transaction valuing Unacademy at around $300 million, a steep 90% drop from the $3.4 billion peak valuation.
Unacademy's new strategy: The deal comes as Unacademy sharpens its focus on its core test-prep business.
M&As in line: The acquisition aligns with Screwvala’s push to expand through acquisitions.
The edtech firm recently acquired a 90% stake in internship and job-search platform Internshala in a stock deal that valued the company at around Rs 100 crore.
Google AI fund chief Jonathan Silber
Next-gen AI founders will come from India: Google AI Fund chief | India is a critical market for generative AI and Google, and the tech giant is doubling down on the market and feels that the unicorn founder in Gen AI will come from India, Jonathan Silber, cofounder and director of the Google AI Futures Fund, told us.
KC Ang quits as head of Tata Semiconductor Manufacturing: Chip veteran KC Ang has resigned from his role as president and head of Tata Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM), which he took on in April last year, sources close to the matter told us.
■ Future AI chips could be built on glass (MIT Technology Review)
■ Iran and the rising perils of AI in warfare (FT)
■ 6G is coming. Here’s what to expect from the next generation of cellular tech (Wired)
Also in the letter:
■ Unacademy to join Upgrad
■ Google AI Fund chief interview
■ KC Ang quits Tata Semicon
Scoop: Sequoia alumni’s Ambition Capital set to raise $250 million for early-stage investing
(L-R) Ambition Capital partners Harshjit Sethi, Shailesh Lakhani and Mayank Porwal
Former Peak XV Partners managing directors Shailesh Lakhani and Harshjit Sethi are launching Ambition Capital, an early-stage venture fund targeting a $250 million corpus.
The pair is joined by Mayank Porwal, who was with Peak XV until 2023.
Investment focus: The Bengaluru-based fund will back seed and Series A startups across sectors, including AI, fintech, deeptech, and consumer technology.
The firm plans to make 26-30 investments, with themes such as digital sovereignty and India-specific innovation guiding its strategy.
Founders’ track record:
- Lakhani spent 17 years at Peak XV Partners, the firm that spun out of Sequoia Capital in 2023, and backed companies including Minimalist, Ixigo and Zetwerk.
- Sethi led AI-focused investments and worked with startups including Sarvam AI and Darwinbox.
ET had first reported in September that the two investors were preparing to launch an independent fund.
Industry shift: The move comes amid a broader wave of venture capital spinouts, as senior investors establish independent firms following exits and liquidity events (read: IPO) in the startup ecosystem.
LP interest: Global limited partners visiting India are increasingly evaluating first-time funds, drawn by the country's expanding startup ecosystem and a rising number of exits and realised returns.
Also Read: Peak XV Partners raises $1.3 billion for first independent India fund post Sequoia split
Snabbit in talks to raise $50-60 million led by Mirae Asset, Bertelsmann
Aayush Agarwal, founder, Snabbit
On-demand home help startup Snabbit is raising $50-60 million (about Rs 463-555 crore) in fresh funding led by South Korea’s Mirae Asset Venture Investments and existing backer Bertelsmann India Investments (BII), people familiar with the matter told us.
Tell me more:
- US-based Susquehanna International Group will also join the round as a new investor, one of the sources said.
- Existing investor Lightspeed is also expected to participate.
- The fundraising comes amid growing VC interest in the instant home help segment.
- Within 18 months of launch, Snabbit has already raised more than $55 million.
Also Read: Househelp apps top 2 million monthly orders amid profitability questions
Demand uptick:
- Snabbit processed 830,000 orders in February, up from about 500,000 in December.
- Urban Company said that its InstaHelp service crossed 50,000 bookings on peak days in February.
- Rival Pronto reported 15,000 peak-day orders.
The segment’s monthly cash burn more than doubled to $7-8 million between August and December 2025, up from $2-3 million, as platforms scale supply and offer other incentives to acquire customers.
Travel company Scapia eyes $60 million from General Catalyst and others
Anil Goteti, CEO, Scapia
Travel fintech startup Scapia is in early discussions to raise $50-60 million in a funding round led by General Catalyst.
Funding snapshot: The Bengaluru-based company raised $40 million last year from Peak XV Partners, Elevation Capital, Z47 and Three State Capital. Since its founding, Scapia has raised about $72 million in total funding.
Scapia’s business model: Founded by former Flipkart executive Anil Goteti, Scapia offers a travel-focused co-branded credit card and booking platform aimed at young international travellers. It competes with fintech players such as Uni Cards, Niyo and Jupiter.
Financials: According to filings with the Registrar of Companies, the company's revenue from operations rose 71% to Rs 40.4 crore in FY25, while net loss narrowed 5.6% to Rs 83 crore.
Why it matters: The potential round comes as General Catalyst expands its India investments under a recently announced $5 billion global deployment plan.
Ronnie Screwvala’s Upgrad to acquire Unacademy in all-stock deal
Ronnie Screwvala (left) and Unacademy founder Gaurav Munjal
Ronnie Screwvala-led Upgrad will acquire Unacademy in an all-stock transaction, according to the SoftBank-backed test prep company's founder, Gaurav Munjal.
On and off: Upgrad had evaluated Unacademy earlier but stepped back from talks due to valuation differences. Initial discussions were centred on an all-stock transaction valuing Unacademy at around $300 million, a steep 90% drop from the $3.4 billion peak valuation.
Unacademy's new strategy: The deal comes as Unacademy sharpens its focus on its core test-prep business.
- The company recently decided to exit company-operated offline centres and convert them into franchise partnerships.
- It also launched a Rs 50 crore employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) buyback.
M&As in line: The acquisition aligns with Screwvala’s push to expand through acquisitions.
The edtech firm recently acquired a 90% stake in internship and job-search platform Internshala in a stock deal that valued the company at around Rs 100 crore.
Other Top Stories By Our Reporters
Google AI fund chief Jonathan Silber
Next-gen AI founders will come from India: Google AI Fund chief | India is a critical market for generative AI and Google, and the tech giant is doubling down on the market and feels that the unicorn founder in Gen AI will come from India, Jonathan Silber, cofounder and director of the Google AI Futures Fund, told us.
KC Ang quits as head of Tata Semiconductor Manufacturing: Chip veteran KC Ang has resigned from his role as president and head of Tata Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM), which he took on in April last year, sources close to the matter told us.
Global Picks We Are Reading
■ Future AI chips could be built on glass (MIT Technology Review)
■ Iran and the rising perils of AI in warfare (FT)
■ 6G is coming. Here’s what to expect from the next generation of cellular tech (Wired)
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Thank you for subscribing to Morning Dispatch
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