30 Startups To Watch: Startups That Caught Our Eye In September 2026

September was a busy month for India’s tech and startup ecosystem, with AI and deeptech dominating the conversation. Funding activity remained resilient, led by large rounds such as Pixxel’s $100 Mn Series C, Ultraviolette Automotive’s $85 Mn Series E and Simple Energy’s $185 Mn fundraise.

Despite this, Indian startups could only raise $760.7 Mn across 210 deals during the month, down more than 11% from August’s $857.4 Mn. In Q3 2026, Indian startups raised $2.2 Bn across 210 deals, marking a 5% YoY increase in funding even as deal activity fell 13%. Much of the capital continued to flow towards frontier technologies, while late stage funding remained relatively subdued.

The month also underscored India’s growing ambitions across emerging technologies. Semicon India brought global chipmakers and technology companies to New Delhi, while the Global Fintech Festival in Mumbai was all about the expanding role of AI across financial services and payments.

Meanwhile, the public markets remained active, with Moneyview and AceVector, the parent of Snapdeal, preparing for October listings. RentoMojo, Purple Style Labs and ESDS Software also made their market debuts during the month. PhonePe revived its IPO plans, while used-car marketplace Spinny confidentially filed its draft papers.

Government and institutional support for deeptech also continued to gather pace. GalaxEye received ₹63.84 Cr from the RDI Fund, while the IIT Madras-Unicorn India Frontier Fund announced a ₹450 Cr first close. The defence ministry also introduced measures to expand startups’ access to funding, incubation and DRDO testing facilities. Meanwhile, the Centre is considering a ₹15,000-20,000 Cr anchor investment in a proposed National Frontier AI & Compute Fund.

New pools of capital targeting AI, advanced manufacturing and early stage startups also emerged, including Activate’s $105 Mn AI fund, the ₹1,000 Cr Asiana-JCC Advanced Manufacturing & Innovation Fund and WEH Ventures’ ₹250 Cr fund.

Against this backdrop, Inc42 is back with the latest edition of its flagship 30 Startups To Watch series, spotlighting early stage ventures that stood out this month.

This edition spans AI, deeptech, spacetech, climate tech, defence, EVs, consumer and enterprise technology — from AI agents and semiconductor design tools to missile propulsion, autonomous hardware and new-age consumer products.

Without further ado, here are the 30 startups that made the cut for September.

Editor’s Note | The list below is not a ranking of any kind. We have listed the startups alphabetically.

Alle’s ClinX | Streamlining Institutional Hygiene Management

Hospitals, hotels and large facilities cannot rely on household cleaning products to maintain hygiene at scale. They need specialised formulations, controlled dilution, usage guidance, documentation and predictable replenishment. Haryana-based Alle is combining these requirements into a single institutional hygiene offering through its ClinX brand.

Founded in 2023 by Aditya Kumar, the startup supplies 36 professional cleaning and hygiene formulations across healthcare, hospitality, education, commercial kitchens and industrial facilities. Its portfolio covers surface and floor care, disinfection, washroom and hand hygiene, laundry and kitchen cleaning. It operates in India’s industrial and institutional cleaning chemicals market, projected to grow from $2.04 Bn in 2024 to $2.67 Bn by 2030.

Alongside its chemicals business, ClinX is building a digital layer called ClinXAi to help facilities manage product selection and consumption. Its AI assistant, Nova, helps users choose products and understand dilution and application, while Metricon tracks consumption, coverage, inventory runway and procurement needs. CheckMate helps verify documents including labels, safety and technical sheets, purchase orders and invoices.

The bootstrapped B2B startup currently serves 21 institutional customers across Delhi-NCR and nearby North Indian markets. It plans to expand manufacturing capacity and launch PLUS+, a recurring-supply programme for facilities with predictable hygiene requirements.

ARC | Building For The Love Of Games

Despite India’s gaming market being projected to grow from $4.38 Bn in 2025 to $9.89 Bn by 2031, gamers looking beyond smartphones often have to choose between the fixed setup of a PC or console and the higher cost of imported handheld devices. 

Bengaluru-based ARC is looking to bridge this gap with a portable gaming device built around an India-first price point. Founded in 2025 by Jobin Joseph and Kaustubh K Jadhav, the startup is developing ARC X1, a handheld gaming device powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon G2 platform and its proprietary OwlOS.

The 7-inch Full HD 120Hz device features dedicated gaming controls, active cooling, custom haptics and a 9,300 mAh battery. OwlOS adds a controller-first interface with game discovery and mapping, along with planned cloud and remote-play capabilities.

Priced at ₹29,500 for its early-access community and ₹33,500 thereafter, ARC X1 aims to bring a more dedicated gaming experience to a portable form factor while keeping hardware costs closer to the mobile ecosystem.

ARC claims to have attracted more than 50,000 waitlist registrations and over 22,000 beta opt-ins ahead of its commercial rollout. It has also raised ₹10.5 Cr in pre-seed funding from Chimera VC and MIXI Global Investments, with participation from Meta APAC director Dhruv Vohra, to fund product development, manufacturing readiness and software development.

ByteAsk | The AI Coding Agent For C And C++

Founded in 2026 by IIT-Delhi alumni, ByteAsk is building coding agents specifically for industries where C/C++ underpin mission-critical systems, including defence, automobiles, aerospace, medical technology and finance.

The platform is designed to work with both open- and closed-source AI models and can be deployed entirely on-premise, allowing organisations to keep sensitive intellectual property within their own infrastructure. Its focus is on making AI-assisted C/C++ development more reliable, beyond simply generating code.

The startup has raised $1 Mn from Y Combinator and is currently developing two offerings: ByteAsk Harness and a B2B enterprise product. Its business model combines subscriptions with enterprise services.

ByteAsk operates in the AI coding market estimated at 9.8–11 Bn annualised as of April 2026. Its differentiation lies in focusing on C/C++, which remain widely used in performance-critical and safety-sensitive systems.

Circolife | Providing Advanced, Energy-Efficient Air Conditioning Systems

For businesses such as restaurants, salons, gyms and offices, air conditioning is a recurring operating expense, with maintenance, replacement and downtime adding to the cost. Mumbai-based Circolife is looking to change the ownership model by offering cooling as a subscription instead of requiring businesses to buy and maintain AC systems.

Founded in 2023 by Abhishek Murarka, Tushar Patil and Devanshu Mishra, the startup owns, installs and services AC units throughout the subscription period. Its IoT-enabled systems monitor usage and performance, while predictive maintenance is used to identify potential issues and reduce downtime.  

Circolife, which recently raised $4.5 Mn, operates in India’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) market, estimated to grow to $17.41 Bn by 2030 from $12.14 Bn in 2025. It claims 10,000 active subscriptions across five cities and plans to quadruple its fleet over the next 24 months.

Circolife competes with conventional AC rental and leasing providers, while betting on cooling-as-a-service as a newer model for businesses looking to reduce upfront costs and simplify maintenance.

circuitEvolve | Using AI To Automate Analogue Chip Design

India’s semiconductor ambitions now span design, fabrication, packaging, equipment and materials, and it already accounts for nearly 20% of the global semiconductor chip-design workforce. The country’s semiconductor market is projected to grow from nearly $64 Bn in 2026 to $200 Bn by 2035.

But chip design remains highly iterative, particularly for analogue chips, which process real-world signals such as sound, temperature, light and voltage and are critical across smartphones, automobiles and industrial equipment. Engineers often spend significant time running simulations and manually adjusting parameters to balance power, performance and area.

As semiconductor activity expands in India, circuitEvolve is using AI to automate parts of this workflow. Founded in 2026 by Ojas Pungalia, the US-headquartered startup is building tools that work alongside existing electronic design automation (EDA) software.

Its flagship product, OPTIM, automates circuit sizing by evaluating device configurations through simulation and optimising them against multiple performance targets. It is simulator-agnostic and can also help port circuits between technology nodes, reducing repetitive resizing and simulation work.

In the long term, circuitEvolve wants to become an AI layer for analogue chip design, expanding beyond circuit sizing into the wider analogue and mixed-signal workflow. It wants to make AI agents an integral part of the semiconductor engineer’s workflow, handling repetitive simulation, exploration and optimisation while engineers focus on higher-level design decisions. 

Climitra | From Waste Biomass To Industrial-Grade Bio-Coal

India’s steel industry remains heavily dependent on coal, while millions of tonnes of agricultural waste are generated every year, much of which is underused or burned. Delhi-based Climitra is trying to address both problems by converting waste biomass into a lower-carbon alternative to fossil coal for hard-to-abate industries.

Founded in 2025 by brothers Shubhankar and Aryaman Mihir Seth and Shaurya Sharma, the startup is building a vertically integrated biomass-to-bio-coal and carbon-removal platform.

Climitra uses AI-powered geospatial intelligence to identify and assess biomass before converting it into industrial-grade bio-coal through a proprietary pyrolysis process. India’s biomass briquette market was estimated at $1.49 Bn in 2025 and is projected to reach $2.14 Bn by 2032.

The startup says its technology addresses tar buildup, a common challenge in pyrolysis that can reduce plant uptime and affect output consistency. It claims its process produces 75–85% fixed carbon, a gross calorific value of 6,500–8,000 kcal/kg and up to 90% lower emissions than fossil coal.

Backed by InfoEdge Ventures, Climitra says it has validated its product with Tata Steel, JSW Steel and AM/NS India. The startup is targeting both industrial decarbonisation and carbon removal, using the same biomass supply chain to produce bio-coal and biochar. As it scales, building reliable links between India’s fragmented biomass supply and industrial demand will be key.

Comet Aerospace | Heralding Next Gen Indigenous Missile Systems

India’s missile ecosystem is opening up to private players as the government expands opportunities for companies to participate in defence development and production. This is creating space for startups to build indigenous capabilities across propulsion, flight systems and missile platforms. India’s missile market is projected to grow from $468.6 Mn in 2025 to $2.51 Bn by 2030.

Founded in 2026 by IIT Delhi alumni Garvit Goel and Abhishek Nand, Comet is developing missiles and propulsion systems in-house. Its team works across the stack, covering propellant chemistry, grain design, casings, nozzles, thrust, navigation and flight control.

The startup’s product roadmap spans three areas: rocket-assisted take-off (RATO) thrusters for heavy-payload UAVs, a surface-to-surface missile with a planned 10-km range, and a short-range surface-to-air interceptor for threats such as drones and loitering munitions.

Comet is building these systems around a common propulsion platform, allowing its core technology to be adapted across applications. The startup will now need to move from prototypes to extensive testing and certification.

Creedom | AI Growth Companion For Instagram Creators

For content creators, knowing that an Instagram Reel or YouTube video underperformed is only part of the problem. The bigger challenge is understanding why it happened and what to do differently next time. Bengaluru-based Creedom is building an AI growth coach to turn performance data into personalised, actionable advice.

Founded by Naveen Murugan, Naveen Sowriraj and Aswin Dhananjai, Creedom initially operated as a learning platform for creators and reached more than 1.5 Lakh creators in India. The founders later rebuilt the business around an AI-led product that connects with creators’ Instagram and YouTube accounts, analyses their content and performance, identifies trends and suggests what they should create next.

The platform is powered by Cree, an AI companion that allows creators to interact with their performance data conversationally instead of navigating traditional analytics dashboards. 

With India’s creator economy reaching 4.12 Mn creators in 2025, Creedom is competing with creator analytics tools such as vidIQ and TubeBuddy, alongside native platforms such as YouTube Studio and Instagram Insights.

DocPharma | Leading India’s Quick Commerce Healthcare Boom

As consumers get used to receiving groceries and food within minutes, expectations for instant doorstep delivery are extending to healthcare. But fulfilling medicine orders is more complex, with prescriptions, licensed pharmacies and inventory visibility adding layers that do not exist in conventional quick commerce. 

Bengaluru-based DocPharma is building the infrastructure layer that helps healthcare and wellness brands offer faster deliveries without setting up their own fulfilment networks.

Founded by Shashank Rai, Saquib Ali and Sagar Chauhan, the startup operates a network of licensed dark stores and pharmacies. Its DocPharma One platform connects inventory, warehousing, order processing and last-mile delivery, enabling prescription-compliant medicine and healthcare deliveries in under 30 minutes.

Operating in India’s epharmacy market, projected to reach $8.6 Bn by 2031, the startup currently works with 30+ healthcare and wellness platforms, stocks more than 40,000 SKUs and covers 16,000+ pincodes. It recently raised $2 Mn in a pre-Series A round led by Equentis and plans to expand from 12+ cities to 50+ cities, while adding 100 licensed dark stores.

EdgeVerse | Making Two Wheelers More Aware With AI 

India’s two-wheelers make up a large share of vehicles on the country’s roads, but advanced safety systems have largely been developed for passenger cars.

Bengaluru-based EdgeVerse is looking to bridge this gap with an edge-AI perception stack designed to bring features such as collision prediction and hazard detection to two-wheelers, where cost, size and power constraints make conventional ADAS harder to deploy.

Founded in 2023 by Arindam Ghosh, Subrata Debnath and Navaneeth A, EdgeVerse combines camera, radar and other sensor inputs through its Perceiva software stack. Its Imedge hardware platform is designed to run perception workloads at the edge, while the startup says its technology can work with existing camera and radar architectures.

The startup has conducted road testing in Bengaluru and says it has begun conversations with OEMs, with plans to enter the market through OEM partnerships in 2026. 

The opportunity comes as India’s ADAS market expands, with Mordor Intelligence estimating it to reach $3.12 Bn by 2031. EdgeVerse is starting with two-wheelers before looking to expand its perception technology into industrial automation and other edge-AI applications.

EV91 | Building EV Backbone For India’s Last-Mile Deliveries

India’s delivery economy is expanding rapidly, but the infrastructure supporting gig workers remains fragmented across vehicles, financing, charging, maintenance and fleet operations. Bengaluru-based EV91 is building an integrated electric mobility platform to address these gaps for delivery riders and businesses.

Founded in 2023, EV91 initially provided electric two-wheelers to delivery partners and has since expanded into fleet management, EV subscriptions, maintenance, charging and rider support. It works with delivery and commerce platforms, giving riders access to vehicles and the operational support needed to stay on the road. Its operations currently span Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Delhi-NCR and Mumbai.

The startup says it crossed 1 Mn orders in FY25, with more than 600 EVs and 1,000+ riders, and has since expanded its fleet. Its rider app enables EV rentals, delivery jobs and access to charging and battery-swapping services.

EV91 is targeting India’s growing last-mile delivery market, with the two-wheeler segment estimated at $1.8 Bn in 2025 and projected to reach $5.5 Bn by 2030. EV91 competes with players such as Zypp Electric, Yulu and Battery Smart.

Factrika | Bridging The Blue-Collar Availability Gap

Factories can have orders lined up and machines ready to run, yet a sudden worker shortage caused by absenteeism or demand spikes can disrupt production. For manufacturers working with tight delivery schedules, finding blue-collar workers at short notice remains a pain point.

New Delhi-based Factrika is building an on-demand workforce platform to address this gap. Founded in 2024 by Kshitij Puri and Gaurav Asthana, the startup helps factories source, deploy and manage workers based on skills, location and shift requirements. Its platform covers same-day staffing, absentee replacement, seasonal demand, project-based hiring and full-time recruitment.

Factrika matches workers with factory requirements, coordinates deployment, tracks attendance and provides replacements when workers do not turn up. It claims to have a pool of 10,000+ workers sourced through more than 4,000 ITIs and 1,000 polytechnic institutes. The startup says it has completed 65,000+ shifts with a 90% job-fill rate.

It operates across Bhiwadi, Bawal, Kharkhoda, Gurugram and Bahadurgarh, serving customers including Lenskart, Asahi India Glass and Jubilant FoodWorks. Factrika recently raised ₹8.9 Cr, which it plans to utilise for team expansion, technology and entry into more manufacturing clusters.

Firi | Peer Reviewed Shopping Experience

Beauty shoppers today can choose from thousands of products across marketplaces, but more choice can also mean more time spent figuring out what is worth buying. Firi is taking a different approach to beauty commerce by curating a smaller catalogue based on product research, reviews and consumer sentiment.

Founded in 2026 by former Uber India executives, Karishma Rathaur and Vivek Madani, Delhi NCR-based Firi uses AI to analyse reviews, Reddit discussions, YouTube content and ingredient lists before deciding which products to stock. The company says it has analysed 50 Mn+ reviews and shortlisted around 3,000 products from more than 3 Lakh beauty products globally. 

The startup currently focuses on skincare, haircare and body care and delivers in as little as nine minutes in parts of Delhi NCR through its first Beauty Studio. It recently raised $3 Mn, which it will use to support expansion into makeup and fragrances and the addition of more dark stores. The online BPC market in India grew to around ₹52,000 Cr in 2025, up 2.4X in three years, while beauty’s share of quick commerce GMV rose sharply during the period.

Lickicious | Building A Nutrition-First Pet Food Brand

For years, Indian pet parents had limited choices beyond conventional packaged pet food or home-cooked meals. But rising pet ownership and growing awareness around animal nutrition are creating room for brands offering more specialised food and care.

Lickicious is among the new crop of brands looking to reshape the category with a nutrition-led portfolio spanning everyday food, treats and supplements. India’s pet food market is projected to grow from around $1.01 Bn in 2025 to $2.2 Bn by 2030.

Founded by Shashwat Sahai and Chandan Jha, the Mumbai-based brand operates under Nuvexo Wellness and offers dry and wet food, treats, supplements and other nutrition products for dogs and cats. Its products focus on real ingredients and nutritional formulations, while the company also operates its own manufacturing setup.

Lickicious recently raised ₹19 Cr in growth capital through a mix of equity and institutional debt, led by Prath Ventures, with participation from ISV Capital and other investors. The company plans to use the capital to expand its manufacturing and distribution footprint to 60,000 sq ft, while investing in R&D, quality, supply chain and new categories. It is targeting ₹100 Cr in annual revenue.

LogiXair | Aerial Cargo Carrier For Middle-Mile Logistics 

Moving cargo between cities and smaller towns in India largely depends on road transport, where traffic, infrastructure constraints and unforeseen disruptions can add significant delays. For time-sensitive shipments, this can increase costs and affect the delivery of essential goods.

Hyderabad-based LogiXair is building autonomous vertical take-off and landing aircraft to move cargo across these middle-mile routes.

Founded by Bhanu Teja Chidura and Pulla Kapil, the startup is developing a hybrid-electric vertical take-Off and landing aircraft capable of carrying up to 300 kg over distances of up to 600 km. It is targeting routes connecting metros with Tier II and III cities, with potential applications across ecommerce, healthcare, manufacturing, defence and humanitarian logistics.

In India’s cargo-drone market, projected to grow to $56.3 Mn by 2029 from $11.3 Mn in 2024, LogiXair is also developing cargo-handling robotics and detachable containers to reduce turnaround time on the ground. The startup has flight-tested several sub-scale prototypes and is now developing its first full-scale aircraft, Winghead.

Makr Microsystems | Building Tools For 3D Metrology At Nanometer Scale

Bengaluru-based Makr Microsystems is building nanoscale 3D metrology tools to inspect and measure structures buried beneath semiconductor surfaces. Founded in 2024 by ex-Applied Material executive Ashwin Lal and Paritosh Kumar, the deeptech startup combines acoustic atomic force microscopy (AAFM), optical tomography and 3D data analytics to help chipmakers visualise and measure structures beneath semiconductor surfaces.

Its core AAFM technology combines atomic force microscopy with acoustic sensing to access information below opaque materials, enabling non-destructive, high-resolution inspection. The initial applications include advanced packaging, hybrid bonding, buried interfaces, chiplet interconnects and defect detection.

Makr operates in a specialised metrology market alongside established semiconductor-equipment players such as KLA, Applied Materials, Onto Innovation, Hitachi High-Tech and Thermo Fisher Scientific, which offer inspection, dimensional metrology and imaging technologies across different stages of chip manufacturing.

Nextup | Mass-Premium Brand For Personal Wellness 

Recovery has become an increasingly visible part of fitness. Still, the market for recovery devices remains divided between low-cost gadgets with limited functionality and premium products that can cost several times more. Delhi NCR-based Nextup is targeting this space with consumer electronics designed to make recovery more accessible without compromising on features.

Founded in 2024 by , Nextup is starting with Pulse, a massage gun designed for muscle recovery and everyday body care. It features a 30W high-torque copper motor, speeds of up to 4,200 RPM, nine speed levels, four massage heads and a 3,000mAh battery, while producing less than 45 dB of noise.

The bootstrapped startup follows a D2C-led model, selling through its own website and marketplaces such as Amazon. It also operates an in-house assembly facility, giving it greater control over quality and allowing it to make product changes based on consumer feedback.

In its category, Nextup directly locks horns with brands such as Cult, Dr Physio and Agaro. The brand plans to scale Pulse across online channels, build its creator and community presence and launch additional products as it expands from recovery into personal wellness and broader consumer electronics.

Nuvr | Tech-Enabled Ecommerce Growth Accelerator

Many consumer brands have mastered manufacturing and offline distribution but struggle to keep up with the moving parts of online commerce, including pricing, advertising, inventory, catalogues and quick commerce platforms. Nuvr is building an alternative to conventional ecommerce agencies by taking on the actual operation of a brand’s online business.

Founded in 2023 by Pulkit Chhabra, Bengaluru-based Nuvr initially started as an ecommerce analytics software company. Today, Nuvr works across pricing, advertising, inventory planning, catalogues, supply chains and marketplace relationships. Its technology monitors ecommerce performance at the SKU and location level, while the company’s growth accelerator model combines software with a team that acts as an extended ecommerce function for brands. Instead of charging only for services, Nuvr links part of its compensation to the revenue outcomes it delivers. 

The bootstrapped startup says it now manages more than ₹1,200 Cr in online sales for brands including Origami, Medimix, Nilon’s and CLEAR. It crossed $1 Mn in revenue in FY26 and says it is profitable, while targeting around ₹1,800 Cr in revenue under management by FY27.

Physioplus Healthcare | AI-Powered Physiotherapy Platform 

Physiotherapy is often delivered through periodic clinic sessions, with patients expected to continue exercises at home between visits. However, tracking recovery between sessions can be difficult, while physiotherapists may lack a unified view of patient progress.

Jaipur-based Physioplus Healthcare is building a technology-led platform to connect assessment, therapy, documentation and progress tracking into a single rehabilitation journey.

Founded in 2022, the startup connects patients with physiotherapists through an AI-powered symptom assessment tool that helps users describe their condition and find a suitable practitioner. Its platform supports consultations, clinical assessments, documentation and technology-enabled monitoring.

For physiotherapists, the platform brings practice management, patient records, referral management and progress tracking into one workflow. It focuses on chronic pain, musculoskeletal conditions, sports injuries and post-surgery rehabilitation.

Physioplus claims to have onboarded 1,000+ patients and recently raised strategic investment from HBF Direct Limited at an $800K valuation. It plans to use the capital to strengthen its technology, expand its physiotherapist network and grow across India.

India’s digital health and rehabilitation market is expected to reach $14.75 Bn by 2033. As organised players such as FlexifyMe, Stance Health and Rebee Health emerge, Physioplus will need to demonstrate that technology can improve consistency and tracking in a fragmented market.

Procurio | Connecting Global Buyers With Indian Manufacturing 

For global companies looking to manufacture engineering components in India, finding suppliers is only the first step. Coordinating multiple vendors, ensuring quality, tracking timelines, and managing documentation and logistics can make the process complex.

Bengaluru-based Procurio is building a managed sourcing platform to become a single point of accountability for global buyers.

Founded in 2025 by Chandru Rajendran, Procurio was born out of his experience building a drone company in India. He found that while many suppliers could manufacture parts to drawings, they often lacked ownership of quality, timelines and the wider production process.

Procurio now works with a network of more than 400 Indian suppliers across aerospace, defence and energy. It serves 12 clients across the US, Canada, the UK and Europe and has recently secured its first defence manufacturing project.

The startup manages sourcing end-to-end, including understanding requirements, assessing manufacturing feasibility, collecting quotes, selecting suppliers, overseeing production, inspecting finished parts, handling documentation and coordinating shipping. It earns a margin or commission on each order, depending on the complexity.

Operating in India’s contract manufacturing market, projected to reach $49.4 Bn by FY30, Procurio is targeting the sourcing layer connecting India’s manufacturing base with global buyers.

Protein Pantry | A World Of High-Protein Pantry Staples 

Corporate employees today juggle responsibilities across work, home and personal life, often leaving little room for balanced meals. On-the-go snacking and quick meals have become the norm, while plant-based protein options in the Indian diet remain largely limited to staples such as lentils and paneer.

Protein Pantry is looking to bridge this gap with a range of clean-label, high-protein frozen foods. Founded in 2025 by husband-and-wife duo Disha Bhattacharya and Prashanth Bhushan, the Delhi NCR-based startup offers a protein-rich portfolio spanning soya chaap, kebabs, cutlets and croquettes made with ingredients including soya, lentils, chickpeas, beetroot and sweet potato. 

The products are baked rather than fried, contain no maida, preservatives or palm oil, and can be prepared in under three minutes. Protein Pantry operates in a market projected to grow to $6.7 Bn by 2034 from $2.3 Bn in 2025.

The startup recently raised ₹9 Cr in a seed round led by Sharrp Ventures. It claims to have served around 30,000 customers and reached a revenue run rate of ₹7 Cr, with monthly revenue growing 25% MoM. Protein Pantry operates a 10,000+ sq ft facility in Noida and sells across Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Jaipur and Hyderabad through its website and quick-commerce platforms.

Protonas | Developing Low-Cost PEM Hydrogen Fuel Cells

Hydrogen fuel cells are emerging as a cleaner power source for mobility and backup applications, but high upfront costs continue to limit adoption. India’s hydrogen fuel-cell market was valued at $190 Mn in 2024, creating an opportunity for technologies that can make fuel cells more affordable.

Protonas is trying to address this gap by redesigning fuel-cell stacks and manufacturing processes for applications where batteries or diesel generators can be difficult to deploy.

Founded in 2024 by Peter David DeVries, a fuel-cell industry veteran since 1996, the Bengaluru-based startup is developing air-cooled proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells. The technology combines hydrogen and oxygen to generate electricity, with water as the only point-of-use byproduct. Protonas’ stack architecture uses fewer components and simpler cooling systems, which it says can lower manufacturing and operating costs.

The startup is developing systems for three applications: backup power, mobility and UAVs. Its 500W–2kW systems for telecom and critical infrastructure are designed to provide eight to 72 hours of backup. It is also developing fuel-cell engines for three-wheelers and delivery vehicles, alongside systems aimed at extending drone flight times.

Protonas raised an undisclosed seed round from Transition VC in 2024 and is now building its engineering and manufacturing operations in Bengaluru. It competes with players such as Ballard Power Systems, Plug Power and Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies, while focusing on lower-cost, air-cooled systems for emerging markets.

Quivly AI | Putting Post-Sales On Autopilot

Winning a software customer is only the beginning of the relationship. Post-sales teams often spend hours tracking product usage, support conversations, billing signals and account changes to spot churn risks or expansion opportunities. San Francisco-based Quivly AI is using autonomous agents to automate this work.

Founded in 2024 by Chandrika Maheshwari and Tanay Agrawal, the startup is building an AI workforce for customer success and account management teams. Its agents monitor customer signals and surface actions for teams across onboarding, account management, expansion and renewals.

Quivly operates in the global customer-success software market, projected to reach $8.95 Bn by 2035. Quivly is taking a more automation-led approach to the category, with its agents designed to go beyond surfacing customer intelligence and help translate those signals into actions for post-sales teams.

SitePace.AI | Visual Intelligence Platform For Builders 

Project managers need to track multiple, sprawling construction sites at once, often relying on fragmented information sources like photographs, manual reporting and site visits, which can delay decision-making and stretch timelines. 

To solve this, Mumbai-based SitePace.AI is building an AI-powered visual layer for construction that lets teams capture, map and revisit a site remotely, giving project managers a continuous view of progress without being physically present.

Founded in 2023, SitePace.ai uses 360-degree cameras, computer vision and AI to turn site walks into time-stamped, floor-linked visual records. Workers can mount a 360-degree camera on their helmets and capture the site as they move through it, with the platform automatically organising the footage against floor plans and dates. Teams can then remotely navigate the site, compare progress across dates, add location-specific notes and collaborate through virtual walkthroughs.

The platform is expanding beyond visual documentation, with its product line now including AI-powered CCTV monitoring, drone intelligence and an AI chatbot called IntelliViz that allows users to interact with site information. The company is also developing computer-vision capabilities for automated progress tracking, defect detection and safety monitoring.

SitePace operates on a subscription-based SaaS model, with plans priced according to project requirements. It claims its technology can cut inspection time by 48% and manual effort by 95%.

Sol Foundry | Automating Tasks Buried In Your Inbox

Teams are getting faster at producing work, but that does not necessarily mean fewer things fall through the cracks. An email promising to share a deck, coordinate a meeting or research a question can create another task that still depends on someone remembering to act on it. Sol Foundry is building an AI layer around these “open loops”, aiming to turn commitments made in email into completed work.

Founded in 2025 by former CRED executives Anish Karan, Ranjith Nair and Prateek Srivastava, Sol is developing a proactive AI assistant that scans Gmail for commitments and works on the tasks outlined. Instead of waiting for a user to write a prompt, Sol can identify a commitment such as “I’ll send the deck” and begin preparing the underlying work. The user retains final approval before anything is sent or acted upon.

The assistant operates through its own computer environment, with access to the web and more than 100 specialist skills. It can research a question, pull together information from multiple email threads, prepare documents or presentations, coordinate calendars and draft replies using existing context. The product currently integrates with Google Workspace, while Outlook is being tested with a smaller group of users.

Having raised $4 Mn, Sol Foundry is presently in the pre-revenue stage. It plans to build adoption among individual professionals and power users in the US first, before taking the product to enterprises. It is part of the global agentic AI market, projected to reach $224.5 Bn by 2033, with thousands of startups across the globe optimising for tasks humans most dread, including executing emailed promises. 

As of now, Sol Foundry needs to demonstrate that its agents can reliably close workplace loops without creating new ones, particularly as it moves from individual users to enterprises.

SORRY SUGAR | Sugar Free Coffee Goodness 

Coffee is often seen as an indulgence, and adding sugar to improve its taste can make a simple morning cup feel even more like a guilty pleasure. Gurugram-based SORRY SUGAR is looking to change that with instant coffee blends that use monk fruit instead of added sugar.

Founded in 2026 by Deepak Pathak, Kunal Verma, Shashank Sehrawat and Saiyam Malik, the brand offers zero sugar, fibre-rich and prebiotic coffee options. The startup recently raised $1 Mn in its first seed round, led by the Dhanuka family and Amishi London. 

It claims to have crossed ₹1 Cr in revenue in its first month and currently operates three offline stores across Delhi NCR. Sorry Sugar is targeting an ARR of more than ₹60 Cr by the end of the current financial year, as it continues to scale across D2C, quick commerce and offline retail.

The brand is entering a crowded coffee market, estimated at $1.05 Bn in 2025 and projected to reach $1.63 Bn by 2031. While newer brands are competing on taste, strength and specialised origins, SORRY SUGAR is targeting consumers looking for a lower-sugar alternative to an everyday beverage.

Space Philic | Building A Reusable Launch Vehicle

As India’s private space sector takes off, getting small satellites into orbit remains an expensive and technically complex proposition. 

Operating in India’s satellite launch services market, estimated to reach $1.58 Bn by 2033, Kanpur-based Space Philic is looking to address the cost and sustainability challenge with reusable launch vehicles powered by an indigenous, bio-based propulsion system.

Founded in 2022 by Indra Narayan Chaudhary, the startup is developing RUPAK, a 28-metre reusable launch vehicle designed to carry payloads of up to 250 kg to low-Earth orbit. The rocket features a carbon-fibre booster and retractable landing legs, allowing it to return to Earth, land and be relaunched. 

The vehicle is powered by Space Philic’s Shakti engine, a 32 kN bi-propellant, electric-fed rocket engine. The startup says its selective laser melting-based manufacturing process reduces part count and weight, while the electric-pump architecture eliminates the need for turbopumps. 

Beyond satellite launches, Space Philic is developing payload platforms for scientific experiments, material and biological research, and defence missions. Its defence platform is designed for rapid-response launches, with the company targeting deployment of defence payloads within 24 hours.

Space Philic operates in the competitive Indian launch market alongside Skyroot Aerospace and Agnikul Cosmos, with reusability and electric-fed propulsion forming the core of its approach to launch economics.

SuperErgo | Revolutionising The Modern Workspace

As desk jobs replace physically demanding work, long hours at a workstation can still take a toll on the body. But setting up an ergonomic workspace often means paying a premium for specialised furniture. SuperErgo is building a D2C brand to make ergonomic chairs, desks and accessories more accessible to Indian consumers.

Founded in 2024 by Nihar Lohiya, the brand offers ergonomic office chairs, sit-stand desks and workspace accessories. Its chairs range from ₹14,999 to ₹69,999, while desks start at ₹24,999. Its products are BIFMA-certified and come with a five-year warranty and doorstep installation.

SuperErgo is also building a wider workspace ecosystem with products including footrests, standing mats, desk shelves and cable organisers. It primarily sells through its website, while experience centres operate across Bengaluru, Delhi NCR, Mumbai and Pune.

The brand has also expanded offline through Pepperfry, with a presence across 16 stores in eight cities. It claims this omnichannel model has helped keep its return rate below 2%.

India’s office furniture market was valued at $5.3 Bn in 2025 and is projected to reach $9.1 Bn by 2031. In this space, SuperErgo competes with established brands and ergonomic players such as Green Soul and ErgoSmart.

UnORG | Bringing Digital Procurement To India’s Street-Food

While 10-minute delivery has become common for consumer products in India’s top cities, street-food vendors and small food businesses still rely on multiple intermediaries, manual price comparisons and repeated trips to source supplies.

Founded in 2022, Lucknow-based UnORG is building a digital procurement platform that brings these requirements onto a single interface. Vendors can purchase essentials across categories, compare product variants, schedule deliveries and track orders through the app.

Initially focused on groceries and raw materials for street-food vendors, dhabas and sweet shops, UnORG has expanded its network and now operates five warehouses across North India. Its model targets smaller food businesses that often lack the purchasing power and supply-chain infrastructure of larger restaurant chains.

The platform also offers local-language access, personalised recommendations, expense tracking, a savings calculator, smart carts and a portal for relevant government schemes. It supports both wholesale and smaller-quantity purchases, with doorstep delivery aimed at reducing the time vendors spend sourcing supplies.

UnORG claims to serve 3,000+ customers across 10+ categories and has completed more than 125,000 deliveries. It serves India’s unorganised food-services segment, projected to reach ₹4.57 Lakh Cr by FY28.

Verifaix | Making Chip Verification Faster With AI 

Chip design complexity is intensifying as the hardware gets embedded across electronic equipment with increased demands for power, speed, and intelligence. However, verifying that every component behaves exactly as intended can take months and consume a large share of the development cycle.

The pain becomes more acute as AI is increasingly being used to generate hardware designs and verification code, with no independent way to prove that the outputs are correct. VerifAIX is building an AI-powered verification layer designed to bridge that gap. 

Founded in 2024 by Madhulima Tewari and Kenneth Roe, the startup has developed a “Formal Brain” that creates a grounded model of a chip from its specifications, RTL code, and verification assets. 

Its agentic AI platform then uses this model to generate verification plans, testbenches, assertions and coverage workflows. Its system also checks whether the design matches the original specifications, helping engineers catch problems earlier in the development cycle and ensure a chip behaves as intended. 

Its agentic AI platform uses this model to generate verification plans, testbenches, assertions and coverage workflows. It also checks whether the design aligns with the original specifications, helping engineers identify issues earlier.

Having raised $5 Mn in its seed round, Verifaix locks horns with players such as Synopsys, Cadence and Siemens in the global EDA software market, projected to reach $35.6 Bn by 2034.

With inputs from Venu Rathore
Edited by Shishir Parasher
Creatives by Abhyam Gusai & Varshita Srivastava

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