Elevation Capital has announced a new investment plan with a total corpus of $900 million (around Rs 8,595 crore), showing its strong confidence in India’s fast-growing startup ecosystem. Instead of using one large fund, the venture capital firm has launched two separate investment funds—one for early-stage startups and another for companies preparing for stock market listings.
The announcement comes at a time when artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming one of the biggest growth areas for Indian startups. Elevation Capital believes India’s biggest opportunity is not in building large AI models but in creating useful AI-powered products and solutions that solve real business problems.
With this fresh funding, the company plans to support startups working in healthcare, fintech, enterprise software, education, consumer technology, defence, robotics, climate technology, and advanced manufacturing.
Two Separate Funds for Different Stages of Growth
Elevation Capital has divided its latest fundraising into two dedicated investment funds.
The first is Fund IX, worth $500 million (around Rs 4,775 crore). This fund will invest in early-stage startups, mainly at the Seed and Series A stages. The firm has also increased the amount it can invest in promising startups. Earlier, it usually invested between $2 million and $5 million in a company. Now, it can invest up to $10 million in selected startups to help founders grow faster and build stronger businesses.
The second fund, called Elevation Holdings, is worth $400 million (around Rs 3,820 crore). It will invest in companies that are already profitable or close to profitability and are expected to go public within the next three years.
Elevation Holdings plans to invest in only 10 to 15 companies, with investment sizes ranging from $20 million to $50 million. Unlike many investors who exit after a company gets listed, Elevation Capital plans to remain a long-term shareholder for 10 to 15 years. The fund has already made its first investment in used-car platform Spinny.
Together, these two funds make Elevation Capital one of the largest venture capital investors focused on Indian startups.
AI Applications Become the Firm’s Biggest Investment Focus
Artificial intelligence has become the biggest investment theme for Elevation Capital over the past 18 months. Nearly two-thirds of the firm’s recent investments have been in AI startups.
However, the company is following a different strategy from many global investors. Instead of investing in startups building large language models (LLMs), it wants to support businesses that use existing AI models to create practical products and services.
Elevation Capital believes India has a better chance of leading in AI applications than in developing foundation models. It sees huge opportunities for AI solutions in healthcare, enterprise software, financial services, education and consumer technology.
The firm is also investing in deep-tech sectors such as defence technology, space technology, robotics, energy, climate technology and precision manufacturing.
Its confidence comes as India’s AI sector continues to grow rapidly. Indian AI startups raised more than $1 billion during the first half of 2026, showing strong investor interest.
Elevation Capital’s latest report on AI adoption also shows that startups are increasing their AI spending. According to the survey, 86% of founders plan to increase AI budgets in 2026, while more than half expect to more than double their investment.
Most founders said AI is helping improve productivity and speed up product development. However, only a small number said AI has directly increased sales or customer conversions so far.
The report also found that engineering teams are using AI the most, followed by product and marketing teams. At the same time, nearly half of the founders said AI has led to hiring freezes or smaller teams in some departments, especially for entry-level engineering and marketing jobs.
More AI Investments and IPO Plans Ahead
Elevation Capital has already invested in several AI startups that match its application-first strategy.
Some of its recent investments include Portkey, an AI platform that helps businesses manage large language models, enterprise software startup UnifyApps, AI integration platform Composio, healthcare startup Synthio Labs, hyperlocal AI company Zoca, Adopt AI, GreyLabs AI, Maxim AI and AI learning platform SpeakX.
On the late-stage side, the firm expects companies such as Acko, Mintifi, Spinny and The Souled Store to move closer to IPOs over the next few quarters.
The company has also made successful exits from older investments. Earlier this year, it sold around 5.6 million shares in Paytm through bulk deals, earning nearly Rs 964 crore.
Originally known as SAIF Partners India, Elevation Capital has invested in more than 150 startups over the years. Its portfolio includes some of India’s biggest technology companies, such as Swiggy, Paytm, Meesho and Urban Company.
With its new investment strategy, Elevation Capital is making it clear that it sees the next phase of India’s startup growth being driven by practical AI solutions, deep-tech innovation and founders building products that solve real business challenges.