[Funding alert] Sapio Analytics receives $150K from media conglomerate

Sapio Analytics, a data driven government advisory firm with presence in the UK, the US, and India, has raised $150,000 through an association with Indeed Smart City, a unit of Dentsu Aegis Network Communications India Private Limited. 

The funding came in the form of a co-ownership in its artificially intelligent product that acts as a Virtual City Administration system. The system is currently being developed for the smart city of Lucknow through a pilot arrangement, and has been conceptualised for the smart city of Nagpur. The newly-raised capital will be used towards product development, particularly machine learning modules.

Dentsu Aegis Network Communications is a part of the larger Dentsu Aegis Network group, which is controlled by the Japanese advertising and media relations firm Dentsu. The group has presence in 145 countries through its various subsidiaries and divisions.

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Along with the funding, the Mumbai-headquartered firm has also inducted new leaders to its global advisory board. The company said in a statement that the role of the global advisory board is to help create nation building products using the intelligence of some of the greatest world leaders. 

Lord Rami Ranger CBE, Lt General KJ Singh PVSM, and Dr Dinesh Tryambake are the leaders confirmed to have joined Sapio.

"All our innovations are tied by our common vision of creating nation-building products driven by proprietary tools of data analytics and AI. We are redefining the way governance is done and policies are made. Now, with support from Indeed Smart City that came in a few months ago and our new board members who have just joined, we will create a future that will impact billions of lives,” said Hardik Somani, COO of Sapio. 

Lt Gen KJ Singh, former commander-in-chief of the Western Commands in the Indian Army and later an advisor to various governments, is expected to provide his guidance to Sapio's strategies with a particular focus on Sapio's intelligence and defence focused operations. 

Dr Dinesh Tryambake, a medical researcher and a former consultant to the United Kingdom National Health Service, shall also be a part of the board. Sapio Analytics has a division called Sapio Smart Hospitals where it is creating an impact in the healthcare industry through formation of smart hospitals. Dr Tryambake is expected to provide his inputs to this division besides steering the global expansion of the company.

Lord Rami Ranger CBE, Baron of Mayfair, an Indian-origin British leader and member of the House of Lords UK, shall advise Sapio on its decision and policy support systems. 

The Lord Ranger CBE, as he is widely known by his title, is also the founder of Sun Mark group, a multinational marketing and distribution company with operations in more than 120 countries. He is also known for authoring From Nothing to Everything, his memoir. 

Sapio was founded in 2018 by government advisor and venture capitalist Ashwin Srivastava, serial entrepreneur Hardik Somani, IIT Bombay alumnus and data science expert Arpit Palod, civil engineer Viral Vora, and construction magnate Shripal Jain.

It has a team of former civil servants, government advisors, and data scientists. Sapio is creating a data and AI driven governance ecosystem replicating all departments of governments, with more than 15 different nation building products spanning divisions including healthcare, intelligence, city administration, among others, all controlled by a common base of technologies.

It counts Government of India body TIFAC, Government of Telangana, Government of Uttar Pradesh, amongst some of its clients; and claims to have generated assets and contracts worth more than Rs 160 crore since its inception.