[Funding roundup] Fractal, Living Food, Thinkerbell Labs, Trainman, and others

Living Food raises $7.5 million in Series A funding from Amasia

Bengaluru based fresh food retailer, Living Food on Wednesday raised $7.5 million in a Series A funding round from Silicon Valley-headquartered sustainability and climate-focused venture capital fund Amasia, the companies said.

Investors including SOSV, Blume Founders Fund, and notable angel investors including Sid Yog of Xander Group and Sandeep Singhal, Co-founder of Nexus Venture Partners also participated in the round.

Living Food said it will utilise the capital to expand to Mumbai in early 2022 and other markets in the country, as well as expand its team, improve logistics and tech offerings and launch new brands.

Founded in 2018 by Akash Sajith, Living Food started out as a hydroponic farm in the founder’s Bengaluru apartment. Currently, the platform offers over 700 SKUs (Stock Keeping Units) across 24 categories including seasonal fruits, greens, fresh bread, artisanal chocolates, spreads, sauces, cold-pressed oil and others. It also runs a cloud kitchen, using produce sold on the platform.

Amasia’s Managing Director, John Kim, had previously invested in Living Food in a seed round in 2020.

Social media startup Bolo Live raises $2.4 million in pre-Series A

Social live-streaming platform Bolo Live raised $2.4 million in a pre-Series A round from Orios Venture Partners, it said on Wednesday, adding SOSV, Tremis Capital, LPA Ventures, and other HNIs also participated in the round.

The funds raised will be put towards further developing the product, strengthening the team, and increasing presence in India and South Asia, the startup said in a press release.

Launched in 2019 by Varun Saxena, Bolo Live is a vernacular short videos sharing platform that allows content creators to create videos across categories such as astrology, lifestyle, fitness, singing, dancing, comedy, and instrument learning, among others. The platform USP is the host of languages it offers content in.

Train travel app Trainman raises undisclosed angel funding from BharatPe CTO, Mall 91 CEO, others

Gurugram-based Trainman said it has raised an undisclosed amount in funding from angels such as BharatPe CTO Vijay Aggarwal, Mall 91 CEO Nitin Gupta, Kanodia Cement director, Vishal Kanodia, and others.

The startup said it will use the funds to enhance and optimise its platform for train travellers, as well as expand its reach in tier III and tier IV markets.

“The 50 percent month-on-month increasing revenue has already put Trainman competing with the likes of established players in the industry,” said Karan Kumar, Co-founder of Trainman.

Founded by IIT Roorkee graduates Karan and his co-founder Vineet Chirania, Trainman is IRCTC’s official train booking partner. It helps travellers book tickets, find seat availability, discern coach positions and calculate fares, among other things.

AI startup Fractal raises $360 million from TPG

Provider of AI and advanced analytics solutions Fractal said TPG is investing $360 million in the company through its Asia-focused investment platform.

The transaction includes a mix of primary and secondary share purchase from funds advised by buyout firm and Fractal’s existing investor, Apax Partners, which will continue to remain a major shareholder after the transaction.

TPG executives Puneet Bhatia and Vivek Mohan will join Fractal’s board as part of the deal, and TPG and Apax will continue to be minority shareholders in the company, the New York-headquartered startup said.

Pranay Agarwal, co-founder and CEO of Fractal said the partnership with TPG will help it scale more broadly, especially outside of India, as well as meet the rising demand for AI solutions.

Logistics automation startup Falcon Autotech raises investment from Delhivery

Falcon Autotech said it has raised an undisclosed amount in funding from logistics services player, Delhivery. The deal will help Falcon Autotech integrate its hardware automated solutions with Delivery’s SaaS platform, which the latter has been trying to grow in India, as well as in international markets.

Inclusive education startup Thinkerbell Labs raises investment on Shark Tank India

Thinkerbell Labs, a Bengaluru-based startup that uses technology to help visually impaired kids self-learn their curriculum in Braille, has raised Rs 1.05 crore from Lenskart founder Peyush Bansal, Emcure executive director Namita Thapar, and People Group founder Anupam Mittal.

The startup’s proprietary device Annie helps students learn, read, and type braille, making it easier for them to write examinations and complete assignments. It has been founded by Sanskriti Dawle, Aman Srivastava, Saif Shaikh, and Dilip Ramesh.