How Cusmat's immersive skilling platform is driving productivity and efficiency among blue-collared workers
Bengaluru-based Cusmat offers an AI-powered platform that uses technologies such as augmented reality and virtual reality to train people employed in the manufacturing and logistics sectors.
As the manufacturing sector in India and globally continues to grow, the need for a skilled workforce has become more crucial than ever. A well-trained workforce ensures operational reliability, thus minimising errors and downtime in critical processes.
Bengaluru-based skilling startup Cusmat is trying to ensure this by helping the industrial workforce—especially blue-collared workers—understand their jobs better and upskill themselves through cutting-edge technologies.
Cusmat’s AI-powered training platform uses technologies such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR) to deliver skilling solutions for operational roles in enterprises. It suggests areas in which trainees can improve themselves, according to their company’s requirements, and gives actionable insights to trainers on the skills gaps in the workforce.
Cusmat was founded by Abhinav Ayan and Anirban Jyoti Chakravorty, who set it up right after college.
Back in 2016, while studying at NIT Warangal, Ayan and Chakravarthy identified a critical gap in how fluid mechanics was taught. Despite their professor’s expertise, the traditional 2D whiteboard approach did not effectively convey the intricacies of a 3D concept, which essentially deals with how fluids flow in three dimensions. This realisation highlighted the broader issue of knowledge gaps within academia and sparked the duo's desire to address it.
During their internships, Ayan and Chakravarthy also observed the consequences of inadequate understanding at the industrial workplace. A series of safety related incidents and a tragic accident at an industrial site underscored the importance of foundational knowledge, driving them to plunge into action immediately.
The duo set out to develop an innovative solution that would enhance the skills of individuals while driving growth and safety at the workplace. Their extensive research and efforts eventually led to the creation of Cusmat in 2016 to upskill people, bridge knowledge gaps, and improve workplace safety.
“Enterprises typically use methods like videos and buddy-based training for operational roles but these methods are beset with shortcomings like limited retention and lack of objective measurability,” explains Ayan.
“We wanted to create a medium to understand concepts that extend into the third dimension intuitively, through simulation and fun learning experiences, rather than unidirectional information blasts through videos, PPTs and PDFs. We wanted to build a tech platform where people can learn by doing important stuff through video-game-like simulation,” he adds.
Identifying gaps and upskilling
The startup’s immersive skilling platform is designed to address the needs of sectors such as mining, steel, logistics, and manufacturing. It offers four skilling modules that help employees operate complex, high-cost machinery with improved proficiency and safety.
SkillSight is an intelligent analytics engine which identifies skill gaps by analysing employees’ tasks on the ground and recommends paths using AI for learners to improve their skills and tide over shortcomings.
SkillOps is a hands-on training solution that uses realistic hardware and simulation that replicates real-world processes to help workers master the use of critical equipment like cranes (used in steel plants and ports), forklifts (at warehouses), and winders (found in mines).
SkillEdge, which is delivered via mobile phones and tablets, uses simulations for practical, measurable learning. It’s used to onboard and train personnel in the logistics sector and people employed in repair and maintenance in bottling plants. It is also used to upskill technicians in use of heavy equipment such as excavators and loaders.
SkillPro uses VR/MR headsets to provide immersive training on safety protocols and hands-on tasks such as repairs and operations on the shop floor and assembly line. This is particularly effective in centralised environments such as factories, warehouses, and mines, where trainees converge for their roles.
These modules are targeted at blue-collar workers such as forklift and crane operators, service technicians, and gig workers in delivery roles. An AI agent provides personalised suggestions to trainees to improve their skills according to their organisation’s needs.
Applications and impact
Cusmat claims to improve business outcomes by offering measurable metrics and insights, unlike existing training methods that are “passive” and “not measurable”.
“Unlike traditional ‘learn by watching’ methods, our approach emphasises learning by doing. It has helped industries close the skills gap and improve crucial business metrics that have a positive influence on both the top line and bottom line as well as employee morale,” says Ayan.
He adds that Cusmat’s solutions drive faster on-boarding and skilling, higher efficiency, and greater safety at the workplace.
Ayan cites the example of the logistics industry to elaborate on the impact that skilling can create.
Faster on-boarding is a huge game-changer for the courier express parcel services industry, especially during the peak season when it on-boards a number of gig workers in delivery roles. “Workers can be quickly skilled and become productive so that they meet customer service level agreements significantly sooner than ever before,” he says.
New recruits who have undergone simulation training achieve the minimum expected number of daily error-free deliveries in a week’s time vis-a-vis the 10 weeks it took when they were trained using videos. VR-based training also boosts worker retention rates, he adds.
Cusmat has trained around 1.8 lakh workers over the last four years.
Business model and growth plan
The startup offers enterprises a subscription-based model, providing them access to its training platform and AI agent. The pricing varies regionally, with India being in the middle of the maturity curve for this product segment, says Ayan.
“The system is subscription-based, with prices starting at around Rs 10 lakh-12 lakh and scaling up to Rs 2.5 crore, depending on the number of skills and users,” he adds.
The platform has 56 enterprise customers currently, 48 in India, 8 across APAC & GCC. It operates across sectors such as manufacturing , FMCG, steel plants, packaging and bottling, mining, and logistics. Its clients include Schneider Electric, Coca-Cola, Tata Steel, DTDC and DHL.
Cusmat has so far raised $4.2 million in funding from Arkam Ventures, Capria Ventures (formerly Unitus), Better Capital, Venture Catalysts, MapMyIndia, and others. It last raised its Series A round in 2023.
Bala Srinivasa, MD, Arkam, says, “Cusmat’s cutting-edge AR product, accessible via smartphone, has significantly enhanced customer adoption, making high-quality training both scalable and impactful across diverse industries.”
Cusmat competes with AutoVRse, an Indian company specialising in augmented and virtual reality solutions, and global players such as Interplay Learning, Pixo VR, and Talespin.
The firm plans to take SkillEdge and SkillPro to the United States, specifically for the courier, express logistics, and parcel industry.
“Industries are expanding fast globally, and large organisations have gained confidence in immersive skilling and suitable technology that scales and gives expected ROI. The timing is right for us to go global with SkillEdge and SkillPro with proven use cases. AI integration is going to supercharge value creation for our customers, helping learners understand faster and upskill better,” says Ayan.
Edited by Swetha Kannan