Accel to invest up to $1 million in pre-seed start-ups in AI, Bharat, with Accel Atoms 4.0

Global VC company Accel has announced the launch of its pre-seed scaling program Accel Atoms 4.0.

The program will target start-ups operating in two categories of pre-seed start-ups— artificial intelligence as well as ‘Bharat’-focused start-ups working in sectors including ecommerce, financial services, healthcare and edtech among others.

Accel will be investing up to $1 million in the selected start-ups through equity or convertible note, along with perks worth $5 million.

Innovative founders will leverage the infrastructural advancements in these regions to create scalable, economically feasible solutions tailored to Bharat’s evolving needs. With Accel Atoms 4.0, we are excited to give founders the guidance, network of support, and capital to succeed at delivering solutions to the underserved audience in Bharat,” said Anand Daniel, Partner at Accel.

For the AI ​​cohort, Accel is looking for start-ups by Indian-origin founders based anywhere in the world building companies that are using AI innovatively for business applications or building development tools for the AI ​​ecosystem.

This includes companies building compelling use cases across the AI ​​stack: from the foundational layer (small language models on the edge, data & models for modalities like video & robotics, and more) to the infrastructure layer (testing tools & frameworks, securing complex LLM -powered systems, etc.) and application layer (core AI models & agents across use cases).

For the Bharat cohort, Accel is looking to back founders building for Bharat across sectors. The global VC fund is looking at emerging e-commerce companies (building efficient supply chains and/or the right customer experience); financial services start-ups targeting individuals or businesses in Bharat; healthcare platforms and solutions making healthcare accessible and affordable; ed-tech, upskilling and recruitment platforms; OTT and content platforms; and emerging Bharat-first brands.

Applications for the Accel Atoms 4.0 opens next Monday (September 16) and will close on November 17.

It is pertinent to note that this will be Accel’s second AI cohort to be led by Accel’s partner Prayank Swaroop.

In March, the VC company selected eight start-ups, including Spintly, Asets and Tune AI, among others, for its six-month pre-seed accelerator program Atoms 3.0. The program focused on startups building in AI and Industry 5.0 domains.

In the first three Accel Atoms cohorts, over 32 start-ups have collectively raised over $200 million from global investors so far.