Venture capital firm Speciale Invest has closed its third fund at ₹600 crore, exceeding its initial target of ₹500 crore, reflecting growing investor interest in early-stage deep-technology companies. The fund will support 18 to 20 start-ups over the next four years in sectors including space, advanced manufacturing, energy, health, and artificial intelligence.
This closing positions Speciale among India’s largest pre-seed deep-tech investors. The firm plans to lead early funding rounds and back founders through the longer development cycles that are common in hardware and science-based ventures.
“We believe the next generation of global champions will emerge from India’s labs, R&D centres, and workshops,” said Vishesh Rajaram, managing partner, Speciale Invest. “In a geopolitically complex and technologically interdependent world, building for India’s resilience and sovereign capabilities is not just a national imperative—it is also a generational venture opportunity.”
With Fund III, the firm aims to strengthen investments in sovereign-tech and deep-tech areas such as space technology, dual-use defence innovation, frontier computing, and sustainable energy, ensuring these innovations are competitive globally from the start.
The fund has received strong backing from returning limited partners, including family offices, institutions, and strategic investors, who share long-term confidence in India’s deep-tech potential.
“Deep-tech represents one of the most exciting frontiers for venture capital in India,” said Arjun Rao, partner, Speciale Invest. “The combination of world-class technical talent, increasing policy support, and global market access has created an unprecedented window to back companies solving some of humanity’s most complex challenges from India.”
Speciale highlighted that in an era of rapid technological change, supply chain shifts, and geopolitical challenges, the ability to design, develop, and deploy critical technologies independently is crucial for national security and economic stability. Key focus areas include space-based infrastructure, secure communications, quantum technologies, advanced manufacturing, clean energy, and dual-use defence innovation.
Since its launch in 2018, Speciale Invest has been the first institutional investor in several leading Indian deep-tech start-ups, including Agnikul Cosmos, the ePlane Company, GalaxEye, QNu Labs, Fermbox, Inspecity, and Newtrace. The firm has also helped founders navigate policy frameworks, global certifications, and dual-use markets to ensure Indian technologies meet and exceed international standards.
Also read: Viksit Workforce for a Viksit Bharat
Do Follow: The Mainstream formerly known as CIO News LinkedIn Account | The Mainstream formerly known as CIO News Facebook | The Mainstream formerly known as CIO News Youtube | The Mainstream formerly known as CIO News Twitter |The Mainstream formerly known as CIO News Whatsapp Channel | The Mainstream formerly known as CIO News Instagram
About us:
The Mainstream formerly known as CIO News is a premier platform dedicated to delivering latest news, updates, and insights from the tech industry. With its strong foundation of intellectual property and thought leadership, the platform is well-positioned to stay ahead of the curve and lead conversations about how technology shapes our world. From its early days as CIO News to its rebranding as The Mainstream on November 28, 2024, it has been expanding its global reach, targeting key markets in the Middle East & Africa, ASEAN, the USA, and the UK. The Mainstream is a vision to put technology at the center of every conversation, inspiring professionals and organizations to embrace the future of tech.
