IITM-backed deeptech fund raises Rs 453 cr in first close

BENGALURU: IIT Madras and venture capital firm Unicorn India Ventures have announced the first close of about Rs 450 crore for their Rs 1,000-crore deeptech fund, with roughly a third of the capital coming from overseas investors. The fund will back capital-intensive startups that can take years to reach commercial scale.IITM Unicorn Frontier Fund I, announced earlier this year with a target corpus of Rs 1,000 crore, has already deployed nearly Rs 55 crore across four companies – quantum startup Quanstra, spacetech firm Hathor Rocket, battery startup Triolt Energy and carbon-capture company Carbelim. Individual cheques have ranged from Rs 10 crore to Rs 20 crore.Bhaskar Majumdar, managing partner at Unicorn India Ventures, told TOI that most of the fund’s capital so far has come from individuals and family offices rather than institutional investors. About a third of the first-close capital has come from overseas investors and the remaining two-thirds from India, he said. IIT Madras alumni have played a significant role in the fundraise, though the fund has not disclosed individual LP names.