Aum Ventures has raised Rs. 225 crore in the first close of its new DeepTech-focused fund, giving fresh momentum to India’s growing hard-tech startup market. The fund, called India Innovation Fund II, has a larger target corpus of Rs. 750 crore.

This is an important development because DeepTech startups do not grow like regular consumer apps. They often need years of research, testing, engineering and customer validation before they become large businesses. A rocket company, a semiconductor startup or an advanced robotics firm cannot be built with quick experiments alone.

Aum Ventures wants to back such companies early, when the idea is still taking shape but the technology is strong. The fund will focus on Indian founders building original technology that can compete not only in India, but also in global markets.

What Aum Ventures has announced

Aum Ventures has completed the first close of Rs. 225 crore for India Innovation Fund II. The fund is targeting Rs. 750 crore in total and will invest mainly in pre-seed and seed-stage startups.

The fund plans to back around 25 to 30 companies. Initial cheque sizes are expected to be between $750,000 and $2 million. Aum also plans to keep capital aside for follow-on rounds, which means it can support its stronger portfolio companies later at Series A and Series B stages.

According to YourStory, more than 65 percent of the first-close commitments came from international limited partners across markets such as the US and the Middle East. Limited partners are the investors who put money into a venture capital fund.

This global backing is important. It shows that overseas investors are taking Indian DeepTech more seriously than before.

Founders and background

Aum Ventures was founded in 2022 by Chetan Mehta. The firm is based in Mumbai and focuses on early-stage, IP-led startups. IP means intellectual property, which can include patents, proprietary designs, specialized software, scientific research or engineering know-how.

Nisha Shah is General Partner at Aum Ventures and is part of the leadership team. The firm’s wider team also includes professionals working across investment, finance, investor relations and portfolio support.

Aum’s first fund was launched in 2023. As per reports, the firm says Fund I has delivered a gross MOIC of 2.23x and a gross IRR of 53 percent. In simple language, MOIC shows how much the value of invested capital has multiplied, while IRR is a return measure based on time.

What is the aim of the fund?

The main aim of the Aum Ventures DeepTech Fund is to help Indian founders build serious technology companies from the earliest stage.

The fund will focus on sectors like space technology, semiconductors, defence technology, artificial intelligence, robotics, energy transition and advanced manufacturing. These are areas where India wants to become stronger over the next decade.

The purpose is not just to write cheques. DeepTech founders often need help with hiring, product planning, industry partnerships, global customers, government relationships and future fundraising. A fund with a focused thesis can support founders better than a general investor who may not understand long research cycles.

For example, a chip startup may need money for design, testing and fabrication support. A space startup may need capital for hardware, launch readiness and regulatory work. A robotics startup may need years of trials before large industrial customers trust the product.

That is why patient capital matters.

Why DeepTech funding is different

A food delivery app can test a new city quickly. A software company can launch a product online and get early users in weeks. DeepTech is different.

Here, the product may involve physics, hardware, manufacturing, safety testing or advanced science. Mistakes can be expensive. Timelines are longer. Teams need deep technical talent. Customers may also take longer to sign because the product has to work reliably in the real world.

This is why early-stage DeepTech funds are important. They understand that the first few years may be spent proving the technology before revenue becomes large.

Aum Ventures appears to be betting on this exact gap. It wants to enter early, support founders through difficult development stages and help them reach global markets.

Portfolio signals and Skyroot example

Skyroot Aerospace is one of the strongest examples in Aum’s portfolio story. Aum was an early institutional investor in the spacetech company.

Skyroot’s Vikram-I became the first privately developed Indian rocket to reach orbit from Indian soil on July 18, 2026. Earlier, in May 2026, Skyroot also became India’s first spacetech startup to reach a $1 billion valuation after raising $60 million.

This example matters because it shows the type of startup Aum wants to support. These are not companies built only for short-term trends. They are companies trying to create new technology categories from India.

Aum has also backed companies such as Azimuth AI, Cosmoserve Space and Sharang Shakti, according to earlier reports and the firm’s own public material.

Government support is helping the sector

Aum’s fundraise is happening at a time when India is putting more policy support behind DeepTech.

India’s Rs. 1 lakh crore Research, Development and Innovation Fund was approved in 2025 to encourage private-sector participation in high-risk research and development. The report also mentioned Startup India Fund of Funds 2.0 with a Rs. 10,000 crore corpus, which includes DeepTech and innovative manufacturing.

The government has also created a dedicated Deep Tech Startup category. This matters because DeepTech startups take longer to mature than normal startups. The recognition age limit has been extended to 20 years, while the turnover limit has been raised to Rs. 300 crore.

In semiconductors, the Cabinet approved Semicon 2.0 in July with an outlay of Rs. 1,27,500 crore. When public support and private capital move together, founders get a better chance to build long-term companies.

Competitors and market context

Aum Ventures is entering a busier DeepTech investment market. Several funds are now looking at sectors like AI, semiconductors, space, defence and advanced manufacturing.

Piper Serica recently raised Rs. 300 crore in the first close of its Rs. 800 crore Bharat Tech Fund. Other investors such as Inflexor Ventures, Navam Capital and deeptech-focused early-stage funds are also active in this space.

This competition is healthy for founders. More funds mean more choices, better sector understanding and stronger follow-on capital.

But it also means investors will be selective. DeepTech startups will still need to prove that their technology can become a real business. Strong engineering is important, but commercial clarity is equally important.

Conclusion – Key takeaways

Aum Ventures’ Rs. 225 crore first close is a strong signal for India’s DeepTech startup ecosystem. The fund is targeting Rs. 750 crore and plans to invest in 25 to 30 early-stage companies across space, semiconductors, AI, defence, robotics, energy transition and advanced manufacturing.

The fund’s real purpose is to support founders who are building hard, original and globally relevant technology from India. These companies may take longer to scale, but their impact can be much deeper if they succeed.

For India, this marks a shift in startup funding. The next wave may not come only from consumer apps or quick digital products. It may come from labs, factories, launchpads, chip design teams and engineering floors.