Mumbai and Denver-based CometChat, a cloud-based platform, on Wednesday said it has raised $1.6 million (around Rs 12 crore) in its seed funding round.
The funds were raised, among others, from iSeed Ventures, the micro fund floated by Utsav Somani, the India head of US-based investment crowdfunding platform AngelList, said CometChat in a statement.
Colorado-based early-stage venture capital firm Range Ventures and New York-based venture capital firm Silicon Badia also invested in the startup, it added.
The capital will help the startup enter into new markets and invest in product development.
The startup, which was incorporated in the US last year by Anuj Garg and Anant Garg, is a communication-platform-as-a-service (CPaaS). It provides customers with a communication platform for their websites, web apps, mobile apps and IoT.
Anuj Garg, co-founder and CEO of CometChat, said that the startup is helping design effective chat and video solutions for its customers. It currently has a presence in the US and India.
CometChat was selected for TechStars Boulder Accelerator Program where it received funding.
iSeed Ventures' Somani said that he came across CometChat when a customer of the startup had posted a review about it. He added he invested as he was attracted by how text, voice and video will play a vital part in bringing intimacy to online experiences.
Somani had launched iSeed in May this year to invest in technology startups.
AngelList founder Naval Ravikant is one of the largest investors in iSeed. Founders of Xiaomi, Thumbtack, Hike, Flutter, Bolt, TaskUs, CoinList and WikiHow are also investors in the micro fund.
Somani had said the investors in iSeed can act as a bridge for Indian founders, who are increasingly targeting international customers and investors.
Range Ventures, which was founded in 2020, says it invests in tech entrepreneurs in the Denver area and beyond.
Silicon Badia invests in technology companies in West Asia and the US. It has invested in over 60 companies, according to its website.
