Thinkerbell Labs Pvt. Ltd, which builds literacy devices for the visually impaired, has raised Rs 1.3 crore in angel investment from Indian Angel Network and Anand Mahindra, chairman and managing director of the Mahindra Group, according to a press statement.
The round was led by Rajesh Navaneetham, who sits on Thinkerbell's board, and Manjunath Nayak from IAN. Mahindra invested in his personal capacity.
The firm will use the new capital to set up its product, sales and content teams.
Thinkerbell was founded in 2016 by four BITS Pilani, Goa campus graduates—Sanskriti Dawle, Aman Srivastava, Dilip Ramesh and Saif Shaikh.
“We believe their network and skills would be a significant addition to our team and certainly help us in our quest to build inclusive economic growth by dramatically increasing the literacy rate of Braille world over,†said Dawle on the investment.
Thinkerbell, which was earlier called Project Mudra, aims to improve literacy among the visually impaired. Its flagship product Annie helps them learn to read, write and type in Braille. Annie can be used by children and young people to self-learn Braille, and can be monitored by teachers or parents.
Earlier this month, IAN had invested in another startup assisting the differently-abled, Pune-based smart wheelchair maker Arcatron Mobility Pvt. Ltd. The startup is launching Frido, a multipurpose, portable wheelchair that can be folded into a suitcase. It can be used as a travel companion and has a stainless steel body, armrests, height-adjustable footrests and big wheels, according to the firm’s website.
