Chennai-based conversational artificial intelligence (AI) startup Uniphore Software Systems Pvt. Ltd has raised $38 million (about Rs 262 crore at current exchange rate) in a Series C funding round led by California-based March Capital Partners, said reports, citing information sourced by data research and intelligence platform Paper.vc.
Other participants in the round include National Grid Partners, Sistema Asia Fund and Patni Wealth Advisors, as well as existing investor Chiratae Ventures (formerly IDG Ventures India), the reports said.
Queries to Uniphore on funding details as well as its objectives did not get a response till the time of publication.
Uniphore was founded in 2008 by Jaypee University of Information Technology alumni Umesh Sachdev and Ravi Saraogi.
The startup says it provides a suite of software-as-a-service products targeting conversational analytics, assistants and conversational security, among others.
In 2017, John T Chambers, then executive chairman at networking gear maker Cisco Systems Inc., said he was acquiring a 10% stake in Uniphore for an undisclosed amount as part of the firm’s Series B funding round. Existing investors IDG Ventures (now Chiratae Ventures) and IIFL also participated in that round.
Uniphore has also raised capital from Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan, India Angel Network, YourNest Angel Fund and American entrepreneur Ray Stata. In October 2016, the company raised $2 million in a bridge round led by IDG Ventures (now Chiratae Ventures).
Deals in the AI space
AI-based startups have raised significant amounts of money across funding stages in recent months, with companies across sectors concentrating on strengthening their products as well as going for market expansion.
In June, mental health-focused chat platform Wysa raised Rs 15 crore (around $2.15 million) in a pre-Series A funding round led by pi Ventures. Early-stage specialist Kae Capital, an existing investor in Wysa, also participated in the round.
In March, FrontdeskAI, which develops AI assistants for small businesses, said it had raised $2 million (Rs 13.8 crore) in a pre-Series A funding round led by pi Ventures.
Other SaaS platforms that have raised money recently include customer-interaction platform Jumpstart, employee-performance management platform Dockabl and online recruitment firm Skillenza.
