GenieTalk Pvt. Ltd, which operates a conversational-based artificial intelligence startup, has raised $750,000 (Rs 5.51 crore at current exchange rates) in angel funding.
The Indore-based company has raised this capital from Shankeshwar Technologies LLP, it said in a statement. Shankeshwar Technologies is the investment arm of the Shankeshwar Group, whose businesses are focussed on sectors such as petroleum and construction.
GenieTalk was set up in 2016 by Santosh Kataria, Ankit Kimtee and Vivek Jain. The deep-technology startup says its services can be integrated into both website and mobile applications.
The company provides customer support services and data-science based analytics to both large firms and small and medium enterprises.
It will use the capital it has raised to develop its software-as-a-service-based platform, with a view to providing more features to its tailored chatbot platform.
“We have developed an intuitive algorithm that is easy to deploy and help businesses stay connected, support decision making through data science with the help of conversational AI,” Jain said.
GenieTalk also operates OGenie, an International Air Transport Association-certified application that is integrated with a voice-activated assistant and functions as a travel concierge service. The company also sells and provides memberships with services such as Airtel Payments Bank and JioSaavn.
The fundraise by the company is indicative of the larger interest in AI-based companies across sectors.
In the chatbot and conversational space, Bengaluru-based Vernacular.ai in May raised $5.1 million in a Series A round of funding led by Exfinity Ventures and IAN Fund.
Another virtual assistant platform is the Reliance Industries Ltd-owned Haptik. In September last year, the company acquired Buzzo.ai, a Mumbai-based conversational commerce platform.
Before that, Haptik acqui-hired Los Angeles-based conversational AI startup Convrg Technologies Inc. in July last year to expand its business in North America.
In the larger AI sector, some companies that have received funding recently include the legal and taxation-focussed Precily, food-trends spotter and analysis firm Spoonshot, and emotion analytics startup Entropik.