yc deadline, who else is growing with yc and can refer you? 2/2

list 2/2 of yc backed kgp founders.

Atal Agarwal

and

Soumya Yadav

Aug 24, 2024

we recently did a story on growing yc backed startups from kgp.

growing kgp yc backed founders?

Atal Agarwal

August 11, 2024

Read full story

the story was to help you get referrals for yc accelerator from other kgpians.

but yc backed a lot more startups from kgp.

here are the other kgpians (marked in *) who made it via yc and would be happy to refer you.

yc deadline is approaching but yc isn’t the end of the world. there are many other accelerators via which kgpians have created great startups.

another thing to know about kgpians, they are great bootstrapped founders too.

we will talk more on that later, here’s the list of other yc backed kgp startups that can refer you:

1. Lighthouz (Pre-Seed) - S24

Sector: Artificial Intelligence/SaaS
Founders: Srijan Kumar* (LinkedIn), Sonali Pattnaik* (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2024
Overview: Lighthouz AI is building AI procurement specialists to automate B2B purchasing. It 2x'es the productivity of procurement teams by automating manual workflows and increases cost savings. Businesses waste $30B annually on manual procurement tasks, done on emails and spreadsheets, such as data entry on ERP, comparing quotes, creating POs, and communicating with vendors. Lighthouz introduces the AI Procurement Specialist that can autonomously handle manual procurement workflows. This multi-AI agent system is powered by dynamic knowledge graphs extracted from unstructured data. Our system integrates with emails and ERP system

2. Exly (Series A) - W19

Sector: SaaS/Business Management Tools
Founders: Suyash Sinha (LinkedIn), Siddharth Rawat (LinkedIn), Akhil Tripathi (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2020
Overview: Exly offers a comprehensive platform designed for creators, professionals, and entrepreneurs to establish, manage, and grow their online businesses. The startup provides a range of tools, including those for course creation, customer relationship management (CRM), and marketing, specifically catering to the rapidly expanding creator economy. Currently in the early phase of scaling, Exly has recently secured a seed funding round. The company is actively broadening its service offerings to incorporate more features tailored for content creators and educators.

3. Salt (Seed) - W22

Sector: Fintech
Founders: Ankit Parashar* (LinkedIn), Madhur Khandelwal (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2019
Overview: Salt is a fintech company dedicated to streamlining international payments and ensuring compliance for small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), startups, and freelancers. In today's globalized economy, Salt addresses a crucial need by providing an intuitive platform that seamlessly integrates with existing financial infrastructures to manage cross-border transactions effectively. The company is currently in its expansion phase, having recently secured a substantial seed investment. Thanks to its strong compliance measures and favorable exchange rates, Salt is well-positioned to capture a significant portion of the global remittance and payments market.

4. Explorex (Seed) - S20

Sector: SaaS/Restaurant Technology
Founders: Mainik Sarkar* (LinkedIn), Pritam Khan* (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2019
Overview: Explorex provides an all-encompassing software platform tailored specifically for the restaurant industry, aiming to streamline daily operations, boost customer interaction, and improve overall productivity. Currently, the startup is in a growth phase, with a strong focus on expanding its customer base across Asia. By incorporating advanced analytics and artificial intelligence, Explorex empowers restaurant owners to make informed, data-driven decisions, positioning itself as a frontrunner in the field of restaurant management technology.

5. Signadot (Seed) - W20

Sector: DevOps/Software Development Tools
Founders: Arjun Iyer* (LinkedIn), Anirudh Ramanathan (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2019
Overview: Signadot is a Kubernetes-native platform designed to streamline the development of microservices-based applications. It allows developers to test code changes in highly accurate, real-world environments, enhancing the reliability and efficiency of their development processes. Currently in its early growth phase, Signadot is actively working on expanding its enterprise client base. The startup recently secured a seed funding round and, with its innovative approach to managing microservices, is well-positioned to become an essential tool for companies adopting cloud-native architectures.

6. Enerjazz (Seed) - S21

Sector: Clean Tech/Electric Vehicles
Founders: Ravi Bharihoke* (LinkedIn), Pratik Ranjan Das (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2018
Overview: Enerjazz is developing a network of battery-swapping stations across India for electric vehicles, presenting a viable alternative to traditional charging methods. The company focuses on serving commercial EV fleets, offering a more cost-effective and quicker battery replenishment solution. To boost the adoption of its technology, Enerjazz is strategically increasing its footprint in urban centres and forming partnerships with logistics companies.

7. Lokal (Series B) - S19

Sector: Hyperlocal Content and Community Platform
Founders: Jani Pasha* (LinkedIn), Vipul Chaudhary (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2018
Overview: Lokal is a platform focused on hyperlocal content and community engagement, providing users with news, job listings, classifieds, and other region-specific information to support and build communities throughout India. The startup is currently scaling up, broadening its reach by adding more regional languages and expanding into new markets. It recently secured a Series B funding round of USD 15M. Lokal's strategic emphasis on underserved rural areas gives it a strong advantage in capturing a substantial audience that is often overlooked in the digital landscape.

Sector: Mobility/Route Optimization
Founders: Kshitij Dixit* (LinkedIn), Ritesh Singh* (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2017
Overview: ZeoAuto, known for its Zeo Route Planner, offers advanced route optimization solutions to delivery and logistics companies. The platform allows users to plan the most efficient routes for multiple stops, saving time and fuel costs. ZeoAuto is currently in its early scaling phase, focusing on expanding its customer base in North America and Europe. The company has recently closed a seed round of funding. ZeoAuto is leveraging AI and machine learning to refine its algorithms, aiming to become a leader in the route optimization market.

9. Innov8 (Acquired by OYO) - S16

Sector: Real Estate/Coworking
Founders: Shailesh Gupta* (LinkedIn), Dr. Ritesh Malik (LinkedIn), Sumit Ranka (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2015
Overview: Innov8 is a coworking space startup founded in 2016 that quickly became a leading provider of premium, flexible office spaces tailored for startups, freelancers, and enterprises seeking dynamic and collaborative environments. Known for its focus on high-quality, community-driven workspaces, Innov8 rapidly expanded across multiple cities in India. The startup caught the attention of investors due to its rapid growth and robust business model, ultimately leading to its acquisition by OYO in 2019 for $32 M. This acquisition enabled Innov8 to leverage OYO's resources and expand its footprint in the competitive coworking sector, highlighting its strong market position and potential for further growth within the real estate and hospitality industry.

10. Playment (Acquired by Telus) - W17

Sector: AI/Data Annotation
Founders: Siddharth Mall* (LinkedIn), Akshay Lal* (LinkedIn), Ajinkya Malasane (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2015
Overview: Playment is a managed platform specializing in data labelling, offering high-quality datasets specifically designed for machine learning models, with a strong focus on computer vision applications. Since its acquisition by TELUS International in 2021, Playment has continued to push the boundaries of data annotation, providing critical support for AI development to global enterprises. The platform is recognized for its exceptional accuracy and efficiency in producing labelled data, positioning it as a key player in the rapidly expanding AI industry.

11. Lucira (Acquired by Pfizer) - W15

Sector: Healthcare/Diagnostics
Founders: Debkishore Mishra* (LinkedIn), Ivan Dimov (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2013
Overview: Lucira is a healthcare startup that developed the first and only at-home molecular test capable of detecting both COVID-19 and Influenza A/B, providing quick and reliable results within 30 minutes. Focused on leveraging advanced diagnostics technology, Lucira aims to offer consumers a convenient and accessible way to test for respiratory illnesses from the comfort of their homes. The startup attracted significant attention in the healthcare and investment communities due to its innovative approach to at-home diagnostics, securing backing from major investors and eventually partnering with Pfizer to expand its product offerings and distribution capabilities. This collaboration has positioned Lucira as a key player in the rapidly growing market for at-home medical testing solutions.

12. Auro Robotics (Acquired by RideCell) - S15

Sector: Autonomous Vehicles/Robotics
Founders: Nalin Gupta* (LinkedIn), Jit Ray Chowdhary* (LinkedIn), Srinivas Reddy Aellala* (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2013
Overview: Auro Robotics specializes in autonomous shuttles designed for university campuses, retirement communities, and other controlled environments. The startup was acquired by Ridecell, a leading platform for car-sharing and ride-sharing services, in 2017. Auro Robotics' technology has been instrumental in advancing autonomous transportation solutions for private campuses and gated communities, with ongoing developments in vehicle safety and navigation.

13. Byte Kitchen (Series A) - S21

Sector: Restaurant operating system
Founders: Rahul Madadi* (LinkedIn), Divyang Arora (LinkedIn)
Year Founded: 2021
Overview: ByteKitchen offers a unified operating system to streamline operations across quick-service and fast-casual restaurants. Their platform integrates key functions such as inventory management, staff scheduling, catering orders, and recipe management, allowing restaurants to avoid the complexity of multiple systems. With proactive alerts, automatic translations, and optimized prep lists, ByteKitchen helps save time, reduce waste, and improve customer satisfaction, ultimately boosting operational efficiency and employee retention.