In 2018, when most of India's venture capital was chasing consumer internet and fintech, Anjali Bansal made a deliberately contrarian bet: a fund dedicated entirely to climate. Founded in Mumbai alongside Swapna Gupta and Shruti Srivastava, Avaana Capital set out to prove that backing deep technology for climate and sustainability could deliver exponential returns. It has since grown into India's first and largest early-stage climate-tech venture capital fund.
The firm's flagship vehicle, the Avaana Climate and Sustainability Fund, closed at $135 million in 2024, backed by a roster that reads more like a development-finance roll-call than a typical VC fund: the Green Climate Fund, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, the UK Government through the UK-India Development Cooperation Fund, the Self Reliant India Fund, the Small Industries Development Bank of India, the Azim Premji Trust and several large corporations. The Green Climate Fund described the commitment as its first investment in an Indian climate venture fund.
The thesis is precise. The fund targets the three sectors Avaana Capital says account for roughly 90% of India's carbon emissions: Energy and Resource Management, Mobility and Supply Chains, and Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems. It backs early-stage companies building technology-led solutions for climate mitigation, adaptation and resilience — and the mandate has since broadened into frontier deep tech, spanning AI, robotics, nanotechnology, advanced materials, precision manufacturing and biotech.
The portfolio shows what that looks like in practice: FarMart, the agri food-supply platform; Kazam, building an energy gateway for mobility; Eeki Foods, pioneering climate-resilient precision agriculture; Aerem, a full-stack rooftop solar platform; Turno, enabling commercial EV adoption; Eggoz, farm-to-consumer eggs; and deep-tech bets including AmpereHour Energy (battery storage), Dreamfly Innovations (advanced batteries), Intello Labs (AI quality checks for fresh produce) and Dharaksha Ecosolutions (packaging from mycelium and agri-waste). In 2026, Avaana Capital led a Rs 67 crore Series A in consumer-electronics design and manufacturing company Mekr, and three portfolio companies — Dreamfly, AmpereHour and Intello Labs — were recognised at the NASSCOM Emerge 50 Awards.
Beyond cheques, Avaana Capital works to build the ecosystem its companies need. It has run a deep-tech challenge aimed at research-led ventures coming out of Indian academic institutions, hosts Avaana Office Hours in collaboration with IIT Madras, and concluded a Grand Challenge for ClimateTech Innovation with Startup India. The firm says it engages a wide spectrum of financial partners to mobilise equity, debt and blended finance for its companies, and works with policymakers, think tanks and academia on deep-tech policy.
Why it matters for founders
If you are building technology that cuts carbon or builds climate resilience in India, Avaana is arguably the most specialised door you can knock on. It invests early, brings development-finance backing that understands long technology cycles, and actively connects portfolio companies to industry pilots, incubators and research labs. Come with a defensible technology moat and a credible path from pilot to scale — and read the three-sector thesis before you pitch, because it is genuinely where they hunt.