SenseAI Ventures is a Gurugram-based venture capital firm that invests in nothing but AI. Investing since 2017, the firm launched its dedicated SenseAI Fund I in December 2023 — a Rs 200 crore (about $25M) vehicle targeting 18–20 AI-first startups. Its thesis: back AI-first founders with "beyond capital" support — bespoke help tailored to each AI startup's needs, from product and technology through go-to-market strategy.

Investment thesis

SenseAI's bet is that AI is not a feature but a company category, and that AI startups need investors who understand model economics, data moats and AI-native distribution. The firm positions itself as a specialist partner that works on the hard parts — product, technology choices and GTM — rather than a generalist fund with an AI allocation.

Sectors, stages and cheque sizes

The fund invests at seed and pre-Series A (with follow-on reserves) across AI SaaS, AI B2C and AI tools. Cheque sizes are not publicly disclosed.

Notable portfolio

Portfolio names include CureSkin, Skit.ai, Niveshi, Jovian, Monet Networks and Tripeur.

People

Rahul Agarwalla is Co-founder and Managing Partner, with Raja Gopalakrishnan as General Partner and Dr. Vinish Kathuria as Partner. (Note: some secondary sources have linked the firm to MakeMyTrip's founders; no credible source verifies this — the firm's verified leadership is as stated here.)

Programs and founder support

The firm published the "Artificial Intelligence: Beyond the Hype" whitepaper and a survey of around 100 Indian AI founders (December 2023), and runs the SenseAI Podcast. No formal credits or perks programme is publicly documented.

How to engage

SenseAI's Rs 200 crore Fund I targets 18–20 AI-first startups at seed and pre-Series A — a concentrated portfolio that means real partner attention per company. The bar is AI-first: founders should be ready to defend their data moat, model architecture choices and AI-native distribution strategy, since the partners have surveyed 100 Indian AI founders and know the landscape cold. The firm's Beyond the Hype whitepaper is useful pre-reading — it reveals how the team separates genuine AI companies from AI-wrapped ones. AI SaaS, AI B2C and AI tools are the three lanes; pick yours clearly.

Why it matters for founders

AI founders pitching generalist funds often spend half the meeting explaining why their data moat matters. At SenseAI that conversation is skipped — the partners live in AI full-time and have surveyed 100 of your peers. If your startup is genuinely AI-first (not AI-wrapped), this Rs 200 crore fund is purpose-built for you.