Activate, a venture capital firm led by former Haptik CEO Aakrit Vaish, has closed its maiden fund at $105 million, around ₹1,000 crore, within a year of its launch, according to inc42.com. The fund includes an $85 million flagship early-stage fund and $20 million allocated for growth investments, exceeding its original target by 125%.
Founded in December 2025 by Vaish and former Together Fund partner Pratyush Choudhury, Activate targets AI-native startups at the pre-seed or idea stage. The firm’s limited partner base comprises over 50 founders and AI researchers, a dozen global VC general partners, and more than 50 family offices, enterprises, and corporates. Notable backers include Vinod Khosla, General Catalyst, Raghu Raghuram, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Lalit Keshre, Harsh Jain, Bhavin Turakhia, Ronnie Screwvala, and Ranjan Pai.
Activate aims to invest in 25-30 startups working across AI applications, foundational models, physical infrastructure, and related sectors, with initial equity investments ranging from $500,000 to $3 million. The fund reported its first close at $75 million in December 2025 and has since made 10 investments. Its early-stage strategy, called Inception, has backed seven startups in consumer AI, AI-led services, and frontier technology, all currently operating in stealth mode.
The fund supports founders from ideation, sometimes before incorporation, emphasizing early engagement. Activate’s LP base and investment approach position it as a significant player in the AI startup funding landscape, with the firm actively deploying capital to nurture emerging AI ventures.