Billionaire entrepreneur Siddharth Shankar has invested $500,000 in Arya Ventures, a venture capital fund aimed at supporting Indian-origin startups in the UK and the US.
Billionaire Indian entrepreneur Siddharth Shankar has made a substantial commitment of $500,000 to Arya Ventures, a seed-stage venture capital fund focused on supporting entrepreneurs of Indian origin. Shankar, who serves as the Global Chief Operating Officer of Komerz, expressed enthusiasm for his investment.
“I’m excited to back the next generation of Indian diaspora founders,” Shankar stated in a recent announcement.
This investment marks a significant milestone for Arya Ventures, which has a total fund size of INR 84 crore (approximately $10 million). The fund is specifically designed to target post-product, post-revenue startups founded by Indian diaspora entrepreneurs primarily located in the UK and the US.
The fund’s strategy is underpinned by compelling market data that highlights the achievements of Indian immigrants in the entrepreneurial landscape. Since 2018, Indian immigrants have founded or co-founded 72 of the 358 unicorns that have emerged in the United States, with a collective valuation exceeding INR 16.4 lakh crore (around $195 billion). In the UK, companies owned by the Indian diaspora generate revenues of INR 3.87 lakh crore (approximately $46 billion) and provide employment to over 174,000 individuals.
“Arya Ventures has positioned itself uniquely to access and support exceptional entrepreneurs from this community,” Shankar noted. “Indian-origin founders have demonstrated an extraordinary ability to build category-defining companies. Despite representing only 2.1% of the US population, they have founded 19% of American unicorns. This fund gives us direct access to that exceptional talent pipeline, and I believe we’re investing at exactly the right moment to capture the next wave of innovation.”
Noteworthy Indian-origin entrepreneurs who have successfully built multiple unicorns include Siddharth Shankar (Tails Group), Mohit Aron (Nutanix, Cohesity), Jyoti Bansal (AppDynamics, Harness), and Ashutosh Garg (Bloomreach, Eightfold.ai).
With 78% of Indian-Americans holding at least a bachelor’s degree—more than double the national average of 36%—the educational background of this demographic continues to strengthen the talent pipeline. In the 2022-2023 period, Indian professionals received approximately 320,000 work visas, further contributing to this trend.
Indian-origin individuals constitute 73% of high-skilled work visa holders in the United States, reflecting a sustained influx of entrepreneurial talent.
Arya Ventures is currently evaluating terms with several promising startups in its pipeline, including those already backed by Y Combinator and other prominent venture capital firms. The fund’s strategy emphasizes investments in AI and technology startups, leveraging the concentration of Indian-origin talent in these cutting-edge sectors.
“Early-stage venture capital success depends on identifying exceptional founders,” said Anmol Goel, Founding Partner of Arya Ventures. “Our research shows that 85% of the most highly-educated founders come from the Indian diaspora, and 32% of all Fortune 100 founders are of Indian origin. This concentration of talent and track record validates our investment focus.”
This investment by Siddharth Shankar into Arya Ventures highlights the growing significance of Indian-origin entrepreneurs in the global startup ecosystem and underscores the potential for innovation within this community, according to India Currents.