India has a new AI unicorn. Bengaluru-based Sarvam AI has raised $234 million in the first close of a Series B round, vaulting the startup to a $1.5 billion valuation, according to Reuters.
The round is anchored by HCLTech, one of India's largest IT services companies, which is acquiring a 10.5% stake in Sarvam for roughly $150 million in cash, according to Reuters. TechCrunch reports that the full Series B is targeting $300 million, meaning Sarvam has more fundraising to complete.
Sarvam is a generative AI startup focused on building AI tools for Indian languages and use cases — a niche that has attracted significant attention as global AI companies have largely concentrated on English-language models.
For HCLTech, the investment represents a significant bet on domestic AI infrastructure at a time when Indian technology companies are under pressure to demonstrate they can compete in the generative AI era, not just provide outsourced services built on top of foreign models.
The deal matters because it signals that India's corporate technology establishment is willing to put serious capital behind homegrown AI ventures rather than simply reselling the products of American or Chinese labs — a meaningful shift for a country that has long been a consumer, rather than a creator, of foundational AI technology.