Dell Ventures, $300 million venture fund arm of one of world’s largest computing company – Dell, is planning to invest in Indian startup ecosystem as it looks for a push in the Asian market, reports Economic Times. The official announcement is expected in a few months.
Shortly after going private, the company announced a fund called Strategic Innovation Fund in 2013. The company will be backing startups which are building disruptive solutions, using futuristic technologies. Also, it is looking for startups that have moved from the early stage.
Dell usually makes investments with other venture capitalists and strategic investors. It acts as a board advisor and resource for the companies. Those resources might be technical, business counsel or market strategy assistance.
Dell’s President of Asia Pacific said that the company is also open to make strategic partnership with companies and not just the financial investment, something similar to what it did with InMobi.
Amit Midha, president of Asia-Pacific and Japan, Dell, said,
We’re investing to innovate in India, to innovate in Asia, to create an outreaching ecosystem in Asia which is different. We announced Dell Ventures in China, we announced a $125-million investment in China and we’ve also announced a continued expansion in India, from a 27,000-people perspective.
We are looking at cloud, IoT, big data and security. We like to look at startups that have gone beyond the 5-people operation stage. Otherwise it becomes too much of a headache for us. The company needs to have some sort of momentum, some customer traction we are not an accelerator, we are more interested in companies that are growing their businesses. And our involvement will help them grow even faster and also give them credibility points.
Dell Ventures has made around 20 investments since its first launch in 1999. This year, it has invested around $23 million in Exablox; $45 million in DocuSign and $42 million in Cylance.
