AI-Powered Manufacturing Startup Frinks Bags $5 Mn

AI-based manufacturing startup Frinks AI has raised $5.4 Mn (around INR 46.10 Cr) in a Pre-Series A funding round led by Prime Venture Partners.

The round also saw participation from the company’s existing backer Chiratae Ventures, along with Navam Capital and Zen Technologies founder Ashok Atluri. 

The Bengaluru-based startup plans to deploy the fresh proceeds to expand its footprint in the US market and invest in research and development. 

Additionally, it is looking to partner with multiple automation companies and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) for a joint go-to-market initiative. 

“Frinks AI is at the forefront of this transformation, helping manufacturers worldwide become more competitive, resilient and future-ready,” said Aditya Agrawal, Frinks AI’s founder and chief executive officer.

Founded in 2020 by Agrawal, Dharma Sharma and Subhra Bhattacharjee, Frinks AI is building AI-enabled systems to facilitate manufacturers with automating quality control on their production lines. 

It claims to offer a “no-code” AI platform which simplifies building inspection process, label and build datasets and training AI models for real-time defect detection.

The startup also counts Subramanian Ramadorai (former MD and CEO, TCS), Venkat Sumantran (former executive director, Tata Motors), Tarun Ramadorai (Professor at Imperial College of London) and Gopichand Katragadda (former group CTO, Tata Sons) among its backers.

It claims to have raised $6.25 Mn in total funding till date.

Frinks AI claims that its Vision AI platform is used by manufacturers across automobile, consumer goods, building materials, and medical devices sectors. It counts Panasonic, Aditya Birla Ultratech, ITC Limited and Honda among its customers.

AI Push For India’s Manufacturing Segment

With strong push from the Centre and “Make in India” approach, India is moving rapidly towards its self-sufficient manufacturing era.

The government is not only promoting manufacturing for domestic companies but also attracting global giants to build products in the country.

Leveraging AI for efficient manufacturing use cases is pushing the country towards independent production and aligning it with the rapidly growing technology. Several startups which are leveraging AI to ease manufacturing are getting a lot of traction from the investors.

Earlier this month, IT service provider Celebal Technologies raised $15 Mn in its Series B funding round to provide AI solutions for energy and manufacturing sectors.

In January, Bengaluru-based industrial robotics startup Ati Motors has raised $20 Mn to help manufacturers in various sectors optimise productivity and streamline operations by deploying its robotics technology.

India is home to more than 140 native AI startups that have raised more than $1.5 Bn since 2020.