Rephrase.ai Raises $1.5 Mn In Seed Funding Led By Lightspeed Ventures, AV8 Ventures

Bengaluru-based startup Rephrase.ai has raised $1.5 Mn in seed funding led by Lightspeed Ventures and AV8 Ventures.

The startup is planning to use the fund to scale its AI-powered video personalisation platform, strengthen its commercial presence in North America, and expand its engineering and research teams based out of Bengaluru. 

“Our goal at Rephrase.ai is to reimagine how we communicate to better match our visual culture. Now, enterprises can create high-quality video content for targeted sales and marketing initiatives while saving time and money. This technology will change the way we think about video production, both for business communication today and filmmaking in the future,” said Ashray Malhotra, CEO of Rephrase.ai. 

The Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) startup claims to make the creation of personalised videos as simple as writing a text email. Its generative AI platform is solving and automating the video shoot process and setting pathways for the future of video making.

The startup was founded by three IIT graduates – Ashray Malhotra, Shivam Mangla, and Nisheeth Lahoti in 2018.

Similar to Rephrase.ai, there are other Indian startups such as Niki.AI, Arya.ai, Retention.ai, and Activ.AI, among others, specialising in the field of artificial intelligence.

“Personalisation is a huge lever to unlock ROI especially in sales & marketing where a white-glove personalized experience really makes a difference in engagement and outcomes, said Hemant Mohapatra, Partner at Lightspeed India Partners. 

AI Industry in India

According to a report by Accenture, AI has the potential to add $957 Bn, or 15% of India’s current gross value to the economy, in 2035.

A report by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, and NITI Aayog, on the national strategy for AI, is built on the “AI for All” concept. This highlights the need for developing open source systems to democratise the AI industry, making it a resource accessible to all. India strategizes to become the garage of AI solutions providers for 40% of the world including emerging and developing economies.

With emerging startups in the AI sector, the global AI sector is poised to grow to $16.06 Bn by 2022.

Further innovations in the AI-powered applications for improving customer solutions are being expected. The major industries that rely on artificial intelligence are food, travel, finance, retail, airline, and clothing.