Lightspeed Backed Yellow.ai Introduces $43 Mn ESOP Plan For Its Global Workforce

AI startup Yellow.ai has introduced an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) worth $43 Mn for its global workforce.

With this, Yellow.ai aims to support its employees to build wealth in line with the startup’s business growth. Further, the startup said that employees will be eligible for the ESOP program irrespective of their designations or tenure in the company.

Besides, Yellow.ai is also providing options to its employees to extend ESOP’s quarterly vesting post a one-year cliff period. 

According to the startup, Yellow.ai’s ESOP program focuses on wellness, learning and development, rewards and recognition, and employee wealth creation options.

The ESOP initiative has come on the backdrop of the ongoing layoff saga that has shattered the startup ecosystem in India. Till now, the Indian startups have laid off over 15,200 employees. 

Here, an ESOP to be seen as a way to retain existing employees and attract talent.

“We are democratising wealth creation for our employees to recognise their valuable contribution to this upward journey. We also aim to empower our employees to achieve their personal goals and contribute to the company’s business goals,” said, Raghu Ravinutala, CEO and cofounder of Yellow.ai. 

Founded in 2016 by Raghu Ravinutala, Rashid Khan and Jaya Kishore Reddy, Yellow.ai is a conversational customer experience automation platform. It facilitates organisations to automate customer support, conversational commerce and employee experience, among others. As per the startup, its platform has integrated with various enterprise apps including Salesforce, Shopify, Cisco and SharePoint, among others.

Yellow.ai said that it is working with more than 1000 enterprises including Bajaj Finserv, Food Panda, Bharat Petroleum, Waste Connections US and Tata, among others. It has a presence in over 85 countries. It has raised over $102 Mn to date and has its offices in six countries, as shared by the startup.

Yellow.ai’s cap table includes Westbridge Capital, Sapphire Ventures, Salesforce Ventures and Lightspeed, among others.

“We are committed to creating the best opportunities for our current employees and attract future talent that will bolster Yellow.ai’s position as a market leader. In the face of complex global shifts such as the Great Resignation and the Great Reshuffle, adopting a people-first approach is crucial today, and we are proud to launch an employee-centric programme that not only accelerates growth but makes it easier for employees to be part of the journey too,” Neeru Mehta, chief human resource officer of Yellow.ai said. 

Yellow.ai claims to have a headcount of more than 900 employees globally and further aims to expand its employee base up to 1000 by the end of 2022. It further asserts that it has clocked 3x year-on-year growth and is expanding across Australia, Japan, Africa, Latin America, the US, UK, and Europe markets. Meanwhile, it is also strengthening its presence in India, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. 

Recently, Biz2Credit introducing ESOPs worth $12.25 Mn, Niyo’s ESOP buyback, and CityMall introducing $1.3 Mn worth ESOP for 50+ employees are some examples of startups rolling out  ESOP initiatives.