General Catalyst to pour $1b into India, teams up with Venture Highway

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General Catalyst, a US venture capital group, and Indian firm Venture Highway are teaming up to increase their investments in India, TechCrunch reported. This partnership merges Venture Highway’s startup funds with those of General Catalyst, although it is not a formal acquisition.

General Catalyst plans to invest between US$500 million and US$1 billion in Indian ventures over the next three years. Venture Highway, which raised US$78.6 million for its second fund in 2020, has supported companies like Meesho and B2B platform Moglix.

Among the strategies they aim to explore is startup incubation, a concept that is relatively new in India.

General Catalyst has been investing in the Indian market for over a decade, with notable investments in fintech platform Cred, used-car platform Spinny, and healthtech startup Orange Health. Recently, General Catalyst and Indian conglomerate Tata jointly invested in Alsym Energy, a company focused on creating safer rechargeable batteries.

This collaboration follows General Catalyst’s strategy in Europe last year, when it partnered with Berlin-based La Famiglia.

Recently, General Catalyst co-led a US$640 million round in Mistral AI, a Paris-based AI firm which aims to rival OpenAI.

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