Private Equity

Incubation/Acceleration

Prosus, Accel back six deep-tech start-ups under Atoms X LeapTech cohort

Business Line  

Global technology investor Prosus and venture capital firm Accel have unveiled six start-ups as part of the inaugural Atoms X LeapTech cohort.The selected start-ups include Praan, which is building full-stack air infrastructure to optimise indoor environments; QOSMIC, focused on ultra-high-speed optical communication between satellites and Earth; and Dognosis, which is developing cancer detection using breath analysis powered by canine olfaction, robotics and AI.Space-tech startup Ethereal Exploration Guild is working on fully reusable orbital launch vehicles aimed at sharply reducing launch costs, while Ferra is developing a guided home-based strength training system targeted at ageing populations. One startup in the cohort remains in stealth mode and is building brain-computer interface technology.Selected from over 2,000 applications, the cohort focuses on “LeapTech” - a category spanning breakthroughs in climate infrastructure, space communications, aerospace systems and next-generation healthcare. Under the partnership, Prosus will match Accel’s investment in each company. The programme also offers mentorship and access to global networks.

Between Jun 2023 and Jan 2026, EtherealX had attracted about USD 26 M from BlueHill Capital, Campus Fund, Golden Sparrow Ventures, YourNest, Accel India, Big Capital, Prosus Ventures, Riceberg Ventures, TDK Ventures and others.Between Jan 2022 and Jun 2024, Praan had attracted about USD 4 M from Avaana Capital, Better Capital, Climate Angels Fund, Paradigm Shift Capital, Social Capital and others.