ah! Ventures

Pick the format that fits your stage

• Pre-revenue or only a prototype: register for First Gear. Expect equity and a success fee, as described on the page.
• Raising from angels: use the Angel platform. Only 8-10 startups are shortlisted each month from 600+ requests, so prepare a clear deck.
• Mature startup raising a larger round: apply to High Tables, which starts with a review by senior partners.
• Just want to be heard first: book a Virtual Pitch Day slot.

How to apply

• Open the Get funded page and press Register on the format you want.
• For First Gear and Virtual Pitch Day, register for a slot on the pitch registration page. Links to the session are shared with registered users closer to the event.
• Write to info@ahventures.in if the forms do not work.

What to check first

• Read the First Gear terms on equity and success fee before you pitch.
• The firm is not a stock exchange, and its securities are not traded on one recognised by SEBI. Read its terms of engagement.

ah! Ventures is a startup investment platform based in Mumbai, Maharashtra, with corporate offices in Thane and Pune. It calls itself India's first full-spectrum startup investment platform and connects founders with angel investors, family offices and private funds through three fundraising formats: First Gear, Angel and High Tables.

How it works for founders

The Get funded page offers three formats, each for a different stage. First Gear is for very early-stage startups that are pre-revenue or have a working prototype. The Angel platform is for startups raising from a pool of angel investors. High Tables is for mature, curated startups raising larger rounds from funds, institutional investors, family offices and ultra high net worth individuals.

ah! Ventures says it receives a monthly pipeline of 600+ business plans and that, as per industry estimates, an average of 6 out of 1000 business plans get funded. It puts its own money only into ideas it believes in, and says its work goes beyond raising mandates to promotion, networking and closing rounds faster.

First Gear

First Gear is the platform for the earliest stage. It uses a mixed model of equity and success fee. Equity is assigned to the core team for strategic inputs and mentoring for 1 year, and a success fee is charged for helping startups raise multiple funding rounds. Founders can pitch virtually, every month, in a closed-door session in front of the ah! Ventures investment team, with no external investors present. The pitch day registration shows no fee for the startup pitch.

Angel platform

The Angel platform lets startups raise from individual investors. Its process has four levels of curation to shortlist 8-10 startups from the 600+ monthly requests. After terms are agreed and physical due diligence is done, a mandate is launched on the platform. Interested investors are then connected to the founders, followed by financial due diligence and legal documentation, the transfer of funds and the issue of share certificates. Founders are expected to send quarterly updates to investors.

High Tables

High Tables is for mature startups. Investment decks and financial models go first to a shortlisting team of senior partners. If terms and format are agreed, there is a detailed discussion of the business plan and financial model with the founders. The startup then raises through one of two formats: a physical showcase in Mumbai, Bengaluru or Delhi, or a video showcase, in front of 15-30 investors; or a closed-door format in which founders are connected only with interested investors after an initial showcase. Due diligence, legal documentation, fund transfer and share certificates follow.

Virtual Pitch Day

The Virtual Pitch Day runs online every Friday. Founders pitch to the ah! Ventures investment team in a closed-door session with no external investors. The firm says it has no specific shortlisting criteria, and that its feedback depends on the product, business, market and presentation.

Startup support services

Founders can also ask for help with a pitch deck, financial model, documentation and compliance, accounting and taxation, due diligence, consulting and mentoring, marketing emailers and public relations.

Contact

The general inbox is info@ahventures.in. Each format has a short enquiry form on the Get funded and contact pages.