Early-stage venture capital firm Theia Ventures has announced the first closing of its debut fund, which aims to raise a total of $30 million (INR 266.2 crore).
The fund has brought in British International Investment (BII) as its anchor investor, along with a mix of corporate venture arms, fund-of-funds, and family offices.
Other global backers include Germany’s Allocator One, the US-based Cisco Foundation, and Australia’s Vitality Capital Partners.
Theia Ventures plans to invest in 18–20 startups that focus on innovative technologies aimed at reducing carbon emissions in key sectors such as heavy industries, manufacturing, materials science, mobility, and supply chains.
The firm’s average investment in each startup will range from $500,000 to $1 million.
More than 50% of the new fund will be set aside for follow-on investments in the startups already in Theia Ventures’ portfolio.
Priya Shah, founder and managing partner at Theia Ventures, said that deep-tech startups need significant capital to develop their intellectual property (IP) before they can scale and grow.
“We’re looking to invest in sustainable air fuels, green hydrogen and solar rooftops. Within clean mobility, we are looking at battery chemistry, B2B, logistics, green B2B, logistics, and battery management solutions and charging infrastructure,” said founding and general partner Priya Shah.
Founded in 2021 by Priya Shah, Theia Ventures is part of a growing group of venture capital firms that reserve a large portion of their funds to provide follow-on investments to their successful portfolio companies.
Theia Ventures has already started using its new fund, investing in Sarla Aviation, an electric air taxi startup backed by Accel, and Climitra Carbon, a biocoal company serving the steel industry.
Priya Shah added that two more companies—working on precision fermentation and AI-based energy data modeling—have also been signed, but their names are not yet disclosed as final procedures are completed.
Previously, Theia Ventures has invested in startups like AltM Bio, Exponent Energy, and Metastable Materials using its own capital.
The fund’s final close is expected by the end of the current financial year, with more investments to be announced early next year.
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