Ex-Meta COO Sheryl Sandberg Invests in GenAI Startup Simplismart: Report

• ByStartupStory     |    August 19, 2024

Sheryl Sandberg, the former Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Meta, has made a significant investment in Bengaluru-based GenAI startup Simplismart. This marks Sandberg’s second investment in the company, with the latest funding round being led by Accel, according to a media report.

The fresh infusion of capital is expected to elevate Simplismart’s valuation to USD 35 million. So far, the company has raised USD 7.14 million across two funding rounds.

Founded in 2022 by Amritanshu Jain and Devansh Ghatak, Simplismart specializes in enabling users to create, implement, and monitor deep learning models with minimal coding. The company’s offerings are particularly valuable for clients looking to deploy GenAI models at scale and at economical costs, thanks to its fast inference engine.

Among its clientele, Simplismart counts Vodex, Dubverse, and Mobavenue, while its notable B2B investors include Accel, Anicut Capital, and Titan Capital.

In addition to her stake in Simplismart, Sandberg has also invested in Ema, another GenAI firm that focuses on enhancing workplace efficiency by automating complex tasks through simple dialogues. Ema’s no-code platform allows users to create and deploy personalized AI agents or personas.

A recent Nasscom survey revealed a significant growth in the number of GenAI startups in India, which more than doubled between 2021 and 2023. The surge in funding for these businesses since December 2023 underscores the increasing interest in this sector.

In just the last six months, six early-stage generative AI startups have collectively raised nearly USD 100 million in funding. These include Sarvam AI, Ema, Neysa, Vodex, and KonProz. Sarvam AI leads the pack with USD 41 million raised in Series A funding, followed by Ema with USD 25 million in seed funding, and Neysa with USD 20 million, the media report added.

Follow Startup Story