These Are The Most Funded Startups On Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2020 List

What does it take for a newly founded company to stand out among its peers and raise a lot of money? For many startups in China, the answer lies in offering enterprise services.

Several honorees on this year’s Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list had no trouble attracting big venture capital funds from Asia’s largest economy: China.

Using technologies such as AI and data analysis, they are developing tailored industry software for corporations. This market is estimated to grow an average of 16% to 263 billion yuan (about $38 billion) by 2021, and is where investors are scouting for the next big thing as Chinese companies increasingly embrace workplace productivity tools amid rising labor costs.

One of such companies is Shanghai-based XinTaiRuan, a SaaS startup specializing in human resources management software that has raised more than 100 million yuan ($14.5 million) to date. Cofounded by Bin Zhu, the company’s cloud-based service helps with payment distribution as well as signing and tracking of electronic contracts. XinTaiRuan says it has processed payments for more than 100,000 Chinese companies, which pay a service fee and can apply for loans or extended salary payment via its software.

Matching XinTaiRuan in funding scale is Shenzhen-based Extreme Vision. Befitting of its name, the five-year-old startup develops AI-based image recognition and processing technologies. It can use algorithms to monitor crowds, detect production abnormalities and understand human expression. Led by its four cofounders, Luo Yun, Chen Zhenjie, Chen Shuo and Liu Ruoshui, it raised a total of 150 million yuan (about $21 million) to date, counting support from investors including Qualcomm Ventures and the VC arm of the Chinese state-run Huarun Group.

A third Chinese company employing AI is Hangzhou-based Yiwise.ai which focuses on natural language processing technologies. Founded by Gu Zeliang, Chen Zheqian and Li Yifu, the startup products can facilitate customer service, make multiple phone calls and evaluate conversations for improved performance. The company claims to have built chatbot service platforms for clients including China Life and Chinese real estate developer Longfor. Since its founding in 2017, Yiwise has raised close to $20 million in funding from investors including Chinese VC firms GSR Ventures and QF Capital.

Investments In India

Mainland China isn’t the only place where venture capitalists are throwing big bucks at young entrepreneurs.

In India, investors are paying close attention to fintech startups such as OkCredit. Cofounded in 2017 by three college friends, Gaurav Kunwar, Harsh Pokharna and Aditya Prasad, OKCredit is a book-keeping app for micro and small businesses which traditionally have maintained their accounts in handwritten ledgers. They have 6 million active monthly users who made 80 million entries in the app in January. The trio made it to Y Combinator in 2018. After a Series B financing round last year, OkCredit has raised a total of $83 million, including from Lightspeed Venture Partners and New York-based Tiger Global.

Tiger Global also backed Ajeesh Achuthan’s Open in its $30 million Series B financing round. The startup helps businesses streamline their financial operations with its integrated platform for accounting and banking. Since its launch in 2017, Open says it has processed more than $10 billion worth of transactions with 350,000 businesses using the platform.

Investors are bullish on two consumer-oriented services from India as well. Varun Khona’s Headout is a booking site for experiences from Broadway shows to cruises and helicopter tours in 40 cities around the world. The startup raised $15 million in funding so far, including a $10 million Series A round in 2018. Since Khona launched the site in 2014, 6 million people from about 200 countries have used the platform. Headout now aims to expand its services in 1,000 cities by 2024.

Another consumer-oriented startup attracting investors in India is GoMechanic, an online booking platform for car-servicing appointments cofounded by Rishabh Karwa and Nitin Rana. In 2019, GoMechanic raised $4.9 million in a Series A round, led by Sequoia Capital and Orios Venture Partners, followed by an additional $14.7 million in a Series B round in December led by Chiratae Ventures and Sequoia Capital. Currently, GoMechanic has a network of more than 300 car workshops across 13 cities in India that provide services such as repairs, maintenance and car detailing.

Banking on the need for such services, the cofounders are confident about the venture which was inspired by personal experiences. “Being a car owner for the last seven years, I myself have had a fair share of rough experiences from both authorized service centers and standalone neighborhood workshops,” says Rana. “This brings us at an opportunity to fill this gap with use of technology and standardized processes.”