Vahan.ai Raises $10 Million to Grow Its AI-Powered Recruitment

Vahan.ai, a company that helps people find blue-collar jobs, has just raised $10 million in its Series B funding. This round of funding was led by Khosla Ventures, with participation from Y Combinator, US-based venture capital firm Gaingels, and Vijay Shekhar Sharma, the founder of Paytm.

A Quick Look at Vahan.ai

Vahan.ai is a startup based in Bengaluru, India. It was started in 2016 by Madhav Krishna with the goal of making it easier for companies to find workers for blue-collar jobs, like delivery drivers, warehouse workers, and factory staff. The company uses artificial intelligence (AI) to help match job seekers with employers.

Past Funding and Support

This isn’t the first time Vahan has raised money. Back in September 2021, the company raised $8 million in a Series A round, also led by Khosla Ventures. In addition, Vahan is part of Airtel’s Startup Accelerator Program, which helps promising startups grow. Airtel, one of India’s biggest telecom companies, bought an 8.82% stake in Vahan back in October 2019.

What Will the New Funds Be Used For?

The $10 million raised in this new round will be used to make Vahan’s AI technology even better. Right now, Vahan’s AI recruitment tool can conduct interviews in both English and Hindi, but the company wants to expand its language capabilities. It plans to add support for eight major Indian languages. This will make the platform more accessible to a wider range of job seekers across the country.

Vahan also has plans to move into new industries. So far, the company has mainly focused on industries like food delivery and logistics, working with companies like Zomato, Swiggy, Flipkart, Blinkit, and Uber. Now, Vahan wants to expand into sectors like manufacturing and retail.

Vahan’s Success So Far

Since its launch, Vahan has helped recruit over 500,000 workers across more than 480 cities in India. With over 25,000 people recruited every month, the company has made it easier and faster for companies to find workers, cutting down on recruitment costs and the time it takes to fill positions.

Financial Performance

For the fiscal year ending in March 2023, Vahan reported operating revenue of Rs 29.7 crore (around $3.6 million). However, the company also reported a loss of Rs 17.71 crore (around $2.1 million). Despite these losses, Vahan is optimistic about the future. The company expects to double its revenue in the next fiscal year (FY24) and continue growing in the years to come.

Competition in the Blue-Collar Job Market

Vahan operates in a competitive market. Early on, it faced competition from companies like Baba Jobs and Aasaan Jobs, but both of these competitors struggled to grow and eventually merged with Quikr and OLX in 2017 and 2019, respectively. Today, Vahan’s biggest competitor is Apna, another job recruitment platform focused on blue-collar workers. Apna, which is backed by Tiger Global, became a unicorn (a startup valued at over $1 billion) in 2021 after the pandemic boosted demand for its services.

Looking Forward

With its latest round of funding, Vahan.ai is well-positioned to continue growing and improving its services. The company’s focus on AI-powered recruitment and its plans to expand into new industries and languages could help it maintain a competitive edge in the blue-collar job market.

As Vahan continues to grow, it hopes to make job recruitment easier, faster, and more efficient for both employers and job seekers.