Peak XV is taking bigger bets as Indian startups grow more ambitious: Mohit Bhatnagar

Peak XV Partners is a leading venture capital firm in India. It invests in startups across sectors and backs companies such as Zomato and Meesho. Its role is to provide capital when young companies are still building products, finding customers, and proving their business models. This matters because ambitious startups often need money before they can generate large revenues.

A venture capital firm spreads its investments across multiple companies. Some may fail, while others may grow rapidly or eventually reach public markets. Peak XV has invested across sectors and has had about 37 portfolio-company IPOs in India. That record shows how investors can support companies through different stages of growth.

Peak XV is now willing to support more ambitious, higher-risk businesses. Mohit Bhatnagar linked this change to stronger founder ambition, welcoming Indian public markets, and new opportunities created by AI. The firm sees India as an attractive place to back founders building companies for global markets.

For Peak XV, taking bigger bets means backing startups with unusually large ambitions, even when their paths to success are uncertain. These companies may need more time, face tougher competition, or attempt markets that have not yet been fully developed. The potential payoff is a globally important company rather than a modest business.

The shift reflects changing expectations among Indian founders and investors. Bhatnagar said founders now aspire to build companies worth $50 billion or even $100 billion. He also pointed to Zomato and the acceptance of startups in Indian public markets as evidence that such outcomes feel more possible than before.

This does not mean every startup will receive unlimited funding. Bhatnagar said there is no easy way to identify the right companies, and durable businesses can take a decade to build. Peak XV’s approach is to accept more risk while looking for founders who can sustain hard work and create lasting companies.

India’s startup success in public markets has become substantial. Mohit Bhatnagar said Peak XV has had about 37 IPOs in the country, with 22 occurring during the last five years. He also estimated that all startups listed in India together have a total market capitalisation of about $170 billion.

These figures show that startups are no longer confined to private fundraising. Companies can now grow through venture investment, reach public markets, and attract stock-market investors. Peak XV’s portfolio provides a concrete example of that progression, with a large share of its IPOs concentrated in the recent five-year period.

The scale is also significant because the combined value was far smaller around ten years ago. Bhatnagar described Indian public markets as a major blessing for the startup ecosystem. Their growing acceptance may encourage more founders to build ambitious companies and more investors to support them over longer periods.

Companies such as Zomato changed the reference point for India’s startup ecosystem. Their success showed founders that an Indian startup could grow to significant scale and reach public markets. This matters because visible successes can turn extraordinary outcomes into realistic goals for the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Bhatnagar connected this shift directly to ambition. He said Indian founders increasingly dream of building companies worth $50 billion or even $100 billion. Peak XV’s own experience reinforces that confidence: it has had about 37 IPOs in India, including 22 in the last five years. Public listings provide evidence that investors will accept startups at scale.

The result is a stronger cycle of ambition and investment. Founders may attempt larger markets, while venture firms can consider riskier businesses with greater potential. Bhatnagar said Indian public markets have been a massive blessing, and he expects startup ambition to keep increasing as the ecosystem matures.

In AI, a token is a small unit of text or other input that a model processes, or output that it generates. The exact unit varies by system, but token usage is commonly linked to the cost of running an AI application. Lower token prices reduce the expense of sending requests and receiving answers.

That change can make consumer AI products more practical. A health, finance, or education application could handle more user interactions without spending as much on model usage. Developers could test products with smaller budgets, improve them through repeated use, and serve more customers before needing substantial capital.

Bhatnagar said falling token costs would unleash consumer AI applications across sectors. He also said AI tools are now available to everybody and could help Indian founders build global companies. Lower operating costs do not guarantee success, however. Founders still need to create durable businesses and sustain the hard work required to build them.

If smaller teams can build stronger AI solutions cheaply, industries could see faster product development and more experimentation. Companies may use AI to create consumer services in healthcare, financial services, and education. The main advantage would be efficiency: teams could produce useful solutions with fewer people and less upfront funding.

The mechanism is straightforward. AI tools reduce some of the work needed to develop and operate products, while falling token costs make repeated model use less expensive. A small startup could launch an application, test it in the marketplace, and improve it without raising as much capital. Bhatnagar said it has become easier than ever to launch a product and try it with customers.

The opportunity is broad but not automatic. Bhatnagar said there is no easy yardstick for identifying the right companies. Startups still need durable business models, sustained effort, and products that people will use. If those conditions are met, AI could unleash a new wave of entrepreneurial energy in India and beyond.

Venture capital firms invest in risky startups because early-stage companies can grow far faster than established businesses, but many will not succeed. Investors accept uncertainty in search of a small number of companies that become extremely valuable. This is why backing ambitious founders can matter even when individual outcomes are difficult to predict.

The mechanism is portfolio investing. A venture firm spreads capital across many startups. Some may fail or return little, while one exceptional company can produce a gain large enough to outweigh those losses. Public listings create one possible path to that outcome. Peak XV has had about 37 IPOs in India, including companies such as Zomato.

The article does not quantify Peak XV’s returns or failures, so the exact financial balance is not stated. It does show why the firm is considering bigger risks: Indian founders are more ambitious, public markets are more welcoming, and AI may create global opportunities. Success still requires durable businesses and years of effort.