We use cookies for analytics and ads to improve your experience. You can accept or decline. See our Privacy Policy.
Innovation Factory for next-gen AI & Robotics
Art Venture Fund (ART Venture Fund) is a Category II AIF — the venture capital fund arm of ARTPARK (AI & Robotics Technology Park), a not-for-profit Section 8 foundation promoted by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru. Founded in 2020 and seed-funded by the Department of Science & Technology (DST) under the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS) and the Government of Karnataka, ARTPARK bridges the gap between academic AI and robotics research and market-ready startups. The fund received SEBI registration in June 2022 and targets 10–15 early and growth-stage AI and robotics startups building solutions in healthcare, education, mobility, and infrastructure, with a target corpus of $100 million. The Department of Science & Technology is the primary LP.
The Art Venture Fund invests in AI and machine learning-driven startups focused on societal impact sectors — healthcare, education, mobility, logistics, infrastructure, agriculture, and cybersecurity — primarily in the Indian and developing-world context. It focuses on deep tech companies where traditional VC is reluctant to engage due to long development cycles and high capital intensity. The fund provides risk capital to researchers and entrepreneurs at IISc and allied institutions, bridging the valley of death between research output and market deployment. Ticket sizes range from $1–3 million per investment with a 10–12 year fund horizon.
Raghu Dharmaraju
Chief Executive Officer
Raghu Dharmaraju is the Chief Executive Officer of ARTPARK @ IISc. He leads strategy, operations, and fund activities at ARTPARK. He was previously at the World Economic Forum and has extensive experience in deep tech and AI ecosystems globally. He oversees ARTPARK's investment activities through the Art Venture Fund.
Prof. Bharadwaj Amrutur
Executive Director and Chief Technologist
Prof. Bharadwaj Amrutur is the Executive Director, Chief Technologist, and co-founder of ARTPARK. He is a Professor in the Department of Electrical Communication Engineering at IISc, Bangalore, and was the founding head of the Robert Bosch Centre for Cyber-Physical Systems at IISc. He holds a PhD from Stanford University and his research spans low-power and high-speed chip design, smart sensors, and connected health platforms. He co-founded ARTPARK in 2020.
Umakant Soni
Co-Founder (former CEO)
Umakant Soni is a co-founder of ARTPARK and the architect of its initial fund strategy, publicly announcing the $100M Art Venture Fund in 2021–22 and leading early fundraising. He is also a co-founder of AI Foundry and pi Ventures, and a technology advisor to NITI Aayog and DST. An IIT Kanpur graduate, he is also a member of the Government of India's 6G task force. He has since transitioned out of the day-to-day CEO role.
Uthappa P B
Compliance / Operations Contact
Uthappa P B is the SEBI-registered contact person for the Art Venture Fund at ARTPARK. He handles regulatory and operational matters for the AIF. He is based at ARTPARK's HSR Layout office (IndiQube Orion, Bangalore). No additional public biographical information is available.
No insights published yet.
Investments in securities markets are subject to market risks. Read all the related documents carefully before investing. Past performance is not indicative of future returns.