Accel closes $550 million fund for India startups

Accel has closed an oversubscribed $550 million India-focused fund as part of a coordinated $3.5 billion global fundraising effort, TechCrunch reported. The firm still has more than 55% of its prior $650 million India fund available and expects to begin deploying the new vehicle in 2027. Accel said it is targeting companies across AI, consumer internet, fintech, advanced manufacturing and deep tech. The firm expects Indian startups to build AI applications, infrastructure and enterprise software on top of existing models rather than compete directly in foundation models.