HCLTech to Acquire 10.5% Stake in Sarvam AI, Valuing Startup at $1.5 Billion

HCLTech said on Monday it will invest 14.27 billion rupees, or about $150.7 million, to acquire a 10.5% stake in Indian generative AI startup Sarvam AI, becoming the lead strategic investor in the company’s Series B funding round. The transaction will be made in cash and involves the purchase of 41,421 equity shares, HCLTech said.

Sarvam AI said the round valued the startup at $1.5 billion and raised $234 million in its first close, against a target of $300 million. The financing was co-led by Bessemer Venture Partners, with existing backers Khosla Ventures and Peak XV Partners also participating. The startup did not disclose the timing of the full close.

HCLTech said the investment will support research and development for next-generation models focused on agentic artificial intelligence, coding, and cybersecurity. The company added that the deal will help it build specialized language models and AI solutions for clients around the world.

The Indian IT services firm also said the investment is intended to accelerate the development of sovereign AI capabilities for governments and regulated industries. Sovereign AI refers to systems and infrastructure designed to keep sensitive data and model development under local control, a growing priority for public-sector and compliance-heavy customers.

Sarvam AI, which focuses on generative AI applications for Indian languages and local use cases, has been gaining attention in India’s expanding AI ecosystem. In 2024, Microsoft partnered with the startup to support voice-based generative AI applications, though the financial terms of that deal were not disclosed.

The stake purchase reflects a broader push by major technology and services companies to deepen their exposure to artificial intelligence startups as demand grows for enterprise AI tools, custom models, and region-specific solutions. For HCLTech, the deal adds a strategic partnership in a fast-moving market where IT firms are increasingly investing in proprietary AI capabilities rather than relying only on third-party platforms.

The investment also signals continued investor interest in India’s AI sector, where startups are attracting larger funding rounds as global firms look for opportunities in local-language AI, applied machine learning, and industry-specific automation. The companies did not provide additional operational details about how the partnership will be implemented or when the investment will close.