The Venture Codex

Participated · Series C · Aug 2026

River designs and sells electric two-wheelers, with its core model the River Indie priced between ₹1 lakh and ₹1.5 lakh. The company delivered about 3,000 EVs monthly in the last fiscal year and ranked seventh among manufacturers in April. River has experienced rapid revenue growth—projected FY26 revenue nearing ₹500 crore—but remains loss-making, with reported losses of ₹196 crore in FY25. Its growth plan includes launching at least one new EV model annually beginning fiscal 2027, expanding retail presence from roughly 40 stores to over 350 by March 2028, and building a new manufacturing plant. River has also manufactured the Yamaha EC-06 in Karnataka, indicating potential manufacturing partnerships. The company faces strong competition from established incumbents with deeper service networks and brand recognition, and will require significant capital and operational execution to reach profitability.

Participated · Series A · Jun 2026

Foundation Alloy commercializes a solid-state alloying technique that repeatedly smashes metal powders together to create homogeneous alloys that traditional melting processes cannot achieve. The process reportedly uses around an order of magnitude less energy than conventional melting-based alloying and enables combinations of elements with very different melting points. The company has been selling bespoke metals in small batches and is running pilots with customers in automotive, aerospace, semiconductor, defense, luxury watches, and cutlery. Early commercial products include tooling parts for automakers and parts targeted at drone supply chains within defense. Foundation Alloy says it is currently constrained by production capacity rather than demand and plans to scale to several tons per week by 2027 using proceeds from its Series A. Its technology builds on about 20 years of research led by Tim Rupert and Chris Schuh, and the company is led by CEO and co-founder Jake Guglin.

Led · Series A · Mar 2024

Joyride offers a shared mobility platform that simplifies fleet management and IoT connectivity through a branded user application, backend management tracking software, and automated operational tools. The company powers connected electric vehicle deployments—including e-scooters, e-bikes, minicars, and golf cars—in more than 250 global markets. Led by CEO and President Mike Chrzanowski, Joyride serves midsize and enterprise shared-mobility fleets. The company intends to use its new funding to expand offerings to Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and to advance its proprietary technology. Financially, Joyride raised $5.2M in a Series A round led by Yamaha Motors. Joyride has been a mobility software leader since 2014. Joyride is a Toronto-based SaaS provider founded in 2014 by CEO Vince Cifani that streamlines scooter-share and bike-share management through an all-in-one platform. The company’s product offers a branded rider app, backend analytics, multimodal vehicle integrations and insurance access. Joyride serves entrepreneurs and enterprise operators in 160-plus global markets. It raised US$3.7M in funding led by Proeza Ventures and Urban Innovation Fund, with participation from Liil Ventures, Two Small Fish Ventures and Craig Miller’s Something Good Ventures. The company intends to use the proceeds to hire software, marketing, sales and customer success staff across its Toronto and European offices and to attract new customers in thousands of markets. Joyride also plans to provide existing operators with more solutions customized to city-focused and private fleet needs.

Led · Series B · Mar 2024

RIOS develops AI- and vision-driven robotics focused on automating manufacturing processes, quality assurance, process improvement and digital twinning. The company emphasizes partnering with customers to provide reliable, flexible automation and real-time insights and control that exceed traditional automation systems. RIOS plans to expand its deployments across wood products, beverage distribution and packaged food products. It is beginning a product rollout in the lumber and plywood handling sector. The company recently completed a $13 million Series B financing. Existing investor participation and strategic partnerships underpin its near-term growth plans. Rios Intelligent Machines builds AI-powered, end-to-end robotic workcells that integrate within existing factory, warehouse, and supply chain workflows. The company offers its robotic workforce through a factory automation-as-a-service model with no upfront capital commitments. Its workcells are deployed in the United States across manufacturing, consumer packaged goods, and food & beverage sectors. Rios has signed agreements with over a dozen customers in the U.S. and Japan, ranging from mid-size businesses to large enterprises. The company is led by CEO Dr. Bernard Casse, is headquartered in Menlo Park, CA, has a distributed U.S. workforce and a subsidiary in Australia. In February 2022 it raised $28M in Series A equity and debt financing and intends to use the funds to deploy its robotic fleet at scale to new and existing customers. RIOS is a Bay Area robotics startup founded in 2018 as a Stanford spin-out with contributions from Xerox PARC engineers. Its first product, the DX-1, is a robot designed for a variety of industrial tasks including static bin picking and conveyor belt operations. The system is powered by the company’s AI stack, which includes a perception system and tactile sensors mounted on the robotic hand. RIOS operated in stealth for roughly a year and a half while testing its technologies with a select group of partners. The company plans to charge a monthly fee for the robotic system that bundles programming, maintenance, monitoring, and regular updates. RIOS announced $5 million in funding as it came out of stealth to support development and commercialization amid increased interest in factory automation.

Led · Series A · Feb 2023

Skipperi operates a shared‑use boating subscription (Skipperi Fleet) and a peer‑to‑peer rental marketplace (Skipperi Rent). Skipperi Fleet members can access any of 400+ boats across six countries with no sign‑up fees; members pay a seasonal monthly fee and fuel. Skipperi Rent lets owners rent their boats to qualified boaters while the company handles maintenance, equipment, insurance and availability. The company offers theoretical and practical training through its academy and requires boaters to pass Skipperi’s boating exam or hold locally required permits. Founded in 2017 and based in Helsinki, Skipperi currently operates in over 40 locations across Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, New Zealand and Canada. It raised €7M in a Series A and plans to use the funds to expand to Brisbane and several US locations while strengthening its platform and tech team; total funding to date is €12.6M.