Airmeet, a platform for virtual events, has raised $12 million in Series A funding, the company announced Tuesday. This brings the company's total funds raised to $15 million since it launched in August 2019.
Sequoia Capital India led the round, joined by Redpoint Ventures and returning investors Accel India, Venture Highway and Global Founders Capital.
With many in-person events pivoting to virtual amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Airmeet in a statement said that it has seen significant growth the past quarter, and by July had hosted more than 10,000 events on its platform.
Networking is a key goal, with Airmeet "hyper-focused on 'interaction liquidity' and helping participants build authentic connections," the company said. Some of the platform's offerings include a social lounge, with tables for meet-ups, and a lobby for "speed networking" where participants can meet and make connections in one- to five-minute increments. The solution also provides registration management, payment solutions and analytics.
The platform, which is still in beta, was built for virtual connections and events, not necessarily for virtual meetings, Airmeet co-founder Lalit Mangal told BTN. "Events is a new category in itself," he added. "The focus is on being accessible to all segments of customers, not just enterprise."
He added that Airmeet's target audiences are enterprises, for connecting customers; communities, like those of marketers or web developers; venture capital incubators and accelerators; and universities and campuses.
The company plans to use its investment funds to accelerate technology development, build new event templates, grow its team of 60 employees in six countries to 100, and expand its customer base globally, particularly in the United States, Mangal said. Airmeet also has a goal of powering 1,000 events per day on its platform. Customers have included Microsoft for Startups, the Linux Foundation and educational institutions.