.png){kind=logo}
Aman Gupta’s OffBeat Studios has raised Rs. 100 crore in a seed funding round led by Bessemer Venture Partners to scale its content platform and strengthen its presence in the growing creator economy.
Gupta has been closely associated with boAt’s brand-building journey since its inception. He has also played a key role in shaping its marketing strategy. He is also widely recognised as a judge on Shark Tank India, which expanded his visibility among entrepreneurs and young consumers.
boAt co-founder Aman Gupta has confirmed that his new venture OffBeat Studios has raised Rs. 100 crore in seed funding led by Bessemer Venture Partners. The firm has previously supported Anthropic, Shopify and Canva.
In an announcement on LinkedIn, Gupta shared his motivations for choosing Bessemer over a straightforward capital infusion.
"Having built from scratch before, I know what capital can do and what it cannot. This time, I was looking for partners with a global perspective who can help me leverage technology and AI, because that's where the future lies. Bessemer's track record with companies like Anthropic, Shopify, Canva, and LinkedIn says it all," he wrote.
He added, “I didn't raise capital because I needed the cheque. I raised it because Anant, Vishal, and Bessemer's partners across the world bring speed, credibility, network, and strategic support that money alone cannot buy. Announcing this on my wedding anniversary because taking on an investor is like choosing a life partner. You need to get it right. You will live with them through the highs and the lows. You need someone who understands both.”
Gupta introduced OffBeat Studios on 3 March, which signaled a new direction in his entrepreneurial journey after transitioning to a non-executive role on boAt's board. He has not disclosed the venture’s business model, sector focus, funding structure, team or launch timeline. The branding shared in his post featured a stylized “OFF/BEAT” logo without any clarity on the nature of the business.
It remains unclear whether OffBeat Studios will have any strategic association with BoAT or operate independently as a founder-led initiative.
Adding a personal touch, Gupta chose to share the milestone on his wedding anniversary, drawing a parallel between selecting investors and choosing a life partner.
Bessemer Venture Partners is an American venture capital firm headquartered in San Francisco, with offices in India, Israel, Hong Kong and the United Kingdom. Its roots go back to 1911, when Henry Phipps Jr, a co-founder of Carnegie Steel, established Bessemer Trust to manage his family's assets. It is one of the oldest venture capital operations in the world.
Bessemer Venture Partners manages over $18 billion in assets, with a global portfolio that has included Shopify, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twilio and DocuSign. It has more than 145 IPOs and 300 portfolio companies across the enterprise, consumer and healthcare sectors.
The company has also invested in Anthropic through its Grace Ma-led AI deployment arm, which has deployed more than $400 million into AI-focused firms.
Anant Vidur Puri, Partner, Bessemer Venture Partners, said, “We back founders who see around corners. Aman saw how a new India would come to think about aspiration, identity, and quality, and built boAt as proof. He is now applying that same instinct to a market being reshaped by AI and by a generation with entirely new expectations. That is exactly the intersection Bessemer exists to back.”
Also Read: Startup News Today: Rocket AI Raises $15M, Launches Platform to Reinvent Strategic Planning
Co-founder Sameer Mehta has moved to an executive director role, while Chief Operating Officer Gaurav Nayyar has taken over as CEO. The development comes as boAt’s parent, Imagine Marketing, has received approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for its initial public offering.
The Warburg Pincus-backed company confidentially filed for an IPO in April and is reportedly targeting a valuation of around Rs. 13,000 crore. This marks Boat’s second attempt to go public. In January 2022, it filed draft papers for a Rs. 2,000 crore IPO.
The seed funding has positioned OffBeat Studios at a crucial inflection point, with market analysts now closely watching Aman Gupta’s next strategic moves. As competition intensifies, the focus will be on how the startup deploys capital and scales its platform.
