Nanotechnology and advanced materials startup Vimano has raised INR 25 crore in its seed round, led by Ankur Capital. This marks Ankur Capital’s first investment out of its newly launched third fund. The funding will support Vimano’s mission to power the energy transition, with its membranes serving as key backbones for redox flow batteries, electrolyzers for green hydrogen production, as well as PEM fuel cells.
While the global energy transition is firmly under way powered by ever reducing cost of solar energy, key technological issues remain, some of the most important being the high cost of producing green hydrogen and the lack of cost effective long-duration energy storage (LDES) options. These gaps are major impediments to the decarbonization of heavy manufacturing industries and a move towards a fully renewables-powered grid.
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Founded in 2019 by materials scientists Murari Ramkumar (CEO) and Dr. Nagesh Kini (CTO), Vimano was built on the belief that cutting-edge materials can unlock a new era of energy storage. Its tunable ion-conductive membrane platform has led to the development of membranes that significantly lower the cost of electrolyzers, which are used in green hydrogen production and other LDES systems. Over the past five years of research, Vimano has solved the significant problem of increasing the conductivity and performance of membranes while maintaining high efficiency, low crossover and long life.
The investment will enable Vimano to initiate pilot projects with strategic partners in the energy ecosystem, expand its team and establish a scalable manufacturing process for its membranes.
Murari Ramkumar, CEO of Vimano, said, “At Vimano, we believe that membrane electrolytes are the unsung heroes of the energy transition. Over the past five years, we have worked relentlessly to develop a platform that can significantly improve efficiency and reduce costs for long-duration energy storage and green hydrogen production. This investment will enable us to accelerate our commercialization efforts and bring our high-performance membranes to market at scale. We’re thrilled to have Ankur Capital backing us as we take the next big leap.”
Ritu Verma, Managing Partner at Ankur Capital, added, “We are excited to partner with Vimano as they hit a crucial inflection point. Their groundbreaking work in nanotechnology aligns perfectly with our commitment to backing deep science innovations that tackle pressing global issues like the energy transition. We believe Vimano’s membranes can reshape how energy is stored across multiple formats — with green hydrogen alone projected to grow nearly 10X to over $60B by 2030.”
About Vimano
Vimano is a nanotechnology startup focused on transforming energy systems through advanced membrane technology. By enhancing how energy is stored, converted, and deployed, Vimano is committed to accelerating the global shift to sustainable energy. https://www.vimano.biz/
About Ankur Capital
Founded in 2014, Ankur Capital is an early-stage venture capital firm in India, investing in digital and deep science technology companies. Ankur Capital has backed over 30 companies across sectors including category leaders such as Captain Fresh (B2B commerce), Vegrow ( B2B commerce), StringBio ( Synthetic biology), OffGrid Energy (Battery Chemistry), Agrizy (B2B commerce), Superfone (Neo-telco) and Niramai (AI Medtech) among others. The firm has offices in Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore. More at www.ankurcapital.com
