Outlook Start-Up Outperformers 2023: DeepTech Top 3

01 WYSA

The AI-Powered Mental Health Therapist

Founded in 2015, Wysa is a mental health wellness platform that helps people manage stress and anxiety. It uses clinically proven conversational artificial intelligence to connect with users and guide them to deal with issues like depression, anxiety, etc.

Wysa offers on-demand support as well as cognitive behavioural therapy to users. It also has professionals who supplement its AI programmes. Its AI chatbot leverages evidence-based cognitive behavioural techniques to suggest medical guidance, digital self-help techniques, etc. It can also help those in need of professional help get timely access to it.

Till now, Wysa has raised $30.2 million in funding over six rounds, with the latest one held in May 2023.

02 MIKO

Lessons with a Robot

Miko is an advanced robotics start-up that uses artificial intelligence, robotics and internet of things to provide a unique and high-level learning experience for children. Founded in January 2015 by IIT Bombay post-graduates Chintan Raikar, Prashant Iyengar and Sneh Vaswani, Miko has a strong team of roboticists, academicians and neuropsychologists. It has offices in Mumbai, London and Silicon Valley.

Its latest product, Miko 3, uses conversational learning to engage with children in the age group of five to 10.  So far, Miko has raised a total of $63.2 million across seven rounds of funding. The latest funding round was held in May last year. It is funded by multiple investors, the most recent being Stride Ventures and IIFL Finance.

In October last year, it acquired 70% stake in AI gaming start-up Square Off.

03 Cathie.AI

AI in the Video Marketing Space

Cathie.ai, formerly known as Instoried, harnesses AI for application in the area of video marketing for brands, agencies and influencers. It allows brands to tailor-make video advertisements for popular platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. Brands can swiftly elevate their video marketing strategies by providing word prompts, integrating their branding and adding voiceovers.

Boasting a library of over 20 million categorised short videos, Cathie.ai caters to a myriad of industries. “From brands to marketing agencies to freelancers, our platform simplifies video creation. With a focus on AI-driven content, our potential in the market is immense,” says Ali, adding that Cathie AI has over 10,000 users and is targeting US customers for its growth.

An electronics engineer by qualification, after venturing into entrepreneurship, Ali founded a media start-up, generating pioneering video content. Raj, with a master’s degree in AI from Finland, is the technological backbone of Cathie.ai.