Azim Premji's family office bets on Artificial Intelligence ventures for $10 billion Premji Invest fund, says report

The fund's absorption would beryllium connected refining its proprietary AI concern tools, TK Kurien, Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer astatine Premji Invest told the publication.

Pioneering AI Investment successful India

In his archetypal interrogation since 2017, Kurien told Bloomberg that Premji Invest is "among the archetypal ample Indian plus managers to usage AI tools successful backstage equity", adding that they are present moving connected "an AI quant exemplary for nationalist markets bets too".

Kurien added that the plus manager volition "invest more" successful the AI abstraction pursuing “exponential returns".

Global Trend successful AI Investment

Premji Invest initiated its AI travel 3 years ago, employing 14 AI engineers and supporting emerging exertion ventures, according to Kurien. He added that AI is helping the plus manager parse done implicit 10,000 companies connected 600 parametres to "identify concern opportunities".

"The steadfast expects the full workout to besides springiness it a bird’s oculus presumption of emerging technologies and trends that could assistance it enactment up of peers," Kurien said.

Notably, crossed the globe, concern firms specified arsenic BlackRock Inc. and SoftBank Group Corp, person besides progressively turned to AI for real-time marketplace analysis.

Ventures Supported by Premji Invest

AI assemblage firms backed by Premji Invest see Cohesity Inc. (data-management bundle company), Holistic AI (London-based endeavor bundle business), Ikigai, and Pixis.

Kurien intends to broaden entree to fewer of its AI tools for open-source developers, portion besides exploring applications successful streamlining ineligible processes and enhancing authorities services. This volition "help India’s overburdened courts resoluteness cases faster and to besides assistance governments’ efforts to connection services much effectively," helium said.

Sector Focus and Investment Strategy

Kurien outlined technology and fiscal services arsenic the superior sectors for investment, alongside user and healthcare successful India's backstage marketplace space; and healthcare and exertion successful the United States.

With a 120-member squad spanning from Menlo Park (California) to Bengaluru (India), Kurien is "scouting for investment targets successful the US with the latest technologies that tin beryllium brought to India", the study said.

Premji Invest maintains a diligent superior approach, prioritising semipermanent worth instauration implicit short-term gains. The firm's assets, diversified crossed backstage investments, publically traded equities, and different funds, person experienced important maturation implicit the years, underlining its committedness to sustainable concern practices.

"Premji Invest’s assets are allocated arsenic backstage investments, publically traded equities and investments into different funds. We are diligent superior without an exit clip frame," said Kurien.

Established by Wipro founder Azim Premji successful 2006, Premji Invest allocates 5 percent of its returns to enactment philanthropic initiatives successful India, arsenic per Kurien. It has seen 4x surge successful assets nether absorption (AUM) implicit the past 8 years, arsenic per the report.

(With inputs from Bloomberg)

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Published: 29 Apr 2024, 02:33 PM IST