Google has teamed up with global venture firm Accel to identify and support India’s next wave of AI-focused founders. The collaboration represents the first major partnership under the Google AI Futures Fund, which was introduced earlier this year to invest in young AI companies around the world.
Under this new arrangement, Google and Accel will co-invest as much as $2 million into each selected startup through Accel’s Atoms program. Both organizations will contribute up to $1 million each. The upcoming 2026 batch will center on founders in India as well as members of the Indian diaspora who are building AI-driven products from day one.
According to Accel partner Prayank Swaroop, the broader objective is to support solutions that can serve India’s huge digital population while also helping Indian-built AI products reach global markets. India is home to the world’s second largest online population and is known for its deep engineering talent, making it an attractive landscape for early AI exploration despite not yet being a major hub for frontier model development.
That may soon change. Several international AI companies, including OpenAI and Anthropic, have recently established teams in India, signaling growing confidence in the country’s potential. Combined with increasing cloud infrastructure, a mobile-first population, and relatively low software costs, India is positioned to become an important player in the global AI ecosystem.
Investments under the partnership will be open to a wide range of sectors — productivity tools, creative applications, entertainment, and even foundational model work. The partners will also look closely at areas where large language models may advance over the next couple of years and seek Indian startups targeting those opportunities.
In addition to funding, selected founders will receive up to $350,000 in credits for Google Cloud, Gemini, and DeepMind. They’ll also gain early access to new APIs, research-guided support from Google Labs and DeepMind teams, monthly mentorship with Accel and Google experts, and opportunities for global exposure through sessions in London, the Bay Area, and at Google I/O. Marketing support and access to both companies’ founder networks will also be included.
Jonathan Silber, co-founder of the Google AI Futures Fund, said the decision to launch this collaboration in India reflects the country’s long-standing culture of innovation and Google’s continued investments there, including a recent $15 billion plan to build a major AI and data hub.
Although Google will take equity positions in selected startups, neither organization plans to mandate exclusive use of Google’s AI tools. The goal, Silber said, is simply to accelerate the growth of world-class AI companies emerging from India.
