Praan Raises $1.56 Million Funding

Committed to mitigating urban air pollution through the use of outdoor air purification systems, California and Mumbai-based startup Praan has raised funding of $1.56 million led by Social Impact Capital, with participation from Better Capital, Paradigm Shift Capital and Avaana Capital, Quality of Life Investments Texas (Angel Syndicate).

The fresh funds will be used to build and expand the company's Indian team as well as take the patent-pending core technology to real large-scale pilots through B2B deployments, stabilize manufacturing, and democratize the technology to deliver clean air at INR 1 per person per day. The company also plans to add velocity to efforts in direct air CO2 capture both in India and USA, said a statement.

"The fundraise offers the company an incredible opportunity and an honest shot at trying to help over three billion people breathe cleaner air around the world. It's an extremely difficult and nuanced challenge but we are working our best to fulfill our mission and are thrilled with the trust instilled in us by our investors," said Angad Daryani, founder and CEO of Praan.

"The world sees over 70 million deaths every year due to air pollution, making it a very important challenge that requires immediate attention. Praan's deep tech expertise and mission-focused attitude has been really exciting and with this funding, we are hopeful to bring in a change in what is considered an extremely nuanced problem with a tremendous impact," said Sarah Cone, founder and managing partner at Social Impact Capital.

Using a region-based approach for purification, Praan has positioned itself as a viable alternative in the absence of credible state-backed large-scale initiatives to clean out air, added the statement.