Latest news with #ShouryaAgarwal
Entrepreneur
14-05-2025
- Business
- Entrepreneur
AI Infra Startup Flam Raises USD 14 Mn Series A from RTP Global
The fresh funds will be used to expand globally, strengthen its Asian presence, scale infrastructure, develop new products, and launch a GenAI-powered enterprise suite for mixed reality (MR) tools. You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media. AI infrastructure startup Flam has raised USD 14 million in a Series A funding round led by RTP Global, with participation from Dovetail and other strategic investors. This brings the San Francisco- and Bengaluru-based startup's total funding to USD 22 million since its founding in 2021. The fresh capital will be deployed to expand operations across North America, Europe, and the Middle East, while strengthening Flam's presence in Asia. The funds will also support infrastructure scaling, new product development, and the launch of a full-stack enterprise suite focused on GenAI-powered mixed reality (MR) tools. Founded by BITS Pilani alumni Shourya Agarwal, Malhar Patil, and Amit Gaiki, Flam is building foundational infrastructure that allows real-time 3D and MR experiences to be delivered directly to users without app downloads or redirects, with latency under 300 milliseconds. "Series A capital brings in laser focus to ship the GenAI tool-chain that brands and enterprises have been begging for—an enterprise suite across channels to make experiences engaging, measurable, and interactive," said Shourya Agarwal, Co-founder and CEO of Flam. Flam's upcoming offerings include automated 3D asset generation, a self-serve publishing platform for MR content, an integrated advertising suite, and analytics dashboards. These tools are tailored for use across retail, sports, broadcast, and live events. The company's platform is already used by over 100 major brands, including Google, Samsung, Emirates, Dabur, AJIO, Flipkart, and Tanishq, and has even been deployed in high-stakes political campaigns like the US Presidential Elections. Flam's technology enables brands to transform static touchpoints—like packaging, digital ads, and TV broadcasts—into interactive MR experiences. Nishit Garg, Partner at RTP Global, said, "What excites us is not just the technology, but the clarity of vision and speed of execution. Shourya, Malhar, and team are building a category-defining company—and we're excited to be part of their journey in this next phase of growth." Flam is also expanding its partner ecosystem by empowering creative studios and platforms to build and launch MR content with speed and scale—marking its bold step toward reshaping how brands interact with consumers in the GenAI era.
Campaign ME
13-05-2025
- Business
- Campaign ME
Flam raises $14mn in Series A to scale AI infra for brands and marketers
Flam, a leading AI-powered mixed-reality content creation and publishing platform for immersive and experiential marketing and advertising, has raised $14mn in Series A funding to scale its AI infrastructure, which is aimed at helping marketers turn any touchpoint into an interactive, app-less digital and 3D experience. The Series A round was led by RTP Global, with participation from Dovetail and other existing investors, bringing Flam's total funding to $22mn. Flam is building infrastructure to solve a key challenge within the industry: Most marketing today still relies on passive consumption over active engagement. In a world where consumer attention is harder to earn than ever, brands are searching for new ways to turn one-way messages into engaging, two-way interactions. Flam's full-stack enterprise suite of Gen AI-powered products aims to redefine how brands engage with audiences. 'Our mission is to turn every touch-point — digital, broadcast TV, mass media, retail, stadium fan engagements and more — into interactive digital experiences,' said Shourya Agarwal, co-founder and CEO of Flam. Agarwal added, 'We are laser focused to ship the GenAI tools that brands and enterprises have been yearning for. Flam has galvanised marketers around the world now we're taking it to the next level with a full stack enterprise suite of products across channels; to make them engaging, measurable, interactive. To date, Flam has been turning traditional ads into interactive MR experiences. A simple QR code Scan or a link lets users instantly immerse in an experience that can showcase a product, tell a story, or unlock a deeper layer of the brand — all without needing to download an app. Flam's platform allows brands to launch interactive content via QR codes or link on any touchpoint – digital, broadcast TV, mass media, retail, OOH, packaging, and even WhatsApp messages. The platform is already being used by more than 100 global brands including Google, Samsung, Emirates, Britannia, and Mahindra, with real-time mixed reality campaigns that have reached more than 380 million users. From turning product packaging into shareable stories to activating 3D demos on TV ads and billboards, Flam aims to help brands create experiences that feel native to how people consume media today. Starting this year, Flam has been accelerating R&D on its app-less Gen AI infrastructure that enables brands to create, publish and measure high-fidelity mixed reality (MR), three-dimensional (3D) and digital experiences in less than 300ms on any smartphone. Flam will expand its partner program for creative studios and global platforms, enabling Fortune 500 brands to move from pilot to rapid global roll-out . Upcoming product development includes Gen AI-driven 3D asset generation, democratising MR deployment at scale, enterprise suite of products across industries, and infrastructure for broadcasters and fan engagement. With its Series A secured, Flam aims to redefine how consumers interact with ads, retail aisles, live broadcasts and fan moments — turning content and interfaces into shoppable, shareable experiences that deliver measurable ROI. 'This capital unlocks the next chapter of Flam's deep‑tech roadmap. Our edge‑compute architecture already streams hyperreal mixed‑reality in under 300 ms; the next milestone is a fully generative pipeline that lets brands create, personalise and publish digital and 3D experiences on the fly — secure and at scale' said Amit Gaiki, co‑founder and CTO. Nishit Garg, Partner at RTP Global, said, 'The time for MR is now — and Flam is uniquely positioned to lead this wave. What excites us is not just the technology, but the clarity of vision and speed of execution. Shourya, Malhar and team are building a category-defining company—and we're excited to be part of their journey in this next phase of growth'. Amal Parikh, Managing Director at Dovetail, added, 'With Limitless applications, strong execution and clear vision we believe Flam is set to redefine how brands connect with consumers.' Flam currently employs more than 120 people across engineering, AI, creative tech and go-to-market teams. The company expects to grow to more than 180 employees by the end of 2025, with expansion across the U.S., Europe, and Asia already underway. Agarwal concluded, 'The world is meant to be experienced. Immersive media shouldn't just be a video. That said, the creation of immersive media should be as easy and ubiquitous as a video. Flam is here to power enterprises precisely for this.'
Associated Press
13-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Flam raises $14M to scale AI infrastructure for brand and marketing industry globally
San Francisco, May 13, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Most marketing today still relies on passive consumption over active engagement. In a world where consumer attention is harder to earn than ever, brands are searching for new ways to turn one-way messages into engaging, two-way interactions. Flam is building the infrastructure to make that possible. The company has raised $14 million in Series A funding to scale its AI Infra – making it easy for marketers to turn any touchpoint into an interactive, app-less digital and 3D experience. The round was led by RTP Global, with participation from Dovetail and other existing investors, bringing Flam's total funding to $22 million. Flam team: (L to R) CTO Amit Gaiki with founders Shourya Agarwal and Malhar Patil. To date, Flam has been transforming advertising by turning traditional ads into interactive MR experiences. A simple QR code Scan or a link will let users instantly immerse in an experience that can showcase a product, tell a story, or unlock a deeper layer of the brand — all without needing to download an app. Flam's platform allowed brands to launch interactive content via QR codes or link on any touchpoint – Digital, Broadcast TV, Mass Media, Retail, OOH, packaging, even WhatsApp messages. One scan or a link click, and consumers are instantly immersed in an experience that can showcase a product, tell a story, or unlock a deeper layer of the brand — all without needing to download an app. Starting this year, Flam has been accelerating R&D on its app-less GenAI infrastructure that enables brands to create, publish and measure high-fidelity MR, 3D & Digital experiences in <300 ms on any smartphone. The same infra already powers campaigns for Google, Samsung, Emirates and hundreds of global enterprises and agency powerhouses. 'Our mission is to turn every touch-point — Digital, Broadcast TV, Mass Media, Retail, Stadium Fan engagements —into an interactive digital experience,' said Shourya Agarwal, co-founder & CEO of Flam. 'We are laser focused to ship the GenAI tools that brands and enterprises have been yearning for. Flam has galvanised marketers around the world now we're taking it to the next level with a full stack enterprise suite of products across channels; to make them engaging, measurable, interactive. The platform is already being used by 100+ global brands including Google, Samsung, Emirates, Britannia, and Mahindra, with real-time mixed reality campaigns that have reached over 380+ million users. From turning product packaging into shareable stories to activating 3D demos on TV ads and billboards, Flam is helping brands create experiences that feel native to how people consume media today. Flam will expand its partner program for creative studios and global platforms, enabling Fortune 500 brands to move from pilot to rapid global roll-out . Upcoming product development includes GenAI-driven 3D asset generation, Democratising MR deployment at scale, Enterprise Suite of Products across Industries, and Infrastructure for broadcasters and fan engagement. With its Series A secured, Flam aims to redefine how consumers interact with ads, retail aisles, live broadcasts and fan moments—turning content and interfaces into shoppable, shareable experiences that deliver measurable ROI. 'This capital unlocks the next chapter of Flam's deep‑tech roadmap. Our edge‑compute architecture already streams hyperreal mixed‑reality in under 300 ms; the next milestone is a fully generative pipeline that lets brands create, personalise, and publish Digital & 3D experiences on the fly—secure and at scale' Amit Gaiki, co‑founder & CTO added. Nishit Garg, Partner at RTP Global commented: 'The time for MR is now — and Flam is uniquely positioned to lead this wave. What excites us is not just the technology, but the clarity of vision and speed of execution. Shourya, Malhar and team are building a category-defining company—and we're excited to be part of their journey in this next phase of growth'. While, Amal Parikh, Managing Director at Dovetail added: 'With Limitless applications, strong execution and clear vision we believe Flam is set to redefine how brands connect with consumers' said Flam currently employs 120+ people across engineering, AI, creative tech, and go-to-market teams. The company expects to grow to 180+ employees by the end of 2025, with expansion across the U.S., Europe, and Asia already underway. 'The World is meant to be experienced. Immersive media shouldn't just be a video,' added Shourya Agarwal. 'That said, the creation of immersive media should be as easy and ubiquitous as a video. Flam is here to power enterprises precisely for this.' Ends Media images can be found here. About Flam Founded in 2021 by BITS Pilani Alumni, Shourya Agarwal, Malhar Patil, Amit Gaiki, Flam is building a full-stack enterprise suite of GenAI-powered products to redefine how brands engage with audiences. Headquartered in San Francisco in the US and Bengaluru in India, Flam empowers brands, broadcasters, and enterprises to turn any touchpoint—across digital, television, retail, and live events—into interactive, measurable, and engaging gateways. For more information, visit About RTP Global RTP Global is an early-stage venture capital firm, backing the founders who use technology to reimagine how the world works. Since 2000, RTP Global has made over 150+ investments worldwide, with one in 10 becoming multi-billion dollar companies and one in 20 publicly trading at over $10bn. Notable investments include Datadog, DeliveryHero, Cred and SumUp. RTP Global has offices in New York, London, Paris, Dubai and Bangalore. For more information on RTP Global, visit For further information please contact the Flam press office on [email protected]
Time of India
13-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Mixed reality content startup Flam raises $14 million from RTP Global, others
Flam , a startup that provides tools for brands to run mixed reality (MR) advertisements and campaigns, has raised $14 million in a Series A round led by RTP Global, with participation from Dovetail and other strategic investors. The Bengaluru- and San Francisco-based company will use the capital to expand its presence in North America, Europe, and the Middle East, while scaling operations in Asia. It also plans to invest in product development across generative AI-based tools for 3D asset generation , analytics, and an integrated advertising suite aimed at sectors such as retail, sports, broadcasting, and live events. 'Given that there is a powerful product-market fit, we have to expand this,' said Shourya Agarwal, cofounder and CEO of Flam. 'India—we largely understand the market at this point, and this is a factory in place, which we can double down, triple down on the revenue bit. But we are looking at opening the US big time. Other than that, a large part of this money will go into product development and more engineering.' Founded in 2021 by Agarwal, Malhar Patil and Amit Gaiki, Flam is building a full-stack enterprise suite of generative AI-powered products that enables brands to deliver MR experiences across digital advertisements, TV broadcasts, packaging, and retail locations. Its proprietary tech claims to enable interactive 3D content in less than 300 milliseconds, without requiring downloads or browser redirects. The company said over 100 brands—including Google, Samsung, Emirates, Dabur , Ajio, Flipkart, and Tanishq—as well as a US Presidential campaign, have used its platform. Flam claims these MR campaigns have delivered engagement rates up to 49 times higher and conversion rates four times better than conventional formats. Discover the stories of your interest Blockchain 5 Stories Cyber-safety 7 Stories Fintech 9 Stories E-comm 9 Stories ML 8 Stories Edtech 6 Stories 'We have a stage-wise approach,' said Karthik Raman, chief marketing officer of Flam. 'In enterprises, we've gone as deep as possible and will go deeper in the US, UAE, and Europe. Then, with GenAI, the focus is on how to bring it down to MSME brands and creators—that's our phase-wise approach.' The company currently employs about 150 people, including nearly a dozen in the US. Flam had earlier raised around $4.5 million in a pre-Series A round from Turbostart, AI-focussed Twin Ventures, Alphatron Capital, several angel investors, family offices, and existing backers. It had also raised $3.5 million in seed funding in 2021. With the latest round, Flam has raised a total of $22 million to date. "The time for MR is now — and Flam is uniquely positioned to lead this wave. What excites us is not just the technology, but the clarity of vision and speed of execution,' said Nishit Garg, partner at RTP Global.
Forbes
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Building A New Type Of Content For Next Gen Consumers
Mixed reality on your smartphone: the next frontier for marketers? Augmented reality technologies in the consumer market are flying under the radar – it is almost a decade, for example, since the launch of AR gaming experience Pokemon Go. Nevertheless, the march of AR on the mobile phone is ongoing – a survey just published by Thrive found 35% of American consumers have now used mobile AR; almost one in two use the technology frequently. Thrive's research suggests that gaming remains the consumer market in which AR is getting the most reaction – the impact of the Pokemon Go phenomenon is clearly still being felt. But usage in other categories, from shopping to social interaction, is also continuing to increase. Advertising and marketing campaigns represent another key use case for this technology, as illustrated by the Series A funding round announced today by San Francisco-based Flam. It has raised $14 million, taking its total funding over the past four years to $22 million. Shourya Agarwal, co-founder and CEO of Flam, talks in terms of 'mixed reality', which he sees as a natural extension of the way in which content has changed over time. 'Over the years, we've made transition from text to images to video in order to keep customers interested,' Agarwal says. 'But consumers now want more – particularly younger consumers; they want content that feels and looks more exciting and engaging.' Big brands appear to agree. One recent report found that global brands spent $5.5 billion on augmented reality marketing last year, and estimated that this figure will more than double to $11.8 billion by 2028. 'AR advertising provides an opportunity for customers to experience products and services before making a purchase', researchers pointed out. FEATURED | Frase ByForbes™ Unscramble The Anagram To Reveal The Phrase Pinpoint By Linkedin Guess The Category Queens By Linkedin Crown Each Region Crossclimb By Linkedin Unlock A Trivia Ladder The challenge for brands is how to distribute that content. Consumers can't be expected to browse traditional media while wearing headsets in case they want to access new types of content – let alone to wander the streets equipped with such devices. In this context, Agarwal says the best way to think about Flam is as a mixed reality publishing infrastructure – a platform that provides a means for brands and organisations to launch a more immersive type of marketing or customer experience from conventional touchpoints. Those could include anything from an ad in a newspaper to a billboard in the street or from product packaging to digital content. Consumers access these immersive experiences by using their smartphone camera to open a QR code or a link. That unlocks a richer piece of marketing, viewed through the phone, that incorporates the original content but adds 3D images and pictures and enables the viewer to interact with it – zooming in and out, say, or deciding what details they want to look at. Flam founder Shourya Agarwal Founded in 2021, Flam has already signed up customers including Google, Samsung and Emirates to run campaigns using its technology; last year, it even worked with Kamala Harris's Presidential bid team. Agarwal says more than 100 global brands have now used Flam – and that their campaigns have reached more than 580 million users. 'Before YouTube it was technically difficult to host and share videos online; it was complex, expensive and out of reach for most creators,' he adds. 'YouTube changed that with a simple, scalable platform, and we're doing the same for mixed reality.' Today's funding round is led by RTP Global, with participation from Dovetail and other existing investors. 'The time for mixed reality is now,' insists Nishit Garg, partner at RTP, while Amal Parikh, managing director of Dovetail, tips Flam to 'redefine how brands connect with consumers'. That remains to be seen – this is an evolving marketplace. At one end, for example, the social media giant Snap continues to experiment with AR functionality for advertisers and brands. At the other, businesses such as 8th Wall, are competing directly with Flam; it also offers an AR platform that allows brands to distribute AR experiences via mobile devices – in its case through a browser. Nevertheless, as providers make it easier for big brands to get more engaging content our there, the future for AR and mixed reality marketing looks bright. Above all, the returns on investment look compelling. AR Insider estimates that in 2022, buyers spent $58 billion on physical goods having been influenced by AR - and that this will increase to an enormous $255 billion by 2027.
