altM Raises $10.3M Series A Led By Rainmatter And Mela Ventures
A Bengaluru startup founded by two former Tesla executives wants to turn crop waste into specialty chemicals. altM has raised $10.3 million (about ₹97.5 crore) in a Series A round led by new investors Rainmatter, Zerodha’s investment arm, and Mela Ventures. Existing investors Omnivore, Theia Ventures, Aureolis Ventures and Spectrum Impact also participated. The round comes nearly three years after its $3.5 million seed round.
Founded in 2022 by Apoorv Garg and Yugal Raj Jain, altM converts agricultural residue such as sugarcane bagasse and rice straw into specialty chemicals and biomaterials as an alternative to fossil-derived raw materials. It plans to use the funds to set up a 1,000-tonne-per-year commercial plant by 2028, build its sales pipeline and continue R&D. altM says it expects its first beauty and personal care products, including a lignin-derived SPF booster for suncare, to launch in the coming quarter.
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