Meta’s Krishna Mehra joins Elevation Capital to lead AI investments

Capillary Technologies cofounder Krishna Mehra has joined early-stage venture capital firm Elevation Capital as partner in the fund to lead its artificial intelligence (AI) and software-as-a-service (SaaS) investments from Silicon Valley, as the VC firm looks to deepen its presence along the India-US corridor.

The big picture: In his latest stint at Facebook owner Meta, Mehra led engineering for messaging ads through AI-driven products and deployed some of the earliest Llama models, as per a statement from Elevation Capital.

He previously built cloud systems at Cohesity and cofounded two startups — Capillary Technologies, which provides customer engagement and loyalty software services to companies and Taro, a chef-to-table marketplace later acquired by EAT Club. As an angel investor, he’s backed over 40 companies including Innovaccer and MoEngage.

Between the lines: The appointment comes as Indian founders increasingly target global markets from day one. “With 40% of Silicon Valley companies having Indian diaspora founders, Elevation sees significant opportunity in AI talent building for worldwide audiences. India’s SaaS ecosystem has matured, producing global success stories across categories. Indian talent now leads the AI revolution,” said Mehra.

AI push: The move aims to push Elevation’s SaaS Compass programme, which enters its second year offering founders mentorship from the likes of ThoughtSpot’s Vikram Bhaskaran and Figma’s Scott Pugh. The firm has backed nearly 30 companies in the SaaS and AI space, including Clear, Fareye, and Murf.ai, with increased activity over the last four years. Mukul Arora, co-managing partner, Elevation Capital, said, “We are extremely bullish on Indian founders building category-defining AI companies for the world, and with Krishna leading our presence in Silicon Valley, we are better positioned than ever to help founders realize this opportunity.”

Internal movements: In October, the firm promoted two of its principals, Vaas Bhaskar and Chirag Chadha, to the role of partners, with Bhaskar focusing on fintech and Chadha on consumer tech. Other partners include Ravi Adusumalli, Mukul Arora, Mridul Arora, Mayank Khanduja, Ramanuj Gopalan, Vivek Mathur, and Vaibhav Goel. However, Gopalan, Mathur and Goel are not a part of the investment team. Elevation Capital has invested over $2.6 billion in more than 190 companies, including Swiggy, Unacademy, Meesho, Urban Company, and Acko. The firm had closed its eighth India-dedicated fund at $670 million in April 2022.