If you are building an early-stage startup in India, ajvc is one of the few funds that will back you before you have a product, a registered company, or even a co-founder. It writes a standard cheque of ₹1.5 Cr for 9%, and it can take you from a 3-minute form to a final decision in about three weeks.
The fund is actively deploying. Founder Aviral Bhatnagar's stated goal for 2026 is 28 pre-seed investments, roughly ₹45 Cr into Indian startups, and ajvc led rounds in wudhomes and Scooter in October 2026 alone. This guide covers who should apply, how the process works, and how to give your application its best shot.
Apply to ajvc here: ajuniorvc.com/apply
What is ajvc?
ajvc (formerly A Junior VC) is a SEBI-regulated pre-seed venture fund that invests only in Indian startups. It is run by Aviral Bhatnagar, an IIM Ahmedabad graduate and former investor at Venture Highway, who describes ajvc as "India's most approachable pre-seed fund."
| What | Detail |
|---|---|
| Cheque | ₹1.5 Cr for 9% of the company (standard terms) |
| Stage | Pre-seed only |
| Sectors | AI, defence, consumer tech and brands (2026 focus) |
| First reply | Within 2 days |
| Decision | About 3 weeks from the first form |
Unlike cohort accelerators, ajvc does not make you wait for a batch. It invests as soon as a company is accepted, so the right time to apply is when you are ready, not when a window opens.
Are you eligible?
Any Indian company or team raising pre-seed capital can apply, and an idea is enough. The fine print matters, though.
You can apply if:
- You only have an idea, a paper plan or a prototype
- You haven't incorporated yet. Write "yet to be incorporated" as your company name, and ajvc helps you register after acceptance
- You're a solo founder, though ajvc wants you to understand the technical side of your space
- You're still employed or studying, as long as you go full-time once accepted
- You've raised some money, as long as no single round was larger than ₹1 Cr
ajvc is not the right fit if:
- You've already raised a round above ₹1 Cr
- You're raising a seed round. ajvc only writes pre-seed cheques
- Your company is registered outside India. The fund mainly invests in Indian entities, with rare exceptions such as Singapore or the US
How to apply to ajvc, step by step
The process has four steps, and the final decision is made on a call with the partners.
Step 1: Fill the short form
Go to ajuniorvc.com/apply and fill the first form. ajvc says it takes about 3 minutes. The fund doesn't publish the questions in advance, so keep your one-line pitch, team background and current stage ready before you open it.
Step 2: Hear back within 2 days
ajvc replies on next steps within two days of your submission. It evaluates applications using public data, private data and what you share in the form, so make sure your LinkedIn and website tell the same story as your answers.
Step 3: Complete the detailed application
If ajvc sees potential, it sends a longer form about your business. The fund says every one of these is read by the partnership, so treat it as your real pitch. Answer every question in full, attach your deck, and keep your numbers consistent with your first form.
Step 4: Join the partner call
Selected teams are invited to a call with the partners, and the decision to invest is made on that call. From your first form to a final decision, expect about three weeks.
What to prepare before you hit submit
The first form is short, but with a two-day reply your first answers have to land. Get these ready before you start:
- A one-line description. Who you serve, the problem, and what you're building, in one sentence.
- Why you. The experience or insight that makes your team the right one to solve this.
- Where you stand today. Idea, prototype, live product or first revenue, with any numbers you have.
- Your funding history. What you've raised so far, confirming no round was above ₹1 Cr.
- A short pitch deck. Ten to twelve slides for the detailed application.
- A plan for the ₹1.5 Cr. The hires, product milestones and runway it buys you.
- Your team's profiles. Co-founders' LinkedIn profiles, or your technical plan if you're a solo founder.
- A full-time plan. If you're still employed or studying, know how and when you'll switch.
How to write a strong application
At pre-seed there is little data to judge, so your words carry the application. Five parts matter most.
Your one-liner. Use a simple structure: "We help [customer] [get an outcome] by [how]." For example: "We help kirana owners reorder stock in one tap on WhatsApp." If a stranger can't repeat your one-liner after reading it once, rewrite it.
The problem. Show that you understand it from the inside. Say how many potential customers you've spoken to, what they use today, and what it costs them. A specific pain beats a large market-size number.
Traction, however small. Ten paying users, a waitlist of 300, or two signed pilots all count. State exactly what you have and when you got it. Never round up; a partner will ask.
The team. Skip adjectives like "passionate" and "experienced." Write what each founder has built, shipped, sold or scaled, with numbers where you can.
Your deck. For the detailed application, keep it to ten or twelve slides with one idea each:
- The problem, told through one real customer
- Your solution and how it works
- Who the customer is and how you reach them
- Traction to date, with dates
- The team and why you'll win
- The market, sized from the bottom up
- How you make money
- What the ₹1.5 Cr buys and the milestones it gets you to
A partner should be able to understand your business from the slides alone, without you there to explain them.
How to prepare for the partner call
Because ajvc decides on the call itself, this conversation is your whole close. Pre-seed partner calls usually cover the same ground, so prepare short, honest answers to these:
- Why this problem, and why are you the team to solve it?
- What have you learned from customers that others in this space have missed?
- What will you achieve with ₹1.5 Cr, and by when?
- What milestones do you need to hit before your next round?
- What is the biggest risk in your plan, and how will you test it early?
Know your numbers without checking notes. If you don't know something, say so and explain how you'll find out. That reads far better than a confident guess.
Use the call to ask questions too. Ask how Founders' Compass works week to week and which portfolio founders you could speak to. Good investors expect founders to check them as closely as they are being checked.
After the call, send a short note the same day with anything you promised to share, such as a demo link, a metrics sheet or a customer reference. It shows you follow through, which is exactly what a pre-seed investor is betting on.
What ₹1.5 Cr for 9% means for you
ajvc's terms are standard, so there's little to negotiate. That is part of why it moves fast. It still helps to understand the numbers.
At ₹1.5 Cr for 9%, your company is valued at about ₹16.7 Cr after the investment, or about ₹15.2 Cr before it. The founders and any earlier investors keep 91% between them.
Dilution compounds over later rounds. Say you raise a seed round next and sell 15% of the company. ajvc's 9% falls to about 7.65%, and the founders' 91% falls to about 77.35%. Plan your raise so that the ₹1.5 Cr gets you to milestones that justify a higher valuation next time.
Mistakes that get applications rejected
- Applying after raising a round larger than ₹1 Cr
- Pitching a seed-stage raise instead of pre-seed
- Planning to stay part-time after ajvc invests
- A vague one-liner that could describe a dozen startups
- Claims in the form that your LinkedIn or website contradicts
What happens after ajvc invests
Once you're in, you join Founders' Compass, ajvc's ongoing support programme. It runs for as long as you need to reach your next milestone and takes a few hours a week at most.
- Hands-on help with compliance, finance, product, hiring, sales and legal
- No relocation. You're invited to one meetup in Pune with other portfolio founders
- Launch visibility to an audience of 500,000+ when you show your product or announce a round
- Partner credits from AWS, Google Cloud, Notion AI, HubSpot, Linear and others
You can spend the money on anything that improves your odds, such as salaries, technology and operations. ajvc only asks that you spend it thoughtfully.
Recent founders backed by ajvc include wudhomes (home furnishing), Scooter (sales hiring), Unveilr AI (AI search visibility), Thread Factory (B2B apparel) and Jaagruk Bharat (civic tech).
Frequently asked questions
How much does ajvc invest?
₹1.5 Cr for 9% of the company, on standard terms.
Is there an application deadline?
No. ajvc accepts applications year-round and invests when a company is accepted.
How long does it take to hear back?
Within two days for next steps, and about three weeks to a final decision.
Can I apply without a co-founder or a registered company?
Yes to both. Solo founders are welcome, and you can incorporate after acceptance.
Is ajvc still investing in 2026?
Yes. Its stated goal for 2026 is 28 pre-seed investments, and it led two rounds in October 2026.
Final thoughts
ajvc is one of the fastest routes to a first institutional cheque in India: a short form, a reply in two days, and a decision in about three weeks. If you're at the idea or prototype stage and haven't raised more than ₹1 Cr, it's worth applying now while the fund is actively deploying.
Get your one-liner, team story and plan for the ₹1.5 Cr ready, then apply.
Apply to ajvc here: ajuniorvc.com/apply
