Scimplify raises $25M to expand AI-driven materials platform
India's Scimplify has raised a $25 million all-equity strategic round led by Hitachi Ventures, with customers Henkel and Teknor Apex joining as new investors alongside existing backers Accel India, Bertelsmann India Investments, Omnivore and 3one4 Capital. A person familiar with the deal put the post-money valuation at $250 million, and the company said the round brings total equity funding to $80 million. The Bengaluru-based startup uses its in-house Scinode AI platform — built around specialized agents for research, manufacturing and quality control — to move specialty chemicals and critical materials from customer requirements to finished product, a process co-founder Sachin Santhosh said can take two months in some cases versus a typical 12 to 18 months. Scimplify says annualized revenue has reached about $200 million with roughly 340 employees, and it plans to extend its manufacturing network to the US and Japan over the next year.
The company's pitch — using AI to shorten materials development and supplier qualification — matters if it can genuinely help manufacturers reduce reliance on Chinese supply chains for critical materials.