Indian live commerce software as a service (SaaS) Swirl has raised $1.1 million in a seed round led by Shastra VC and other renowned Angel Investors.

Swirl said in a statement on Tuesday that the round also saw participation from accomplished angel investors spanning India, Middle East, and United States.

These is including Aakrit Vaish (Haptik Chief Executive Officer), Shan Krishnasamy (Freshworks Ex-Chief Technology Officer), Mohammed Dewji (MeTL Chief Executive Officer MeTL), Naim Siddiqui (Momentum Chief Executive Officer), Anil Goteti (Flipkart Ex-Senior Vice President), Jiten Patri (Future Group Ex-Chief Marketing Officer), Arun Prabhudesai (TrakinTech), Neha Kulwal (Mitgo Managing Director), Ratan Ingu (Uncode Chief Executive Officer), Paresh Chaudhry (Madison Ex-Chief Executive Officer) and others.

With this funding, Swirl said it is poised to take the firm to the next level.

It is noted that the firm has already built a strong validation with global brands across India, Middle East and Europe.

With the funding, it will expand its reach to the massive $100 billion+ United States and United Arab Emirates (UAE) markets, while strengthening its product suite with a focus on deep artificial intelligence (AI) integration to systematically extract contextual insights from videos at scale.

By harnessing the power of AI using video context metadata and LLM, Swirl said it will also be able to drive quantifiable sales uplift, creating a seamless and personalized customer experience that is 10 times better than what a user sees today.

Moreover, it will help boost search engine optimization (SEO), by bringing in new traffic through organic sources due to enhanced metadata.

In addition, Swirl said it will leverage video context metadata to train a 24/7 chatbot within the video, offering instant product recommendations, enticing users with add-ons, and bundle offers.

It said its mission remains steadfast – to elevate user engagement by providing more personalized and relevant video content that boosts conversions and return on investment (ROI) for the brand.

“We look forward to the next chapter of Swirl’s journey, with the goal of bringing brands closer to consumers and ushering in a new era of interactive, immersive shopping experiences,” said Kaizad Hansotia, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Swirl.

Swirl was founded in 2021 by Hansotia and Bheshaj. They both saw an opportunity in live commerce to bridge the gap by combining the convenience of online shopping with the human touch of physical stores.

They were early adopters of live commerce technology, driven by a belief that video would redefine e-commerce.

The pandemic accelerated their vision, and Swirl emerged as a solution for businesses seeking an immersive online shopping experience.

The firm has already worked with leading brands like Puma, VIVO, TVS, GKHair, Traya, and Arvind Brands.

It has witnessed the positive impact of Swirl on businesses with: 3 times increase in e-commerce conversions; 40 percent higher return on ad spend; 35 percent engagement rate and average 13 times return on investment.

“Swirl taps into the trillion-dollar global video commerce market with a unique approach to building a global leader in enterprise and SaaS from India,

“Their differentiated product, frugal mindset, and relentless focus on business fundamentals positions them well for scaling up across global markets,” said Venus Dhuria, Partner at Shastra VC.

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