Indian founders make up one of the largest non-US cohorts at YC. The India Founder Pack tags every Indian founder by visa status during the batch, fundraising geography, and whether the company built for India or the US.
The build-for-India vs US split
| Market | Example | Note |
|---|---|---|
| India primary | Razorpay (W15) | Built for Indian SMB payments; raised mostly from Sequoia India and global firms. |
| India primary | Meesho (W18) | Social commerce for India; raised globally. |
| US primary | Zepto (S21) | Quick commerce; India ops, global capital. |
| US primary | Astronomer (W18) | Global devtools out of India eng leadership. |
Visa + relocation patterns
- Most founders relocated to SF for the in-person batch, then returned.
- B-1 / visitor visas covered the batch period for many; long-term US ops typically required separate visa work.
- Some founders left a US-based co-founder in SF and ran India ops remotely after the batch.
Fundraising geography
Indian YC founders who built for India typically raised their first $1M from a combination of US YC-adjacent funds and India-based seed funds (Sequoia India / Peak XV, Accel India, Lightspeed India). Companies building for US markets raised almost entirely from US funds and ran lean India teams to extend runway.
Key takeaways
- Choose your market deliberately — India vs US drives every later decision.
- Plan visa logistics before the batch starts.
- India-market companies usually raise from US + India funds in parallel.
- Indian eng cost extends runway; don't blow it on US salaries too early.