Founder.
Investor.
Author.

Building India's most trusted founder network. Investing in the next generation of breakout startups. Writing the field guide I wish I had on Day 1.

200+
Investments
~$100M
Fund AUM
3
Unicorns Seeded
Utsav Somani
01 / About
A Founder's Founder

Utsav Somani is the founder of Offline — India's most exclusive peer community for scaled-up tech founders and CEOs. Early members include co-founders of Zomato, Country Delight, Ultrahuman, Noise, CoinDCX, and many more.

He built AngelList India after being hired by Naval Ravikant and AngelList US, growing it into the country's most active seed investor. With 1,000+ investments since its 2018 launch, AngelList India managed over $250 million in assets.

Utsav runs two solo-GP micro-funds — iSeed and Galaxy — with combined AUM of approximately $100 million. He has personally invested in over 200 startups alongside top-tier VC firms.

He hosts The Offline Network (TON), a live-streaming show covering India's startup ecosystem, airing Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 4 PM IST.

Education

Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram — Science with Computers (finished 2005)

B.Sc. in Information Systems Management & Finance — Singapore Management University (2005–2009)

M.Sc. in Innovation & Entrepreneurship — ESADE Business School, Barcelona (2011–2012)

Recognition

Fortune India 40 Under 40 (2021)

Entrepreneur India 35 Under 35 (2020)

Rated among India's top 10 angel investors multiple times

02 / Ventures
What I'm Building & Investing Through
Community, capital, and content — three interconnected bets on the Indian startup ecosystem.
Founder

Offline

India's most exclusive peer community for scaled-up tech founders and CEOs. Curated pods, executive coaching, monthly off-the-record sessions, annual retreats, strict privacy pledge.

offline.club →
Solo GP / Partner

iSeed

India's first solo-GP micro venture fund. Backed by Naval Ravikant, Babak Nivi, and senior executives at DST Global, Matrix Partners India, and Xiaomi. Seed-stage investing.

iseed.vc →
Solo GP / Partner

Galaxy

Gives Indian founders their first fund to start investing. Backed by Naval Ravikant, Tim Ferriss, Elad Gil, Lachy Groom, Jeff Fagnan, and Jake Zeller. Combined with iSeed: ~$100M AUM.

joingalaxy.co →
Host

The Offline Network (TON)

Live-streaming show on India's startup ecosystem. Founder interviews, ecosystem news, and market deep-dives. Airs MWF at 4 PM IST.

Watch on YouTube →
Former Partner & Head · 2018–2023

AngelList India

Hired by Naval Ravikant and AngelList US to build AngelList India. Grew it into the country's most active seed investor: $250M+ AUM, 1,000+ investments. Launched syndicates, RUVs, EquityList, The Collective fund.

angellistindia.com →
Author — Penguin Business

The Founder Manual

A deeply practical field guide for building in India. 100+ hours of founder conversations, a decade of 200+ investments. Published by Penguin Random House India.

Get the book →
03 / Portfolio
200+ bets on India's builders.
"Founder-led capital is the most empathetic source for early-stage startups."
2014–2017 · Early Bets
SUGAR Cosmetics Testbook AdPushup LogiNext Innov8 Coworking Sleepy Owl Coffee Betaout
2018 · First Unicorns
CoinDCX BharatPe
2019 · Breakouts
Park+ Jupiter Mosaic Wellness Pristyn Care
2020 · iSeed Launches
Privado.ai Rocketlane Pepper Content Velocity Enterpret
2021 · Scaling Up
GoKwik Ultrahuman M2P Fintech Even Everstage Rattle AppsForBharat Vetic
2023–2025 · Continued
Mitigata Airbound Mekr Astrobase Flytbase OTPless Alt Carbon Supply6 Grexa Ninecamp + many more
200+
Personal Investments
~$100M
Combined Fund AUM
$250M+
AngelList India AUM
3
Unicorns Seeded
04 / Book
The Founder Manual
Insights from the Top Founders of India — Penguin Business
The Founder Manual by Utsav Somani

The map you wish you had on Day 1.

The real founder journey is not glamorous — it is chaotic, lonely, unstructured and brutally hard. Drawing from over 100 hours of conversations with India's most exciting founders and a decade of investing in 200+ startups, this book delivers an unfiltered, deeply practical and emotionally honest field guide for building in India.

"A brutally honest, practical and deeply relevant guide to building a company in India today. A must-read."

— Avnish Bajaj, Founder & Investor, Z47

"A no-holds-barred guide for India's founders. Hard-hitting, grounded and built for the real world."

— HE Abdulnasser Alshaali, UAE Ambassador to India

"Drawn from 200+ investments, Utsav distils founder stories into sharp, tactical insights. A superb read."

— Sumit Gupta, Co-founder & CEO, CoinDCX
05 / Media
In the Spotlight
Press coverage, podcast appearances, and live show hosting.

The Offline Network (TON)

India's startup ecosystem show. Founder interviews, market commentary, ecosystem deep-dives. Hosted by Utsav. MWF at 4 PM IST.

Watch on YouTube →

Wall Street Journal

Writing

Essays on angel investing, solo GP strategy, and building in India.

Read on Medium →
06 / Connect
Let's Talk
Founders building something meaningful — reach out anytime.