Published: November 5, 2026
StartupFeed Quick Take
- altM Series A round totals $10.3 million (Rs 97.5 crore), with Rainmatter and Mela Ventures as new backers.
- Founded in 2022, altM last raised a $3.5 million seed round in 2023.
- A 1,000-tonne-a-year commercial plant is due by 2028, with first products this quarter.
Bengaluru cleantech startup altM has raised Rs 97.5 crore in a Series A round led by Rainmatter and Mela Ventures.
altM’s funding statement puts the round at $10.3 million. That is nearly three times the $3.5 million seed round it raised in 2023, when Omnivore led.
Farm waste is altM’s raw material. The startup turns crop residue like sugarcane bagasse and rice straw into cellulose, lignin and other useful parts.
Former Tesla executives Apoorv Garg and Yugal Raj Jain founded altM in 2022. Garg is cofounder and chief executive.
altM Series A: Where the Money Goes
Most of altM’s new money will go into manufacturing. The plan is a 1,000-tonne-a-year commercial plant by 2028, plus a bigger sales team.
A 70-tonne-a-year pilot plant already runs in Bengaluru’s Electronic City. Nearly 30 beauty and personal-care brands are customers, with 16 to 18 in testing.
First products are due this quarter. They include a lignin-based SPF booster for sunscreen and a bio-based form of ferulic acid, a cosmetics ingredient.
Abhinav Negi, who leads climate and deep-tech bets at Rainmatter, framed the stakes:
“We are pleased to partner with altM as they move into commercial-scale production. Re-wiring foundational supply chains away from fossil-derived inputs is one of the most critical challenges facing modern manufacturing today.”
Abhinav Negi, Lead, Climate and Deep Tech, Rainmatter by Zerodha. From the funding announcement, November 5, 2026.
What this means for you: If you run a beauty or personal-care brand hunting for greener, India-made ingredients, altM’s first products land this quarter. Ask for samples of its lignin SPF booster or bio-based ferulic acid before the 1,000-tonne plant scales output in 2028.
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