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Companion Labs

Category: AI in Media / Gaming / Entertainment

An AI-powered interactive entertainment platform that creates personalized, vernacular language storytelling experiences where users play as the main character in AI-driven narratives. Companion Labs was founded in 2025. The company is led by Akshay Jhanwar. Based in Bengaluru, India. Team size: 2-10. Total funding raised: $2.5M. Latest round: Seed round ($2.5M, Feb 2026). Key investors include ["Peak XV Partners (Surge Program)","All In Capital","UntitledVC","DeVC","Angel investors"].

Founded
2025
Headquarters
Bengaluru, India
Team size
2-10
Total funding
$2.5M

Value proposition

Delivers interactive, personalized AI entertainment experiences at scale in local Indian languages, allowing users to explore alternate paths and identities in deeply personal, culturally-rooted narratives.

Products and solutions

["AI-Driven Interactive Story Platform","Vernacular Language Entertainment Content","Personalized Narrative Engine","Multi-language Content Library (Tamil, Telugu, Gujarati, Punjabi, Marathi, Bengali)","Character-Driven Interactive Stories"]

Unique value

First-of-its-kind AI-native entertainment platform specifically designed for India's vernacular audiences, combining interactive storytelling with regional language AI capabilities.

Target customer

Young, digitally native Indians aged 18-35 who prefer vernacular content and seek entertainment in regional languages

Industries served

["Consumer AI","Digital Entertainment","Gaming AI","Vernacular Content","Interactive Media","Edutainment"]

Technology advantage

Leverages advanced AI and LLM technologies to generate interactive, personalized storytelling experiences at scale in regional Indian languages. Combines consumer AI expertise with deep understanding of Indian regional preferences.

How they differentiate

First AI-native interactive entertainment platform specifically designed for India's vernacular audiences in 6 regional languages. Focuses on immersive, character-driven experiences where users become the protagonist, unlike global companions or traditional publishing platforms.

Main competitors

["Character.AI","Replika","Pratilipi"]

Key partnerships

["Peak XV Partners (Surge Program)","India AI Impact Summit 2026","All In Capital","UntitledVC","DeVC"]

Notable customers

[]

Major milestones

["Selected for Peak XV's Surge 11 cohort (September 2025)","Raised $2.5M seed funding led by Peak XV's Surge (February 2026)","Featured at India AI Impact Summit 2026","Developed beta platform with ~25 interactive vernacular stories"]

Growth metrics

Pre-revenue, beta stage with ~25 interactive stories; targeting 150-200 million users over 5-10 years

Market positioning

Early-stage vernacular AI entertainment pioneer targeting India's 150-200 million digitally native, regional language users.

Geographic focus

India (Bengaluru-based), with focus on Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities

Patents and IP

No registered patents disclosed as of latest update

About Akshay Jhanwar

Over 4 years as Engineer at CRED (2020-2024). Previous roles at JDA Software (2019-2020) and betterhalf.ai (2018-2019). B.E. from Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani (2015-2020). Experience in consumer internet, fintech, and AI-driven entertainment applications.

Official website: