Ajinkya Rahane Expands Investment Game with AI & Agri-Tech

With Ajinkya Rahane taking a fearless approach towards cricket, he feels more open to making attempts at investing in new emerging sectors within the business world.  

"Discussions are in place regarding investments in AI. I'm interested in the AI and energy sectors," Rahane, the 2025 IPL KKR franchise captain told Moneycontrol, while sharing his journey in startup investing which began six years ago.  

"In terms of my investments, I have actively participated in the $3 million Series A funding round in IoT startup Proxgy, which became famous from the reality show Shark Tank India," he explained to Moneycontrol as he plans for further portfolio expansion in 2025.

“I would say it's good (startup portfolio). When we started with Huddle and also Mera Kisan, There are few other startups with which the talks are still on. We have learnt a lot during the process. It takes time to evaluate and meet all these people,” he said.

“Some startup investments are automatic. They would take like a month or two. Some might take seven eight months. We will probably add one or two or maybe more than that in the startup portfolio. It is all about matching wavelengths, which is important to us,” Rahane said.

In joining the dairy alternatives startup OATEY, Rahane not only invested but also took up the mantle of brand ambassador during 2023.

Love for Agri-tech

Having immense passion for agriculture technology, the all format cricketer partnered with a Pune based Mahratta Chamber of Commerce Industries and Agriculture (MCCIA) in 2022 to launch a seed fund worth Rs 1 crore aimed at agri-tech startups.

My journey in investment began in 2018 or 2019. During this time, I made some investments in the agriculture technology space because I really have a drive and passion for agriculture. It’s important to me personally, rather than from a business perspective, which makes me want to help farmers make a sustainable living,” said Rahane.

Rahane is currently working on establishing a top-class cricket facility. “The work is underway, and soon everyone will find out more about the academy or the set up. It has already started. Personally, I always think of ways to try to give back to cricket or a sport and this is my way of doing so by providing such an amazing facility to all the young people out there. Also, mental health is equally essential. Personally, I follow a philosophy called Vedanta, which has genuinely been very helpful for me. I have been following that since 2013. If I can just integrate that into my sports set up and try to help people and students. And it's guess what? Not just for the athletes or sports persons. It is for the rest of the world too,” he mentioned.

Rahane's friends and institutions, like MCCIA, have helped him maintain a balance as he handles multiple priorities in his life. 'I am focused completely on playing cricket. Other things are secondary But I am not playing cricket for 24 hours. So, whenever I have time, I spend time reading about new startups and businesses' said Rahane alongside his business partner Akhil Ranade.

Ranade moved into sports marketing from the advertising world, where he worked with O&M and DDB Mudra before joining IMG as a sports consultant. AMCCIA helped Rahane’s agri-tech investments, including Krishak Mitra, which provides localized weather information, and another service that helps farmers maintain a ledger. “My focus is completely on playing cricket, but I like to keep myself busy,” said Rahane.

Still, he did say there were moments when he questioned his decision to start investing.

“In the beginning, it was incredibly difficult for Akhil and me. There were moments when we were asking ourselves, why on earth we put ourselves in this position (a startup)? But at the end there was a passion behind it. It is not always about the returns or the success. That will come eventually. In a startup business, the (success) rate is low, but as long as we are passionate about the field, that's what makes us happy,” said the batter.

Cricketing and Entrepreneurship Lessons

In the past few years, the domestic startups facing a funding drought did make Rahane skeptical.

“I had heard startups were going through a funding winter. Some of the companies I had invested in also had this problem. Although I had some knowledge of the circumstances, I was still caught off guard. When I started out, my financial planners gave me a heads up saying that there will be periods where capital will be impossible to acquire, so funding will be close to impossible at certain periods. They told me to brace myself mentally. Naturally, you want your investment to yield benefits, but similar to being on a cricket field, I feel that all the strategies will fail too. One has to be equipped for that. I feel as investors we can support the right founders and teams who understand how to weather tough situations without bailing out during the difficult times,” said Rahane.

The experiences he has gained while playing has allowed him to make better choices as an investor, the Rahane commented. “Cricket has been helping me a lot in this start-up journey like having trust in founders, as I have in my partners on the field,” he said.

Rahane’s conceded that there are moments when investors may be over involved. “As a captain, as a leader of the team, you know what you should take as an input or which one you should not. So as an investor, I am trying to take a back seat. First, build that relationship with the founders, give them the freedom, understand the product and how loyal and passionate they are,” he said.

Rahane captained the Indian team during his most famous wins when he took charge for the last three games of India’s tour to Australia and took over from Virat Kohli, who went on a paternity leave. India eventually, in that series, handed Australia their first Test loss at the Gabba and Rahane was the main performer for his side’s victory.

He is now also the new captain of the Kolkata Knight Riders franchise for the Indian Premier League (IPL) during its 18th edition which will kick off on March 22 of this year.

Although Rahane refuses to assist young entrepreneurs or novice investors, he integrates lessons learned from the cricket field while formulating his investment strategy. “My experience tells me to choose teams or companies that care about the company and not just the founders. Honestly, of all the investments, the founder's care is the least. The business owners are the weakest link to building their own business," said Rahane.

His advice for sportspeople is to broaden their scope. "I think it's important to note that the main source of income may come from sports. for me, I would say what are the key things I am able to do in the world of startup business. I have other sector investments. For all involved, in and out of the sports, it's important to have that variety of your portfolio," said Rahane.

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