• Pankaj Mitra joins Bessemer India as Partner, bringing 25+ years of experience in VC and corporate strategy.
• Focus areas include AI, enterprise software, and cybersecurity, aligned with Bessemer’s $350M India fund.
• Mitra’s past investments include Uniphore, Whatfix, and Ideaforge, reinforcing his deep tech and startup expertise.

Bessemer Venture Partners, one of the oldest venture capital firms globally, has named Pankaj Mitra a Partner in its India unit, marking a more pointed interest in artificial intelligence (AI), enterprise software, and cybersecurity startups in India.

Mitra has more than 25 years of corporate strategy and venture capital experience. He was earlier in a senior position at Cisco, where he was responsible for global investments in Customer Experience and managing the India investment operations of the company. His notable investments include Fiddler, an AI observability company, conversational AI firm Uniphore, and digital adoption platform Whatfix.

This is just after Bessemer closed its second India-dedicated fund of $350 million in March 2025. The fund focuses on areas like AI, digital health, fintech, enterprise software, and cybersecurity spaces where Mitra has already established a strong investment record.

Before Cisco, Mitra was an early member of Infosys's $500 million venture fund, investing in startups such as drone technology firm Ideaforge (which listed on the stock exchange in 2023) and fitness wearables company Whoop. He also spent time at VMware during its cloud growth period and started his career as a consultant at Deloitte.

A graduate of IIT Kharagpur and Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley, Mitra comes aboard Bessemer when India's enterprise-tech ecosystem is transforming at lightning speed, mirroring early patterns in developed markets such as the U.S. and Israel, where Bessemer has historically enjoyed first-mover position.

In a warm welcome to the firm, Bessemer Partner Vishal Gupta added, "Pankaj's combination of investing expertise and rich industry experience will be instrumental as we expand our investments in India's AI and cybersecurity markets."

Mitra further commented, "This wave of AI creates a rare, once-in-a-generation opportunity for innovation. I am excited to partner with top Indian founders addressing real problems with international resonance."Internationally, Bessemer Venture Partners has more than $18 billion in assets under management with locations in Silicon Valley, New York, London, Tel Aviv, and Bengaluru.

Read More News :

HSBC Eyes India's First Venture Debt Fund for Startups

Samsung R&D Noida Hosts AI Startup Summit