HealthifyMe has raised $30 million in a pre-series D funding round led by LeapFrog Investments and Khosla Ventures, the health and fitness platform said on June 7. The round comes at a time when late-stage funding deals are running dry.
The company said it will use fresh funds to build its AI capabilities stronger, acquire talent, and global expansion, without sharing details on the valuation.
According to a source close to the company, the round has been raised through convertible notes. "The round has been raised as a convertible note - pegged to the next round - so no valuation has been set," they told Moneycontrol.
A convertible note is a short-term debt instrument that can convert into equity at a later stage, typically during any subsequent funding round.
The source also added that the conversion cap on the convertible note has been set 'significantly higher than the last round.' However, the company's valuation has been undisclosed.
The conversion cap sets the maximum price at which the convertible note can convert into equity. It is designed to protect the investors from excessive dilution if the company's valuation skyrockets before the next financing round.
This round also included venture debt close to $5 million out of the entire amount. Healthifyme added that it plans to incorporate generative AI (artificial intelligence) into its AI-powered virtual nutritionist.
“...With generative AI, we're supercharging our mission to 'healthify' a billion people,” said Tushar Vashisht, co-founder and CEO, HealthifyMe. “This funding represents a vote of confidence in a future where everyone can access superior health and fitness outcomes, globally and affordably.”
Founded in 2012 by Vashisht and Mathew Cherian, Healthifyme delivers measurable results on eating habits, fitness, and weight by tracking lifestyle, providing access to diet and workout coaches and through its AI nutritionist.
In July 2021, the startup raised $75 million in a Series C round led by US-based LeapFrog and healthtech-focused venture capital firm Khosla Ventures. With this round, the company said it has raised a total $130 million till date.
Healthifyme also said it is updating its coach-facing system with generative AI to create “a strong nutritionist & trainer copilot”. According to the company, this move will enable better nutrition advice to clients and help nutritionists and trainers to become more productive.
“The company has been at the forefront of AI innovation in health & fitness and has witnessed its gross margins grow from 30 percent to 70 percent by combining AI with human experts over the years, and it expects generative AI to be a gamechanger in driving scale and profitability,” it said in the statement.
Healthifyme has 200 employees, with a physical presence in Bengaluru, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. Moneycontrol reported that the company laid off 150 employees, about 15 to 20 percent of its workforce, to focus on profitability amid "changing market dynamics", the company had then said.
The healthtech startup said that FinnFund, a Finnish development financier, and Van Lanschot Kempen, a Dutch investment firm, also participated in the round along with existing investors Unilever Ventures, Chiratae Ventures, Blume Ventures and HealthQuad.
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