Infosys co-founder and billionaire Nandan Nilekani, who spearheaded the country's massive unique identification project, has invested an undisclosed amount in Mubble, a mobile technology startup.
Founded in 2013 by IITians Ashwin Ramaswamy, Pranav Jha and Raghvendra Varma, Mubble helps smartphone users track and control their telecom spends and their mobile data usage. It will use the funds to hire talent.
“Mubble brings unprecedented transparency and empowerment to the smartphone user, by democratizing technology and solving key problems of smartphone adopters across India,” said Mr.Nilekani who has a net worth of $1.63 billion (Rs 10,826 crore). He said providing support and funding to this initiative was a part of his ethos and inherent belief about the power of a digital India.
The Mubble app has clocked over half a million downloads in less than six months. The app is designed to work offline, thereby conserving precious mobile data balances of its users. The app is available in multiple Indian languages and almost half of the users access it in their mother tongue, the company said.
“Mubble is not only made in India, it is truly made for India,” said Mr.Ramaswamy of Mubble. “We are thrilled to have Mr. Nilekani, with us as our mentor and strategy coach. His investment is a very powerful validation of our product.”
