Vahan.ai, an AI-powered recruitment platform for blue-collar workers, has announced a strategic investment from LemmaTree, an investment firm founded by Temasek, a global investment company headquartered in Singapore.
The funds raised will be used to enhance Vahan.ai’s proprietary tech stack, including the development of advanced AI capabilities tailored for large-scale, multilingual recruitment.
Alongside this transaction, Vahan.ai has also acquired L.earn, the digital learning and upskilling tech platform of GoodWorker, which was backed by Lemmatree.
The acquisition of L.earn adds a powerful skilling layer to Vahan.ai’s offering. L.earn provides mobile-first, vernacular content tailored for gig and frontline workers in sectors like logistics, manufacturing, and retail. By embedding modular skilling journeys directly into the job-seeking process, Vahan.ai will empower workers to enhance employability, access better-paying roles, and build long-term careers.
Founded in 2016 by Madhav Krishna, Vahan.ai is an AI-powered recruitment platform for blue-collar workers.
At its core is a voice-based AI recruiter powered by OpenAI’s GPT-4o, capable of conducting human-like conversations with job seekers in English and Hindi over a simple phone call. This AI layer streamlines the hiring journey, from job discovery and application to interview scheduling, cutting through traditional barriers like digital literacy, language, and infrastructure.
The platform plans to expand support to eight additional Indian languages, enabling deeper access to job seekers in Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets.
Vahan also aims to enter new high-growth sectors while accelerating its footprint across India and select international markets such as Southeast Asia and the MENA region.
To date, Vahan.ai has placed over 1 million workers across 920+ cities and currently facilitates approximately 40,000 job placements per month, working with employers such as Zepto, Swiggy, Blinkit, and Zomato.
In September 2024, Vahan.ai raised $10 million in a Series B funding round led by Khosla Ventures with participation from Y Combinator, Gaingels and Paytm Founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma.
Madhav Krishna, CEO and Founder, Vahan.ai, said, “This partnership accelerates Vahan.ai’s ambition to build the most advanced AI-led infrastructure for employment in India’s informal sector. With LemmaTree’s backing and the integration of L.earn, we’re reimagining how workers access livelihoods through voice-led interfaces, multilingual support, and embedded skills that adapt to each user’s context. The recruitment industry in India is undergoing a revolution, but for that growth to be sustainable and equitable, workers need both access and advancement. The focus now is on deepening personalisation, scaling across new industries, and ensuring that every interaction on our platform moves a worker closer to long-term economic mobility. We’re building not just a hiring engine, but a career ecosystem for Bharat.”
Glenn Gore, CEO, LemmaTree, said, “We are thrilled to join forces with Vahan.ai as they redefine how businesses connect with frontline workers across India and beyond. Vahan’s innovative platform and passionate team are unlocking new opportunities for millions, driving both economic empowerment and operational efficiency. We look forward to supporting Vahan in its journey to create a more inclusive and dynamic workforce ecosystem.”
