AI-assisted comic creation platform Dashtoon in discussion to raise $10-12 M: Reports
According to media sources aware of the development, Dashtoon, an AI-assisted comic creation platform, is in talks to raise a fresh round from both new and existing investors. The Bengaluru-based startup, with offices in San Francisco and London, is set to embark on its second funding round.
“New investors along with existing ones Matrix Partners India and Stellaris Venture Partners are in late-stage talks to invest around $10-12 million in Dashtoon,” said a source requesting anonymity.
Famous angel investors joined Dashtoon’s $5 million seed round, which was led by Matrix and Stellaris in November 2023.
Sanidhya Narain, Lalith Gudipati, and Soumyadeep Mukherjee founded Dashtoon in December 2022. The company uses generative AI to transform storytellers into comics creators. Storytellers can produce digital comics with Dashtoon Studio, a proprietary product.
As members of the original Pocket FM team, Narain and Gudipati assisted the company in developing and expanding its product line in the United States. Additionally, Mukherjee developed and expanded deep-tech teams at a number of startups, including Morphle Labs, where he worked on cancer diagnosis.
Additionally, Dashtoon helps aspiring and published writers to market and sell their graphic novels and comics.
“The terms of the deal have been agreed upon and it’s likely to get materialized in a few weeks from now,” said another source who also requested anonymity. “Dashtoon is likely to be valued in the range of $5-60 million during the Series A financing.”
No one responded to inquiries sent to Dashtoon, Matrix, and Stellaris. If they do, we’ll update the post accordingly.
According to the company’s November announcement, it began generating revenue in October and anticipates making $15,000 in the first month. Over the next two to three months, it hopes to reach $100,000 per month.
Through partnerships with thousands of creators and readers, Dashtoon hopes to become a global IP powerhouse in the long run.
According to Allied Market Research, the global comics market, which was valued at $15.5 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach a valuation of approximately $27 billion by 2032, is currently being dominated by Japanese manga and Korean webtoons.
