Indian TikTok clone 'Josh' gets Google, Microsoft backing in $100 million fund raise

The parent of a TikTok copycat from India has raised more than USD 100 million from investors including Alphabet Inc’s Google and Microsoft, months after the Chinese-owned short-video app was banned in the country. The app, Josh, is one of several home-grown short-video platforms that have sprung up since India blocked the wildly popular TikTok in June amidst a border crisis with China, attracting global investor interest in applications filling the gap.

Bengaluru-based VerSe Innovation, which owns Josh, is valued at more than USD 1 billion following the investment, it said in a statement.

AlphaWave, a part of global asset manager Falcon Edge Capital, also invested in VerSe, as did existing investors Sofina Group and Lupa Systems, VerSe said, adding that it would use the funds to scale up Josh. VerSe also owns news and content platform Dailyhunt, which offers content in multiple Indian languages.