A 20-minute pitch wins India’s first Pronto is supported by Lachy Groom

Lachy Groom, one of Silicon Valley’s most respected investors, decided to back India’s Pronto just 20 minutes into his first meeting with its 24-year-old founder.

The meeting, which took place in February through joint ventures, led to Husband investing $20 million in Pronto as an extension of its Series B round, valuing the startup at $200 million after the investment — double its valuation two months ago, as TechCrunch previously reported. The deal came together within weeks, bringing one investor on board as the Bengaluru-based startup grows to meet the growing demand for on-demand home services in India.

Groom said he was drawn to Pronto’s desire to build what he calls the world’s largest platform for organizing domestic workers, starting with India’s many unorganized workers. “It’s a really tough job, and a lot of efforts in related fields are struggling,” he said, adding that Pronto founder Anjali Sardana (pictured above) and her team were working “at a level I’ve never seen anywhere else in this space.”

Prior to founding Pronto in 2025, Sardana worked at Bain Capital and venture firm 8VC, where he gained early exposure to venture capital and high-growth startups. The startup connects households with workers to perform daily tasks such as cleaning and basic household services.

The presentation was organized by Paul Hudson, founder of Glade Brook Capital, who connected Mkhwenyana with Sardana during his trip to San Francisco earlier this year. Glade Brook has backed two startups: Pronto, led by Sardana, and Physical Intelligence, of which the groom is a co-founder. Hudson and Groom also backed Indian e-commerce startup Zepto.

Sardana said Groom’s approach to investing is very much founder-driven. “He points to two things. One is the founder, and that’s 95% of it. If he likes the founder, he’ll invest,” he told TechCrunch, adding that the rest comes down to the scale and strength of the business.

Groom’s bet comes as a cluster of startups in India’s race to build instant home services platforms, a segment that is seeing rapid adoption among urban households as more consumers turn to the help they need for everyday tasks.

Opportunity is important. A recent Bank of America note, reviewed by TechCrunch, estimates that the instant home services market in India could grow to a $15 billion to $18 billion industry by the end of the decade, as companies including Pronto, Snabbit, and Urban Company’s InstaHelp compete for shares in the fast-growing segment.

Competition is intensifying, with huge cash flows and aggressive pricing, especially to attract early adopters. Bank of America estimates that Snabbit’s InstaHelp and Urban Company each account for about 40% of the market, while Pronto has about a 20% share, as it grows rapidly. The category is expected to remain “very difficult” for the next two to three years.

Despite trailing larger competitors, Pronto has been growing rapidly, growing from about 18,000 bookings a day to 26,000 in just over a month. The startup is focused on driving repeat use, betting that turning occasional demand into frequent, habit-driven use will be key to winning the category, with its top 10% of users accounting for nearly 40% of bookings.

This growth has brought challenges, especially in demand generation. Pronto has grown its network of service workers to 6,500, up from 1,440 in January. But Sardana said demand continues to outstrip supply, making forecasting and energy management key challenges as implementation grows.