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Published on: April 5, 2021, 7:27 a.m.
AI puts Fractal Analytics on top
  • Velamakanni: enhancing efficiency

By Arbind Gupta. Assistant Editor, Business India

Founded in 2000, Fractal Analytics (FA) is today one of the leading players in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) space. Headquartered in New York, the company is a strategic analytics partner to the most admired Fortune 500 companies globally, and helps them power every human decision by bringing analytics and AI to the decision-making process. It is present in 16 locations including the US, the UK, Australia and India.

FA, which has its regional headquarters in Mumbai, has consistently been rated as one of India’s best companies to work for by The Great Place to Work Institute. It is also featured as a leader in the Customer Analytics Service Providers Wave 2019 by Forrester Research and recognised as an ‘honourable vendor’ in the 2019 magic quadrant for data & analytics by Gartner.

The Rs1,000-crore entity, serving more than 100 Fortune 500 companies with its AI, data and analytics-driven business strategies, has grown at a CAGR of 35 per cent in the last 10 years and is looking to grow at a CAGR of over 40 per cent, going ahead. The company, which has raised more than $300 million from institutional private equity investors, provides services and solutions in consumer-packaged goods, insurance, healthcare, life sciences, retail and technology, and the financial sector.

Looking at the growing demand for its products and services during the pandemic, the company added over 700 people to its workforce, taking the total count to 2,100 people. Of these, 1,300 employees are based in India, where the company has offices in Bengaluru, Gurugram and Mumbai.

Apart from helping businesses with its innovative AI data and analytics tools during the recent challenges, FA, through its one of the product lines (Qure.ai), deployed AI-powered pandemic response solutions for Covid-19 management. Qure.ai transforms how radiologists make diagnostic decisions. Qure’sqXR solution is the first AI-based chest x-ray interpretation tool to receive CE certification.

qXR uses a combination of deep-learning models to detect common types of lung abnormalities. Trained on more than one million chest x-rays, qXR detects 15 of the most common chest x-ray abnormalities with an accuracy of more than 90 per cent. To retool it, FA worked with a panel of experts to review the latest medical literature and determine the typical features of Covid-induced pneumonia, such as opaque patches in the image that have a ‘ground glass’ pattern and dense regions on the sides of the lungs. FA-incubated Qure.ai  raised $16 million in a funding round led by Sequoia India and MassMutual Ventures Southeast Asia, the investment arm of US-based life insurer MassMutual.

“Our tools and services help enterprises in their decision-making processes and significantly enhance their overall efficiency,” says Srikanth Velamakanni, 47, co-founder, group chief executive & vice-chairman, Fractal Analytics. “We consistently look to develop new products and platforms to help clients adopt and implement AI and analytics expediently. We also leverage best-in-class AI/ML-based solutions in their business process to realise large benefits.”

 As the Covid-19 pandemic presented an unprecedented challenge to governments and policy decision-makers worldwide, FA also envisioned a governance model to manage and contain Covid-19 in India and other parts of the world. “FA’s model is based on data-driven, decision-making outlines – the four pillars that analytics and AI can support. These pillars include managing the spread of the disease, managing healthcare outcomes, resuming the economy, and citizen engagement,” adds Velamakanni.

  • Fractal Analytics is a leading player in the AI space

Velamakanni co-founded Fractal along with his other IIM, Ahmedabad alumni, Pranay Agrawal, Nirmal Palaparthi, Pradeep Suryanarayan and Ramakrishna Reddy at a Mumbai flat. Out of the five co-founders, three left early, while Velamakanni and Agrawal have been instrumental in taking the company where it is today. Currently, both of them together hold the majority stake,while the remaining is with the investors.     

Velamakanni is B Tech in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi and holds an MBA in management from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. Prior to co-founding Fractal, he was an investment banker working (worked with ANZ Investment Bank, ICICI Bank, etc) on structured debts and collateralized debt obligations.  

“We are making progress on our goal to build a $1 billion-revenue company in the AI space thanks to our relentless focus on serving Fortune 500 companies globally in enabling an AI-led digital transformation in their businesses,” says the Fractal group CEO with confidence.   

Velamakanni is also co-founder and trustee of Plaksha University, with a strong academic focus on core engineering, AI/ML and mathematics. Additionally, Plaksha promotes interdisciplinary learning by bringing together science and the liberal arts. 

A member of the NASSCOM Executive Council, he serves as a subject matter expert on data and AI. His passion for AI and analytics has made him a thought leader in the space and an admired public speaker. He considers himself a lifelong student of mathematics, behavioural economics, neuroscience and consumer behaviour. He reads an average of 40 non-fiction books a year on the aforementioned subjects. He also enjoys memoirs, biographies and books on leadership. 

Under his leadership, FA has developed several product lines/subsidiaries within the company including Cuddle.ai, Eugenie.ai, Theremin.ai& Qure.ai. While Qure.ai  assists radiologists in making better diagnostic decisions, Cuddle.ai  assists CEOs and senior executives make better tactical and strategic decisions, whereas Theremin.ai  improves investment decisions and Eugenie.ai  discovers anomalies in high-velocity data. 

FA acquired AI solution provider Zerogons to strengthen its cloud AI business and further accelerate the 'data to decisions' journey for its Fortune 500 clients. In the past few years, it has brought in a range of innovative solutions, such as providing intelligent solutions, assistance in store-level forecasts, real-time monitoring, and much more. The company has been building up its capabilities through the inorganic route as well. In August 2016, it partnered with KNIME, an open-source data analytics firm, while, in June 2017, it acquired the Chicago-based strategy and analytics firm, 4i Inc. In September 2017, it partnered with Final Mile to combine data science with behavioural science and finally, in March 2018, it acquired Final Mile.

The company’s business model has generated significant response from investors. Private equity firm Apax Funds in 2019 invested $200 million in the company for a significant minority stake. The investment valued FA at about $500 million. It also marked the exit for Malaysian sovereign wealth fund KhazanahNasionalBhd and TA Associates. Apax’s investment also includes primary fund infusion into the company. Khazanah had invested $100 million in FA in 2016, while TA Associates invested $25 million in 2013.

  • Fractal Analytical’s tools and services help enterprises in their decision-making processes and significantly enhance their overall efficiency

“The data and analytics sector is attractive and growing rapidly as companies increasingly see it as a core strategic function of their business. We are delighted to partner with Fractal Analytics who are extremely well-regarded in this space due to their cutting-edge advanced analytics and AI capabilities which help their blue-chip client base solve complex problems. Srikanth and Pranay have done an excellent job building a differentiated company with a clear vision. We look forward to working with them to scale the business further,” states RohanHaldea, Partner at Apax Partners.

“The demand for AI is surging across the enterprise. Our AI solutions and globally-recognized team of experts empower these organizations to realize and maximize their full potential. The investment from the Apax Funds will accelerate our ability to scale and meet this rising demand globally. It also establishes Fractal Analytics as one of the world’s most well-funded AI providers,” says Pranay Agrawal, co-founder and CEO, Fractal Analytics.

The global artificial intelligence market size was valued at $ 39.9 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 42 per cent during2020-2027. The continuous research and innovation directed by the tech giants are driving the adoption of advanced technologies in industry verticals, such as automotive, healthcare, retail, finance, and manufacturing. However, technology has always been an essential element for these industries, but AI has brought technology at the centre of the organizations. 

For instance, from self-driving vehicles to crucial life-saving medical gear, AI is being infused virtually to every apparatus and program. AI is proven to be the significant revolutionary element of the upcoming digital era. Tech giants like Amazon, Google, Apple, Facebook, IBM and Microsoft are investing significantly in the research and development of AI. These companies are working for making AI more accessible for enterprise use-cases.

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