Bharti Airtel acquires strategic stake in blockchain technology startup Aqilliz

Bharti Airtel announced that it has acquired a strategic stake in Aqilliz. Notably, Aqilliz is a Blockchain as a Service Company. Airtel has acquired the stake under the Airtel Startup Accelerator Program.

Singapore-based Aqilliz has developed a patented hybrid blockchain platform, Atom. This integrates differential privacy and federated learning on a distributed digital ledger. Atom also allows brands to create secure and consent-based solutions to engage with customers.

Bharti Airtel acquired Strategic Stake in Aqilliz

Incidentally, Bharti Airtel has said that it will deploy Aqilliz’s advanced blockchain technologies at scale across its Adtech, Digital Entertainment, and Digital Marketplace. That means that Airtel will deploy Aqilliz's solutions across the likes of Airtel Thanks, Wynk Music, Airtel XStream, and so on.

Adarsh Nair, CEO of Airtel Digital, said, "Blockchain technology is maturing and we see its application across areas such as Adtech, Creator Economy, and Loyalty Programs". Nair added, "we are thrilled to have Aqilliz join our Startup Accelerator Program".

Gowthaman Ragothaman, Founding CEO of Aqilliz added, "we are extremely excited to be a part of Airtel’s digital innovation play and bring this first of its kind blockchain technology to India. Legacy customer engagement, ad tech, and marketing technologies are built for centralized databases". He added, "Aqilliz’s patented technology will enable Airtel to capture and carry this value exchange in the form of consent and provenance across the digital supply chain. We look forward to working closely with the team at Airtel".

Airtel's Startup Accelerator Program

Airtel's Startup Accelerator Program invests in early-stage startups. The program usually picks startups that are working on technologies usable in Airtel's offerings. As such, the selected startups will get the opportunity to deploy their tech at scale. The startups also get access to Airtel's vast customer base, with 340+ million retail customers and over 1 million business customers. Along with funding, Airtel also provides mentorship from Airtel’s leadership team. The startups also get a chance to partner with Airtel's global partners.

Recently, Airtel launched the ‘Airtel India Startup Innovation Challenge’ in partnership with Invest India. Bharti Airtel had invited early-stage Indian startups to demonstrate solutions across 5G, IoT, cloud communications, digital advertising, and digital entertainment. The telco will pick 10 winners, who will then partner with Airtel to co-create solutions. After that, Airtel will select a few participants and induce them into the Airtel Startup Accelerator Program.