Buying a water purifier outright is expensive, and wrestling with heavy 20-litre water cans every other day is a hassle most of us want to avoid. Bengaluru-based Drink Prime has been building a business around that exact pain point since 2016, and investors are still buying the pitch. The startup just pulled in another $2.2 million, this time from Artha Continuum Fund and Mirabilis Investment Trust.
Upgrading IoT Technology Over Daily Operations
CEO Vijender Reddy Muthyala makes it clear this isn’t just money to keep the lights on. The company is funneling the cash straight into its tech stack as it gears up to launch in 20 new cities.
Drink Prime’s whole pitch relies on an internet-of-things (IoT) model—basically, they rent out smart purifiers. The new funding is earmarked to make the software behind those devices better. The goal is to track filter health in real-time so the company can dispatch maintenance before a customer even notices their water pressure dropping or tasting off.
The Shift from 20-Litre Cans to Smart Subscriptions
It’s a model that’s finding a very specific audience. According to Muthyala, a massive 80% of their subscribers are ditching those plastic water cans to try a purifier for the very first time. The other 20% are people jumping ship from older, traditional purifier brands.
Drink Prime’s Revenue Growth and Shrinking FY25 Losses
The financials seem to back up the growth story. Drink Prime has grown its operating revenue from a modest ₹4.6 crore back in FY21 to a solid ₹75.1 crore in FY25. They’re also bleeding a lot less cash, cutting their net losses down to ₹11.5 crore in FY25 from a peak of ₹27.4 crore in FY23.
Surviving the Competitive Water Purification Market
With this latest top-up, the company has raised about $20 million to date. They already have some heavy hitters on their cap table, including Sequoia’s Surge, Omidyar Network India, and SIDBI Venture Capital. Now, the real test is whether they can hold their ground against rivals like Livpure Smart and Zunpulse as they push into new markets across India.
