National, June 18, 2025 - illumine, a startup transforming early childhood education through AI, has raised $2.5 million in seed funding from Prime Venture Partners. The funding will accelerate illumine’s product development and international expansion, as the company aims to become the global standard for childcare management software.

The idea for illumine was born from a deeply personal experience. Navneet Rastogi, Co-founder and CEO of illumine, missed a key milestone in his son’s early life — his first steps — while his child was at daycare. “I only found out weeks later,” Rastogi recalls. It was a moment that should have brought joy in real-time, but instead, it slipped by unnoticed. That’s when I realised just how disconnected and outdated communication in childcare really is. This incident sparked the vision for illumine: a technology platform that keeps parents connected, educators supported, and centres empowered”.

The startup addresses a long-overlooked challenge in a rapidly growing industry. As the number of dual-income households increases, so does the demand for quality childcare. But how do most childcares cater to this when they continue to operate with disjointed systems and outdated manual processes? illumine solves this by offering the world’s first vertical AI SaaS platform built specifically for childcare. Already used by more than 3,000 centres across 56 countries — including the U.S., UAE, Southeast Asia, Europe, and India — illumine has rapidly become a go-to solution for early education providers.

“Parents invest thousands of dollars annually in their children's early education, yet the childcare industry remains surprisingly underserved by modern technology. This results in a frustrating experience for parents, teachers get bogged down in administrative tasks instead of focusing on education, and centers miss out on growth opportunities,” said Shripati Acharya, Partner at Prime Venture Partners. “We are excited to back the illumine team which is transforming this space with their AI-first vertical solution that simplifies every aspect of running a childcare center while improving outcomes for children, parents, and educators alike”.

The Co-founders further underscored illumine’s commitment to purposeful innovation in the early years segment. “At illumine, we’re building AI that goes beyond automation — every feature is thoughtfully designed to support the complexity and diversity of childcare providers around the world,” said Sourabh Agarwal, CTO of illumine. “Whether it’s a single preschool or a multi-center operation, the system is built to flex and adapt to each centre’s unique needs,” added Purva Goyal, the CPO.

With this new round of funding, illumine plans to continue setting global benchmarks for childcare management — with a firm focus on innovation, educator empowerment, and helping childcare owners scale with confidence.