Kobalt founder Willard Ahdritz leads a seed round in Madverse, India's AI distribution platform with 200,000 artists
Willard Ahdritz, the founder of Kobalt, is leading a Series Seed round in Madverse Music Group, the New Delhi music tech company building AI-enabled distribution for independent artists. The investment runs through Ahdritz Capital, his personal vehicle, and counts as Madverse’s first institutional funding, per Music Business Worldwide. The amount is undisclosed, and Ahdritz takes a board seat once the deal closes.
Who’s in the Madverse seed round
Ahdritz Capital signed a binding agreement to lead the financing, with closing subject to the usual conditions. The round pulls in Mohnish and Suraj Sani of SumoSan Ventures in the US, Ashish Jain and Sidharth Kohli of 10X Global in India, and Vijay Sajjanhar of Marigold Capital in Dubai.
The growth numbers explain the interest. Madverse reports 25% userbase growth in the past month alone, over 3 billion combined streams, and a 33% jump in represented artists since January, per Digital Music News.
Madverse was born with one purpose: to build the most powerful, most accessible independent music ecosystem in the world, starting from India.
What Madverse builds for independent artists
Founded in 2023 by Rohan Nesho Jain, Madverse stacks the services an indie act usually buys separately: distribution, marketing, sync licensing, artist funding, and publishing administration, the last through a January 2026 partnership with Kobalt spanning more than 180 territories. Artists on the roster include Nucleya, Neeti Mohan, and Karan Kanchan.
The fresh capital goes to expanding the AI side: the company describes its platform as AI-enabled infrastructure for distribution, rights management, and fan engagement. Funding for AI-assisted creator tools keeps flowing this year, from Mozart AI’s $6 million raise to the distributor-side fraud tooling TikTok’s SoundOn added in April.
Frequently asked questions
What is Madverse Music Group?
Madverse is a New Delhi-headquartered music company founded in 2023 by Rohan Nesho Jain. It builds AI-enabled infrastructure for independent artists covering distribution, publishing administration, marketing, sync, and artist funding, and runs publishing through a January 2026 partnership with Kobalt.
Who invested in Madverse's seed round?
Ahdritz Capital, the personal investment vehicle of Kobalt founder Willard Ahdritz, leads the Series Seed round. Mohnish and Suraj Sani of SumoSan Ventures (US), Ashish Jain and Sidharth Kohli of 10X Global (India), and Vijay Sajjanhar of Marigold Capital (Dubai) participate. The round size is undisclosed.
How many artists distribute through Madverse?
Madverse says it represents more than 200,000 independent artists and labels across more than 45 countries as of June 2026, up from 150,000 in January. Its artists have collectively passed 3 billion streams, and the userbase grew 25% in the past month.
About the author
Covering AI music tools, industry shifts, and news for music creators and professionals. Twice-weekly newsletter at aimusicpreneur.com.
