Former Groww professionals launch Onto with $1 million in pre-seed funding
The Bengaluru startup monitors hotel prices after booking and offers automatic refunds on eligible price drops, including for bookings made elsewhere. Funding will support technology and product expansion.
Jagdeep Singh (left) and Shubham Goyal, co-founders of Onto
BENGALURU: Onto, a travel platform founded by former Groww professionals Jagdeep Singh and Shubham Goyal, has launched its services and raised $1 million in pre-seed funding.
The round was led by Stargazer Fund and co-led by Singapore-based White Venture Capital, the company said in an announcement on Wednesday.
Onto will use the capital to expand operations, strengthen its technology infrastructure and develop products for a more connected, AI-led travel service.
Its first offering, Price Drop Refund, monitors hotel prices after a booking. According to the company, travellers receive an automatic refund of the difference if the same hotel, room and dates become available at a lower price.
The service also covers eligible hotel bookings made through other platforms, which travellers can bring to Onto for price monitoring. Refunds are returned to the original payment method, with updates delivered through WhatsApp and app notifications.
Singh said the platform was designed to support travellers beyond the initial transaction, with plans to bring bookings together and use AI to identify relevant travel options.
Goyal said the underlying technology was built to recognise and monitor bookings, including those made elsewhere, and act on price changes without requiring repeated intervention from users.
Onto said its app recorded more than 2,000 downloads before launch. Based on its early booking data, the company claimed that one in two bookings resulted in an automatic refund. The announcement did not specify the sample size or observation period.
The platform offers domestic and international hotel bookings through integrations with multiple suppliers. It plans to expand beyond hotels and is developing AI capabilities to recommend options based on travellers’ preferences and past travel behaviour, with explanations for those recommendations.
