AI unicorn Fractal said to begin book-building for ₹4,900 cr IPO next week

India's first artificial intelligence unicorn, which received regulatory approval for launching its initial public offering (IPO) in November, is likely to file updated draft papers by mid-January 2026, one of the people quoted above said.

The company has been meeting potential investors, both local and global, and has received investment commitments from several of them, the other person explained.

Book building is a process where merchant bankers determine a price range within which investors can bid for shares in an IPO. The final price is determined after the bidding process is completed.

A book-building process is also likely to help Fractal decide on its pre-IPO placement, the second person said. Fractal is considering giving shares worth up to ₹256 crore to institutional investors before the main offering, potentially reducing the fresh issue size if completed.

No timeline is concrete and the timing of the updated filing could change based on how long the book-build takes, both the people added.

Mint has reached out to Fractal Analytics for comments on the story.

Fractal provides solutions such as customer relationship management analytics, cognitive automation, quantum computing, and machine learning operation services. Its clients range from financial services and health to insurance and retail markets worldwide.

The firm, backed by TPG Capital, filed its offer documents in August 2025. The IPO comprises primary shares worth up to ₹1,279 crore and a share sale of up to ₹3,621 crore.

According to the draft papers, TPG holds a 27.27% stake in the company, Apax owns another 10.93%, GLM Family Trust has 19.33%, and IPO-bound Gaja Capital holds 1.13%.

Over the last three years, Fractal has raised ₹75.2 crore, primarily through the issuance of equity via employee stock ownership plans. Ahead of the Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) filing, Apax sold 1,541 shares to Janaki Akella, an independent director at the company, for ₹5,550 apiece. Subsequently, a bonus issue of four shares for every one share held adjusted the price of every share to ₹1,110.

Fractal's IPO comes at a time when there has been wide discourse on concerns of an AI bubble. While experts worldwide are debating whether there is overvaluation in AI, there is still hope that India can outperform its global peers if the global AI bubble bursts.

The Motilal analysis, based on company age, showed that young companies, those less than 20 years old, contributed around 53% of the ₹3.8 trillion raised over the last two years, underscoring the growing participation of relatively younger firms in the public markets.

Meanwhile, a strong pipeline of companies across various sectors is preparing to launch their IPOs in 2026, setting the stage for another milestone year for India’s primary market. Big-ticket names like Reliance Jio, whose valuation is pegged at around $170 billion, as well as hospitality platform Oyo, and payments aggregator PhonePe's $1.5 billion debut, are expected to hit the market next year.