Customer-first travel platform ‘Onto’ launched with US$1 million pre-seed funding

Onto, a Bengaluru-based customer-first 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 funding round was led by Stargazer Fund and co-led by Singapore-based White Venture Capital.

Onto launches with a simple promise to stay on the traveller’s side even after they pay. Its first offering, Price Drop Refund, automatically gives travellers the difference back when hotel prices fall after booking, including for eligible bookings made on other platforms. Onto brings together a team with experience in building consumer technology products.

• Onto’s Price Drop Refund feature automatically refunds travellers the difference when hotel prices fall after booking, including for eligible bookings made on other platforms.

• The US$1 million pre-seed funding round was led by Stargazer Fund and co-led by Singapore-based White Venture Capital.

The company aims to extend a technology-led, customer-focused approach to travel, beginning with hotel bookings. The company will use the fresh capital to scale operations, strengthen the company’s technology infrastructure and develop new products as Onto builds towards a more connected, AI-led travel experience.

Jagdeep Singh, Co-founder, Onto, said, “The travel industry is built around transactions, so the moment you pay, everyone stops caring. We started Onto to be the platform that stays on your side after you book. Today, that means refunding you when your hotel’s price drops, wherever you booked it. Tomorrow, it means looking after your entire trip, bringing every booking into one place, and using AI to show you only what matters to you, and why.”

Shubham Goyal, Co-founder, Onto, said, “A customer-first platform has technology at its core. The systems should take the complexity away from the user. Refunding the difference when a price drops sounds simple. Doing it for every booking, including ones made elsewhere, means building a system that can recognise any hotel booking, understand it, watch it, and act on your behalf without you lifting a finger. We built that foundation first because the rest of Onto sits on it.”

With Price Drop Refund, Onto continues monitoring hotel prices after booking. If the same hotel, room and dates become available at a lower price. Onto automatically refunds the difference. The feature also works for eligible hotel bookings made on other platforms.

Travellers can bring their existing bookings to Onto and benefit from the same price-drop protection. Refunds are made to the original payment method, while travellers receive updates about price changes and refunds through WhatsApp and app notifications.

Onto’s app recorded more than 2,000 downloads ahead of its official launch, indicating early interest in its approach to travel booking. According to the company’s early booking data, almost every booking experienced a price change after it was made, while one in two bookings resulted in an automatic refund to the traveller.