Karan Bajaj is back with a new venture, years after $300 mn WhiteHat Jr exit-OxBig News Network

The round was led by Blume Ventures and Owl Ventures, with participation from several angel investors, according to a statement by the company on Wednesday.

According to Bajaj, the platform seeks to address a gap in cancer care by helping patients adopt clinically recommended lifestyle changes.

“Every oncologist will tell you patients need more support incorporating physical activity, nutrition and mind-body practices,” said Bajaj, who serves as chief executive officer and co-founder. “We’ve focused on daily engagement through personalized coaching to support lasting improvements during and after treatment.”

Targeting cancer care

With the new funding, Complement 1 plans to expand its coaching operations in the U.S., strengthen its AI engine, and partner with cancer centres, healthcare insurance providers, and employers. The company also intends to invest in enhancing the digital experience for both patients and coaches.

Founded in January 2024, Complement 1 offers a personalized lifestyle modification platform aimed at cancer patients, high-risk individuals, and survivors.

The programme includes physical activity, nutrition, and somatic practices tailored to cancer type and stage, delivered via 1:1 “CoActive” coaching. The company also uses AI to drive personalization and support long-term adherence to the programme, it said.

This is Bajaj’s first startup since his exit from WhiteHat Jr in August 2021. The founder exited from edtech when the sector was at its peak, commanding high valuations and massive investor interest. Byju’s acquired the firm among a number of other acquisitions it made to speed up growth. 

However, Byju’s struggles began after a sudden fall in demand post-pandemic. Whitehat Jr. was among the first of its acquisitions to sour. In a recent media interaction, Byju Raveendran shared that the “most encouragement for an acquisition” he received was for Whitehat Jr from its investors. Byju’s investors and its founders have been at odds for over three years, even as the entity, once valued at $22 billion, filed for bankruptcy last year.

Following the sale, Bajaj took a sabbatical that included travelling through Costa Rica and writing The Freedom Manifesto, a book published by HarperCollins India.

“(I) caught up on the missed time with my daughters from the CEO & startup founding years as they attended a forest school in the Costa Rica mountains,” said Bajaj, in a post on his LinkedIn profile.

To be sure, this was not Bajaj’s first retreat to the mountains. Back in 2012, he had also spent time in the Himalayas studying meditation and later authored The Seeker, a novel based on those experiences.

Later in 2019, he founded Mumbai-based WhiteHat Jr, which he sold two years later to Byju’s. Now, Complement 1 is being built out of the US.

The shift from edtech to healthtech 

Bajaj’s return marks a shift from edtech to healthtech, with the startup aiming to integrate lifestyle medicine into the broader oncology ecosystem.

“Complement 1 is creating a new model to improve global cancer outcomes. We were drawn to the combination of personalized technology and human-led coaching,” said Amit Patel, managing director at Owl Ventures.

In India, too, investors as well as conglomerates such as the Reliance Group and Tata Group are jumping on the opportunity to invest in technology-driven detection and treatment of cancer as the incidence of the disease rises every year.