Aloke Bajpai, co-founder and CEO of ixigo, who helped build the travel-tech platform into one of India's leading online travel companies.
Aloke Bajpai co-founded ixigo and built it into a major Indian travel platform. Explore his career, funding, IPO, growth, AI strategy and leadership.
Written by TFN Research Desk | covering startups, technology, venture capital, and business strategy.
Table of Contents
- Who is Aloke Bajpai?
- Early Life and Education
- Career Before ixigo
- How ixigo Started
- Funding History
- Revenue Growth and Recent Developments
- Public Recognition
- ixigo vs Competitors
- Investor Perspective
- Founder Timeline
- Key Takeaways
- FAQs
- Sources
- SEO Metadata Block
Who is Aloke Bajpai?
Aloke Bajpai is the co-founder, Chairman, Managing Director and Group CEO of ixigo, one of India’s major online travel platforms. He co-founded the company with Rajnish Kumar and has led its development from a travel-search product into a broader platform covering trains, flights, buses and hotels. ixigo now focuses heavily on serving travellers beyond India’s largest cities through technology and AI.
Early Life and Education
Bajpai holds a B.Tech in Electrical Engineering from IIT Kanpur and an MBA from INSEAD. He graduated from IIT Kanpur in 2001 before moving into technology and travel.
His education combined engineering with management, a background that later shaped his approach to building ixigo around technology, consumer behaviour and travel data.
Career Before ixigo
Before founding ixigo, Bajpai worked at Amadeus in France. He began as a software development engineer and later worked as a systems and network engineer.
His experience at Amadeus exposed him to the technology infrastructure behind global travel booking. He was involved in developing travel technology before returning to India and deciding to build his own internet business.
That experience became particularly useful when Bajpai and Rajnish Kumar started ixigo. Instead of approaching travel purely as an online ticketing business, they built technology around helping customers search, compare and make travel decisions.
How ixigo Started
ixigo was launched in 2007 by Bajpai and Rajnish Kumar. The company began as a travel search platform, helping users compare travel options across different providers.
Over time, the business moved deeper into transactions and expanded across trains, flights, buses and hotels. Acquisitions such as ConfirmTkt and AbhiBus strengthened its presence in railway and bus travel.
The strategy has increasingly focused on India’s “next billion users”, particularly travellers in Tier II and Tier III cities. The company has also invested heavily in artificial intelligence, using it for trip planning, customer assistance and personalised travel experiences.
Funding History
| Round | Year | Amount | Lead Investor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Series A | 2011 | $18 million | SAIF Partners |
| Series B | 2015 | $20 million | Sequoia Capital India |
| Series C | 2017 | $15 million | Fosun |
| Series D | 2021 | $53 million | Existing and new investors |
| IPO | 2024 | ₹740 crore | Public investors |
ixigo raised institutional capital from investors including SAIF Partners, Sequoia Capital India, Fosun, Elevation Capital and Info Edge. The company went public in 2024, giving early investors and founders a public-market route to liquidity.
Revenue Growth and Recent Developments
| Fiscal Year | Revenue | Net Profit |
|---|---|---|
| FY25 | Approximately ₹914 crore | Approximately ₹60 crore |
| FY26 | Approximately ₹1,228 crore | Not publicly disclosed |
ixigo’s FY25 revenue rose sharply to approximately ₹914 crore, compared with ₹656 crore in FY24. The company reported a net profit of around ₹60 crore for the year.
The company continued growing in FY26, with reported revenue reaching approximately ₹1,228 crore, according to industry financial data. Its recent strategy has increasingly centred on AI. In 2026, ixigo announced AI-native travel products, including conversational travel planning and agentic travel flows.
Public Recognition
Bajpai has received recognition for his contribution to India’s travel technology sector. He and Rajnish Kumar jointly won the “Comeback Kid” category at the Economic Times Startup Awards in 2021 and the Entrepreneur of the Year Award in Service Business, Travel, in the same year.
In 2022, IIT Kanpur awarded Bajpai its Distinguished Alumnus Award for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. He has also served as a charter member of TiE and as an elected member of IAMAI’s governing council.
ixigo vs Competitors
| Company | Founded | Positioning |
|---|---|---|
| ixigo | 2007 | Travel booking and technology |
| MakeMyTrip | 2000 | Full-service online travel |
| EaseMyTrip | 2008 | Online travel booking |
| Yatra | 2006 | Online and corporate travel |
ixigo’s strongest differentiation is its focus on mass-market Indian travellers and transport categories such as trains and buses. MakeMyTrip remains much larger by revenue, while EaseMyTrip and Yatra compete strongly in flights and other travel segments.
Investor Perspective
Bajpai’s biggest strength is his long-term understanding of travel technology. He entered the industry before India’s online travel market had matured and gradually moved ixigo from search into booking and travel management.
The company’s focus on trains, buses and travellers outside major metros gives it access to a large user base that has historically been less well served by premium travel platforms. Its use of AI could further improve discovery and personalisation.
The risk is competition. Travel booking is a crowded market, and larger companies have more capital and broader inventories. ixigo therefore needs to maintain its cost advantages and customer loyalty while ensuring that AI investments translate into measurable improvements rather than simply becoming another technology feature.
Founder Timeline
- 2001: Graduates from IIT Kanpur.
- Early 2000s: Works at Amadeus in France.
- 2007: Co-founds ixigo with Rajnish Kumar.
- 2011: Raises major institutional funding.
- 2015: Raises further capital from Sequoia Capital India.
- 2017: Raises Series C funding.
- 2021: Wins the Economic Times Startup Awards’ Comeback Kid recognition with Rajnish Kumar.
- 2022: Receives IIT Kanpur Distinguished Alumnus Award.
- 2024: ixigo lists on Indian stock exchanges.
- 2026: ixigo expands its AI-native travel strategy.
Key Takeaways
- Aloke Bajpai co-founded ixigo in 2007 with Rajnish Kumar.
- He previously worked at Amadeus in France.
- ixigo has expanded from travel search into bookings across trains, flights, buses and hotels.
- The company went public in 2024.
- Bajpai continues to serve as Chairman, Managing Director and Group CEO.
FAQs
Who founded ixigo?
Aloke Bajpai and Rajnish Kumar co-founded ixigo in 2007.
What is Aloke Bajpai’s current role?
He is Chairman, Managing Director and Group CEO of ixigo.
Where did Aloke Bajpai study?
He studied Electrical Engineering at IIT Kanpur and completed his MBA at INSEAD.
What did Aloke Bajpai do before ixigo?
He worked as a software development engineer and systems and network engineer at Amadeus in France.
What does ixigo do?
ixigo helps users plan, book and manage travel across trains, flights, buses and hotels.
When did ixigo go public?
ixigo became a publicly listed company in 2024.
What is ixigo’s FY25 revenue?
ixigo reported approximately ₹914 crore in FY25 revenue.
What makes ixigo different from MakeMyTrip?
ixigo has a particularly strong focus on trains, buses and travellers in India’s Tier II and Tier III cities.
What awards has Aloke Bajpai received?
His recognitions include the IIT Kanpur Distinguished Alumnus Award and the Entrepreneur of the Year Award in Service Business, Travel.
What is Aloke Bajpai’s net worth?
His current personal net worth is not reliably publicly disclosed.
Sources
ixigo, Official Company and Leadership Profile
https://investors.ixigo.com/about/
Board of Directors
https://investors.ixigo.com/board-of-directors/
ixigo, Financial Reports and Results
https://investors.ixigo.com/financials/
IIT Kanpur, Aloke Bajpai Distinguished Alumnus Profile
https://iitk.ac.in/dora/profile/Mr-Aloke-Bajpai
IIT Kanpur, Distinguished Alumnus Award 2022
https://www.iitk.ac.in/dora/brochure-award-2022.pdf
YourStory, ixigo Growth and AI Strategy
https://yourstory.com/2025/05/ixigos-rise-serving-bharat-shaping-future-travel-tech-ai-aloke-bajpai
Economic Times, ixigo Financial Performance
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/
© The Founder Nation | All rights reserved | Written by TFN Research Desk
