Tag: STARTUP

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India, US sign MoU to connect startups in emerging tech

Piyush Goyal in a post on X said the MoU is poised to positively impact –economic activity, attract investment, and generate employment…reports Asian Lite News

An MoU between India and the US was signed with the objective of connecting both the countries’ dynamic startup ecosystems, particularly in critical and emerging technologies (CET).

The understanding named ‘Enhancing Innovation Ecosystems through an Innovation Handshake’ was signed by Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal from the Indian side, who is on a 4-day US visit.

Piyush Goyal in a post on X said the MoU is poised to positively impact –economic activity, attract investment, and generate employment.

Minister Goyal also held a bilateral meeting with his US counterpart Gina Raimondo on the sidelines of the IPEF Ministerial Meeting and discussed the growing India-US commercial cooperation and business engagement.

Piyush Goyal also co-chaired the industry roundtable titled, ‘Decoding the Innovation Handshake: US-India Entrepreneurship Partnership’ along with Raimondo.

CEOs of various Information Communication Technology (ICT) companies, startups and investors in the critical and emerging technology space discussed how to enhance US-India technology collaboration.

During his ongoing visit, India joined the United States and 12 other Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) partners to ink the IPEF supply chain resilience agreement. Goyal said it will “fortify and strengthen” global supply chains.

India and the US are among the 14 supply chain resilience partners of IPEF along with Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

This global supply chain resilience agreement is seen as a counter to reducing massive reliance on China, particularly after severe supply disruptions after the COVID-19 shock.

Under the proposed agreement, the IPEF partners seek to provide a framework to build their collective understanding of significant supply chain risks; and improve crisis coordination and response to supply chain disruptions.

It will also seek to ensure that workers and businesses, especially micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises benefit from resilient, robust, and efficient supply chains; ensure the availability of a sufficient number of skilled workers in critical sectors and key goods, including by upskilling and reskilling workers, among others.

In a post on microblogging site X, after the signing of the agreement, Union Minister Goyal who is currently on a four-day visit to the US said that the first-of-its-kind international agreement will “fortify and strengthen” global supply chains, and “foster adaptability, stability and sustainability.”

Goyal thanked his US counterpart Gina Raimondo for her leadership and personal commitment to ensuring the “truly historic” moment towards a more resilient future.

Earlier, in an interactive session held in San Francisco as part of the first leg of the tour in the US, the Union Minister held wide-ranging discussions with the participants and highlighted the various steps taken by the government of India to improve the ease of doing business. He has so far held various bilateral meetings with his counterparts of various countries.

“…highlighted how the country offers promising opportunities for investors, thanks to the unique combination of our demographic dividend, manufacturing capabilities & conducive business environment,” Goyal posted on X, contending that India is an attractive investment destination for the world.

The Commerce and Industry minister kicked off his US official tour with a visit to the Tesla Factory Unit in Fremont and interacted with the senior executives of the Tesla group.

In a post on X Goyal said that the US electric car maker is on its way to double its component imports from India.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk had in June this year said that he was planning to visit India next year, adding that he was confident that the electric carmaker will be in India and will do so “as soon as humanly possible.” (ANI)

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Lite Blogs

Indian Startups Hold the Potential to Boost Gender Equity

The fact that 200+ startups stepped forward to share their vulnerabilities and contribute to this report gives us immense hope that the startup community is committed to tangibly igniting meaningful change for India’s women.”…reports Asian Lite News

Startups in India have the potential to create 2 million new jobs for women by 2030, suggests the Women in India’s Startup Ecosystem Report (WISER), adding that the ecosystem is uniquely positioned to attract female talent.

The report, led by ACT For Women in collaboration with The Udaiti Foundation, finds that women made up 35 percent of the startup workforce in 2022 (the corresponding figure for the corporate sector was 19 percent) and indicates that, with careful introspection within the startup community which enables timely and targeted action, that number can rise to 50 percent by 2030.

WISER shows that startups offer women a highly conducive growth environment, by way of faster career progression and higher autonomy, which enables female employees to meet their career goals at different stages. Women-led startups in particular are observed to perform even better on gender equality, with startups that have at least one female founder seen to have 2.5x women in senior roles as compared to male-founded startups.

Says AakankshaGulati, Director – ACT, “We launched WISER in January 2023 with the foundational belief that, given their appetite for innovation and bias for action, Indian startups are uniquely positioned to lead the way in changing the game for women at the workplace. The fact that 200+ startups stepped forward to share their vulnerabilities and contribute to this report gives us immense hope that the startup community is committed to tangibly igniting meaningful change for India’s women.”

She adds, “WISER has found that stand-alone programs or DEI initiatives are just not enough. Startups that have been most successful in advancing gender equity, are also ones that understand that an inclusive workplace culture alongside enabling practices, policies, and people, together, are key to purposefully hiring, retaining, and advancing women. We acknowledge that there is much that needs to be done but are also optimistic about this ecosystem’s potential to build a case for why employers must prioritise gender equity at work.”

The report notes that startups are currently faring better than traditional enterprises, with 32 percent of women in managerial positions vis avis 21 percent in corporates. This gap widens further at the CXO level where corporates have only 5 percent of women in leadership positions against 18 percent in startups. However, while the overall figures are promising, significant work lies ahead – 10 years into their careers, 8 out of 10 men in startups occupy Director-level positions or higher, compared to only 5 in 10 women.

It is poignant to note that contrary to popular perception, women’s motivations to join startups are no different from men, with both preferring accelerated learning & advancement, fast pace of work, and innovation as key drivers.

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Business Tech Lite Technology

OpenAI CEO Backs Indian-Origin Teenagers’ AI Startup

The startup Induced AI, founded this year, has raised $2.3 million in its seed-funding round led by Altman and VC firm Peak XV, along with “an incredible set of investors”….reports Asian Lite News

ChatGPT developer OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman has invested in an artificial intelligence (AI) startup, founded by two Indian-origin teenagers Aryan Sharma and Ayush Pathak in the Silicon valley in the US.

The startup Induced AI, founded this year, has raised $2.3 million in its seed-funding round led by Altman and VC firm Peak XV, along with “an incredible set of investors”.

“We let anyone create virtual AI workers that can automate the execution of workflows on a browser in the cloud with human-like reasoning,” Sharma said on Wednesday.

Other angel investors include Balaji Srinivasan (former CTO Coinbase), Julian Weisser (Co-founder, On Deck), Tyler Willis (Co-founder, Unsupervised), Cory Levy (Z Fellows), Nakul Gupta (ex-Coinbase), Ankur Nandwani (Founder, ZetaChain), Sudarshan Sridharan (Founder, Pipeline), Rahul Agarwal (Co-founder, Valent), Enzo Coglitore, Daksh Miglani (Co-founder, Valent), Rahul Rai, Sanat Kapur (Dragonfly Capital), Kyler Wang and Karan Dalal.

Induced AI allows automation of workflows that require real-time reasoning or dynamic judgement (filtering leads, cross-referencing documents, memory.etc) — things that are hard and painful to set up with traditional browser automation/RPA.

Automation of browser tasks has so far been restricted to deterministic and ruleset-based workflows that are run on old RPA (Robotic Process Automation) software.

“Our automated workflows run on a purpose-built browser environment that is designed specially for autonomous navigation. Web interactions, authentication, reasoning, memory — all are embedded in this underlying browser layer,” informed Sharma.

Induced AI is also part of AI Grant’s Batch 2.

“We’re thrilled to have Nat Friedman (former CEO, Github) and Daniel Gross (ex-YC and Pioneer) join us as well,” according to the startup.

The startup has taken an infrastructure-centric approach, and instead of running on a standard browser, “we’ve purpose-built a browser that is designed for running automated workflows

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Business Fashion Kerala

FAWOW: Kerala’s Fashion Game-Changer

FAWOW surfaces as a precisely designed business-to-business app, exclusively catering to the unique demands of the fashion and textile domains..reports Asian Lite News

The unveiling of the FAWOW app marks a transformative milestone, ushering in a realm of fresh prospects within the apparel manufacturing and selling domain.

This revolutionary application was ceremoniously introduced to the world by the esteemed Executive Directors of FAWOW Ventures: Ashwaq Nikottin, Abbas Addhara, and Shiju T. Alongside them, the assembly included the accomplished Directors Rejin Gaffar, Sajith UK, Shameer PA, and the proficient General Manager Noufal Ali. This significant event unfolded during an press conference hosted in Ernakulam, Kochi.

FAWOW emerges as a meticulously tailored fashion-centric business-to-business app, meticulously architected to cater exclusively to the distinctive needs of the fashion and textile sectors. The inception of this groundbreaking app was nurtured by Sigma, an influential association that synergizes apparel manufacturers and traders alike.

The driving impetus behind the FAWOW app is none other than FAWOW Ventures, an influential conglomerate comprising 130 stakeholders deeply enmeshed within the fabric of the apparel trade industry.

With ingenuity at its core, the application has been meticulously developed to serve as an empowering platform, empowering individuals in the clothing domain to invigorate their enterprises by tapping into an expansive realm of online business prospects.

In its nascent phase, the FAWOW platform is poised to host around 100 distinct brands. This revolutionary conduit will serve as an invaluable catalyst, enabling retail proprietors to swiftly acquaint themselves with the latest market offerings and seamlessly integrate them into their stores.

Alongside the luminary figures, FAWOW Ventures directors Mahin PA, Habil K Meeran, Safan Saleem, and Shabeer Mohammed, each a driving force in their own right, graced the press conference with their presence, underscoring the gravity of this momentous occasion.

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Business Economy STARTUPS News

Funding spring soon?

Startup funding slows but strong core policies will help tide over uncertainties, say experts(IN)

The number of registered startups has grown 9X in the last four years, from about 10,000 startups in CY18 to about 90,000 startups in CY22….reports Asian Lite News

One in two investors (50 per cent) are positive that the startup funding spring will return over the next 6-12 months in India, a report showed on Wednesday.

Nearly 17 per cent of investors surveyed think the funding winter may end even sooner and the rest believe it would be 12-18 months or more before the funding winter passes, according to the report by Bengaluru-based market research firm Redseer.

In all, the US, EU, the UAE and Japan are the largest source of funding for Indian startups, making up 5 per cent of total global funding and 20 per cent of total APAC funding.

According to the report, the next set of unicorns would emerge from sectors such as D2C-BPC, D2C-health and wellness, diagnostics and clinics, gaming and app studios.

“The expectation with funding patterns so far is that 2023 will revert to the long-term trends in line with the years CY17 to CY20, and hover between $12 to $15 billion, beyond which it is expected to be bullish into CY24 and touch $15-20 billion,” said Kanishka Mohan, a partner at Redseer.

The number of funding deals which dropped early in CY23 to 700-900 deals from 1,519 deals in CY22 is also expected to shoot back in CY24 to 1,000-1,200 deals.

“Moreover, VCs today have more dry powder than ever, also signalling a positive outlook are the total number of deals this year, 90 per cent of which are likely to be seed or early-stage deals similar in trend with what was seen since CY17,” Mohan noted.

The number of registered startups has grown 9X in the last four years, from about 10,000 startups in CY18 to about 90,000 startups in CY22.

At the same time, the number of active investors has grown 2X from 400 investors in CY18 to about 900 investors as of FY22, said the report.

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Business Tech Lite Technology

Japanese firm Mixi to empower startups

With his fund, the company aims at empowering early-stage entertainment startups in the country….reports Asian Lite News

Leading Japanese mobile entertainment company Mixi on Tuesday announced the launch of its India-first $50 million Corporate Venture Capital (CVC).

With his fund, the company aims at empowering early-stage entertainment startups in the country.

The newly-launched CVC will serve as an investment vehicle for MIXI to identify and help promising startups in the country.

The focus of the CVC will be on startups in the entertainment sector and consumer services, it said in a statement.

“We believe in India’s startup ecosystem especially in the sector of digital entertainment. We are committed to contribute to startups’ growth with our industry knowledge and assets, and positively impacting the startup ecosystem in India,” said Tomoharu Urabe, Principal Partner, Mixi Global Investments, Inc.

From FY2019-FY2022, the company made investments totalling around 70 billion yen.

“We plan to use 30 to 50 billion yen on M&A and capital and business alliances in the three years from FY2023 to FY2025,” said Mixi.

“We’re focusing investments on overseas markets, including emerging markets, and are aiming to create global businesses and strengthen global synergies,” it added.

The company said it will continue promoting overseas investment while aiming for global business growth and the creation of global synergies.

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Defence India News STARTUPS News

Pixxel wins defence ministry grant to build satellites for IAF

Received as a part of the SPARK grants by iDEX, this grant will equip Pixxel to develop small satellites of up to 150 kgs for Electro-Optical, Infrared, Synthetic Aperture Radar and Hyper Spectral purposes…reports Asian Lite News

Pixxel, a Bengaluru-based space startup, has won a multi-crore grant from the Ministry of Defence to manufacture multi-payload satellites for Indian Air Force (IAF)

“We have won a multi-crore grant from iDEX (Innovations for Defence Excellence under the Ministry of Defence) for the Mission DefSpace Challenge under iDEX Prime (Space), to manufacture miniaturized multi-payload satellites for the IAF,” the startup said in a statement.

Received as a part of the SPARK grants by iDEX, this grant will equip Pixxel to develop small satellites of up to 150 kgs for Electro-Optical, Infrared, Synthetic Aperture Radar and Hyper Spectral purposes.

Pixxel has already solidified its position as a leading innovator in the space tech sector, building and launching made in India and the world’s highest-resolution commercial hyperspectral imaging satellites. Leveraging this indigenous technology and expertise that can enable ease of manufacture, low cost and ease of launch, Pixxel will now manufacture small satellites for the Indian Defense sector, the statement added.

“We are delighted to receive iDEX’s grant and utilize our expertise of building microsatellites in-house to manufacture satellites externally for the first time,” said Awais Ahmed, CEO, Pixxel. “This recognition highlights Pixxel’s dedication to pushing the boundaries of space exploration and innovation. We are grateful for the trust placed in us and excited to embark on this next phase of collaboration with the Indian government.”

Vivek Virmani, Planning Officer, DDP/MoD & Chief Operating Officer, iDEX-DIO said: “We are delighted to witness the remarkable evolution of startups in the Indian space industry, and Pixxel is a testament to the progress of private entities in this sector in such a short time. The grant is aimed at developing technologies addressing every stage of a space mission, right from mission planning and manufacturing to satellite data analytics and more.

Our confidence in Pixxel’s satellite manufacturing capabilities showcases the power of partnerships in advancing the use of satellite technology for the country. We congratulate Pixxel and look forward to working with them.”

The SPARK grants, offered to startups selected through MoD’s initiatives, are aimed at catalysing innovation enabling Indian entrepreneurs to deliver technologically advanced solutions as well as propel deep-tech innovations in India. Pixxel emerged as the winner of the grant from amongst a host of companies.

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Business STARTUPS News

Dry season in Startup funding

Govt goes bullish on startups with ESOP holiday, tax relief.

As funding plummets, startups are hunkering down, reducing burn rate and expediting their path to profitability…reports Asian Lite News

While the Indian startup ecosystem experienced a sharp funding peak during FY22 reaching $50 billion, a gradual onset of the funding winter over the subsequent quarters led to a 70 per cent drop in FY23 to around $15 billion, a report showed on Tuesday.

As funding plummets, startups are hunkering down, reducing burn rate and expediting their path to profitability, according to the report by market research firm Redseer.

“The increasing cost of capital and interest rates, recession in developed markets, a decline in the value of tech stocks, and the slowdown in consumer internet growth have all been challenges for sustained funding,” said Mohit Rana, partner at Redseer.

There are about 100 unicorns and less than 400 public companies with a market cap of more than $1 billion in the country.

Ownership of founders in startups is also limited (0-20 per cent) in 59 per cent of private companies as compared to public companies (over 50 per cent) in 65 per cent of public companies.

As startups sail through rough waters, boards need to ensure future alignment and take more responsibility to guide and support founders during challenging times, Rana added.

“Listed tech companies have made significant improvement over the last five quarters. Paytm launched new products, expanded into new business segments, and upsold/cross-sold to existing customers to increase revenue per customer and reduce CAC. Zomato increased take rates from restaurant partners and delivery costs from customers,” he said.

According to the report, the number of profitable unicorns is projected to grow across most sectors in three to four years, from 30 in FY22 to 55 in FY27.

Nearly 50 per cent of unicorns are expected to become profitable by FY27, while 20 per cent will likely struggle due to regulatory challenges, plummeting demand and unclear business models.

They also expect some of the struggling unicorns to pivot to new models, get acquired or close entirely, the report noted.

On the bright side, profitable unicorns in India could generate 5 times the profit in FY27 as they did in FY22.

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Business

CapFort Ventures to invest in 40 startups

CapFort Ventures, a Category II AIF fund, aims to invest in startups across key technology domains covering deeptech, cleantech, B2B tech, logistics, healthtech and other impact-oriented sectors…reports Asian Lite News

Micro-VC fund CapFort Ventures on Wednesday launched a Rs 200 crore India-focused tech fund that plans to invest in more than 40 startups in the next two years.

With a focus on pre-Series A stage companies, the fund will invest in startups with a valuation Rs 100 crore, it said in a statement.

The India-focused fund is spearheaded by industry leaders Abhimanyu Bisht, the former CEO of Venture Catalysts, and Kavit Sutariya, the founder of Hiraco Ventures and angel investor.

“The introduction of our Rs 200 crore India-focused tech fund is a strategic milestone for CapFort Ventures. We are confident in our ability to identify ground-breaking tech startups and guide them towards sustainable growth,” said Bisht, General Partner, CapFort Ventures.

CapFort Ventures, a Category II AIF fund, aims to invest in startups across key technology domains covering deeptech, cleantech, B2B tech, logistics, healthtech and other impact-oriented sectors.

The first close of the fund is expected to take place by the end of the year. The VC firm said a green shoe option of Rs 100 crore is also available, in case of additional interest is received from investors.

“By investing in high-potential technology startups, we aim to help disruptive entrepreneurs push the envelope of technological innovation which drives India’s next decade of growth,” said Sutariya.

Sutariya has made over 72 investments across various sectors and stages of startups. Some of his key investments are Wellness Forever, Reshamandi, Chqbook, Melorra, Karkinos, Ketto, Inc42, FarEye, Pidge, Posist, Zingbus and TrueMeds.

Bisht has invested in startups like Zingbus, AdOnMo, Basic Home Loan, Sheru, Hesa, ANS Commerce, Ethereal Machines, InShorts and Vidooly.

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Economy India News STARTUPS News

Indian startup ecosystem faces tough time

Fintech, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and direct-2-consumer (D2C) continued to be the most funded sectors…reports Asian Lite News

The Indian startup ecosystem reported the lowest six-month funding in the last four years, in the first half of this year at $3.8 billion across 298 deals — a decline of nearly 36 per cent as compared to the second half of 2022 ($5.9 billion), a report showed on Sunday.

Fintech, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and direct-2-consumer (D2C) continued to be the most funded sectors, according to the PwC India report.

Growth and late-stage funding deals accounted for 84 per cent of the funding activity in the January-June period. These represented 43 per cent of the total count of deals in this period.

The average ticket size in growth-stage deals was $19 million and late-stage deals was $52 million, said the report.

“There is a slowdown in startup funding despite significant untapped capital reserves held by venture capitalists (VCs). Active VC firms in India have secured new funds in the past year and we can expect the pace of investments to pick up in the next few months,” said Amit Nawka, Partner, Deals & India Startups Leader, PwC India.

In the interim, there has been an increase in the due diligence being carried out by investors before making investments, both in terms of detailing as well as coverage, he added.

Early-stage deals accounted for 57 per cent of the total funding in H1 CY23 (in volume terms). In value terms, early-stage deals contributed to approximately 16 per cent of the total funding but was at its lowest as compared to the previous two years.

Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR, and Mumbai continue to be the key start-up cities, representing around 83 per cent of the total startup funding activity.

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