India’s Q3 2021 tech news
• July, August and September of 2021
• Tech news headlines at a glance
• Quick reference for a time-poor audience
• One-click access to each full tech news article
• Online and drawn from daily tech news
July 2021 | August 2021 | September 2021
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September 2021
- “India’s digital loan market is becoming a battleground for companies from Facebook to Xiaomi seeking a foothold in what’s set to be a $1-trillion industry.”
- India: ‘Beyond the tipping point – a primer on online casual gaming in India’ available now to download from KPMG
- India: Infosys IT services major launches Springboard to provide digital skilling with virtual platform giving corporate-grade learning to students from Class 6 to professional
- Non-Fungible Tokens in India: “…treatment under the current FEMA regime would…depend on the classification of the underlying asset, physical or digital, being exchanged via the NFT”
- India: 8 banks partner to launch Account Aggregator to enable consenting citizens to consolidate financial data from banks, insurers and others in one place
- Download: ‘India Trendbook 2021 – E-commerce and consumer internet sector’ from EY and India PE & VC Association (pdf)
- India: GetMega social gaming startup raises $15M with skill-based gaming for real-world cash prizes
- India: Dukaan online retail startup raises $11M as part of pre-A round with platform helping merchants manage pain points in setting up digital storefronts
- India: Visa and Innoviti payments tech firm partner for proof-of-concept around card chip-based offline payments
- India: Google launches Startups Lab programme for small news outlets, focusing on independent local or single-subject journalism organisations
- India: A brief intro to 4 med-tech startups working on issues around infertility
- India: TechSparks 2021 technology, innovation and leadership summit set for October 25-30, with 300 speakers set to deliver over 300 hours’ worth of content
- India: An intro to Trash to Treasure, recycling plastic bottles, wrappers and covers into fabric for clothing
- India: Mobile Premier League hits unicorn status with mobile esports, raising $150M funding round at $2.3BN valuation
- India: ToneTag completes Reserve Bank sandbox participation, executing offline voice-based payments in areas with patchy internet connectivity and low digital literacy
- India: Kerala Startup Mission at Kochi to launch 5K square metre Digital Hub, aiming to host ecosystem spanning incubators, accelerators and Centres of Excellence in emerging tech
- India: A look at MG’s moves with the Astor model, first in India to support level 2 autonomous driving and underpinned by car-as-a-platform services
- India: Planetarium Innovation Challenge launches, inviting startups and entrepreneurs to build AR, VR and mixed reality software for the country’s planetariums
- India: Blockchain-based Cricket Foundation platform launches CricketCrazy NFT platform, aiming to add 5 NFT-based moments from the sport’s history daily
- India: Fyp fintech partners YES Bank and Visa for launch of payments app and prepaid card for teenagers, incorporating parent-assigned ‘missions’ promoting good financial habits
- India: Unocoin crypto startup adds app feature allowing users to top-up FASTag highway toll payment accounts using cryptocurrencies
- India: Delhivery logistics and supply chain solutions firm partners Startup Réseau, operator of industry-backed accelerators, for logistics innovation lab
- India: New Street gains $4M Series A with blockchain ‘middleware’ focusing on transaction processing in the BFSI – banking, financial services and insurance – sector
- India: TechSparks 2021 virtual summit set for October 25-30 – 300+ speakers across 6 days, delivering 300+ hours of tech, innovation and leadership-focused content
- India: Hedera India Hackathon launched by Hedera Hashgraph blockchain firm, seeking developers to ideate, build and launch enterprise-ready solutions
- India: Report projects the country’s cryptocurrency tech industry will reach $241M in value by 2030, potentially creating over 800K employment opportunities
- India: Volvo Trucks India to launch six new trucks featuring Android Auto in new driver telematics interface
- India: 88academics online learning starutp gains $3M pre-A to focus on India-specific education content for children from kindergarten to grade 12
- India: Central Board of Secondary Education introduces blockchain tech on last 3 years’ data in first step towards making education certificates verifiable and tamper-proof
- India: Government launches Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission nationwide, aiming to issue a digital health ID to each citizen linked to their entire health record
- India: The Money Club gains $1.7M with AI-backed P2P group savings platform, enabling the lower-middle-class population to save, borrow and invest
- India: Akudo raises $4.2M seed round led by Y Combinator with learning-focused neobank for teenagers
- India: Fantasy Akhada raises $2M pre Series A funding with ‘fantasy sports’ platform allowing users to compete in contests in cricket and football
- Hong Kong’s Brinc and India’s Chennai Angels partner for online acceleration program for agri-tech, food-tech, health-tech, and fintech startups
- Jungle Ventures announces first close of 4th fund at $225M, with sights on investing in 12 or so startups across SE Asia and India
- Singapore’s PayNow to link with India’s Unified Payments Interface, enabling real-time transfers from India to SG via mobile numbers, and from SG to India through virtual payment addresses
August 2021
- India: Villgro incubator for social enterprises opens applications for 5th edition of iPitch 2021 social impact startup discovery platform, closing August 31st
- India: Maximl HR-tech firm recently partnered by Indian Oil, targeting productivity and safety improvements focused on the frontline workforce
- India: Maharashtra State adopts new Ethereum-based blockchain verification system for educational diplomas and certificates
- India: Fashinza B2B marketplace raises $20M Series A, connecting family-run small –and-mid-sized factories to the cloud with mobile production management and visibility software
- India: Founders of Freshworks, Eka Software and other execs launch Together Fund of $85M to back SaaS startups at seed, pre-Series A, and Series A stages
- India: Krishify raises $2.7M pre-Series A with platform for farmers and other agri professionals, matching potential buyers and sellers in India’s local languages
- “…number of startup incubators in India grew 15 times between 2000 and 2020, with southern and western states contributing the most and non-metro cities gearing up to become future startup capitals…”
- India: Titan gains Series A funding from WordPress parent firm, Automattic, with bundled email service package aimed at hosting platforms
- India: Playo raises $500K in ongoing pre-Series A round with platform for sports enthusiasts, focusing on micro-communities and facilitating sports-related services
- India: Onsurity insurtech startup gains $16M Series A funding with employee benefits platform offering telehealth, fitness rewards, health check discounts and more
- India: An intro to Faarms, data-driven e-marketplace for the agriculture community connecting buyers to rural farmers
- e-news, latest issue: Insuretech in India, Malaysian bank hackathon, Facebook’s metaverse…
- India: Zomato food-tech giant to enter fintech space with Zomato Payments digital payments entity, competing directly with Google Pay, Paytm, PhonePe and others
- India: Infibeam Avenues looks to acquire PoS company to create full-stack SMB payments business including offline payments, payment gateway, credit and neobanking
- e-news, latest issue: Indian fintech, China’s ride-hailing, Australia’s Cyber Ambassador, Indonesian giant IPO…
- India: AgNext Technologies takes AI Gamechanger Program agriculture category win artificial intelligence in the post-harvest quality assessment process
- India: Chakr Innovation gains ONGC Start-up Fund backing, converting soot collected from vehicular exhaust into printable ink using a proprietary liquid
- India: Gov’t launches e-RUPI electronic voucher promoting digital payments, a one-time voucher redeemable without a card, payments app or internet banking
- e-news, latest issue: India’s e-RUPI, AliPay and NFTs, Indonesia’s insurtech, the micropayments myth…
- India: More on the government’s recently-launched e-RUPI digital voucher programme, seen as a first step towards wider digital payments adoption
- India: ‘Reimagining Healthcare – Industry-Startup Interface Series’ launches to strengthen co-innovation between healthcare startups and industry
- Video: Visa Fintech Initiative India – Solving for the multi-trillion dollar credit opportunity
- India: Rapido bike taxi firm raises $52M from backers including Shell Ventures and Yamaha with 15M users across 100 cities
- Download: How India Shops Online 2021 – a post-pandemic view of online shopping, from Bain & Company and Flipkart (pdf)
- India: Dunzo, Google-backed e-commerce firm startup, launches Dunzo Daily in Bengaluru, offering 19-minute hyperlocal delivery services
- “In July 2021, organizations in the education/research sector in India experienced the highest volume of attacks with an average of 5196 attacks weekly per organization.”
- India: CoutLoot online fashion marketplace to raise $25M Series A with used-goods resale focus and features including bargaining for hyperlocal sales
- India: Ahimsa ‘micro venture capital’ firm launches $10M maiden fund for early-stage startups making plant-based, fermented and cell-based alternatives to meat and animal materials
- Download: Artificial Intelligence & Its role in Delivering Economic Value to Indian Enterprises, from RBSA Advisors (pdf)
- India: Anthill Ventures early-stage accelerator unveils 8 startups selected for Indus X program, working on challenges faced by urban citizens, corporates and governments
- India: Google for Startups Accelerator unveils 5th India cohort, featuring 16 startups working in fintech, health-tech, agri-tech and more
- Unicorn Pitches in India online event set for September 10th, with applications for startups to pitch closing August 29th
- India: An intro to Ping, social commerce startup connecting small, local sellers with buyers, allowing growth beyond WhatsApp-based sales
- India: Kirana247 e-commerce startup raises $1M pre-Series A to grow fulfillment network, establishing 40 micro-warehouses to serve 100,000-plus small, local stores
- India: Facebook to launch Small Business Loans Initiative, allowing its lending partners to grant SMEs small ticket loans
- India: An intro to PayNearby, fintech partnering with neighborhood stores to enable them to provide financial and digital commerce services to local communities
- India: AdvantageClub employee engagement platform raises $1.7M in part from Y Combinator, boasting 20% month-on-month growth globally
- India: Reserve Bank governor says central bank digital currency trials may be ready to run by the end of the year
- India: Ministry of Science and Technology announces special incentives scheme to support 75 startups in telemedicine, digital health and artificial intelligence
- India: Securities and Exchange Board to launch blockchain-based system for monitoring certain financial instruments
- India: Ministry of Electronics and Info Tech launches Startup Accelerator for Product Innovation, Development & Growth programme, aiming to fund 300 tech startups
- India: Ministry of Electronics and IT Meity Startup Hub partners Paytm digital payments giant, aiming to build and develop deep-tech startup ecosystem
- India: Samunnati agri value chain enabler partners University of Hyderabad aiming to place agri-tech ecosystem on a single blockchain-based platform, from farmers to financing
- India: Visa runs proof-of-concept allowing payments in places with low or no internet, using Visa chip on debit, credit and prepaid cards like a preloaded mobile wallet
- India: Gov’t launches virtual school concept to allow millions of eligible students outside the school system to complete studies without attending a bricks-and-mortar school
- India: Maharashtra state planning a new venture capital fund to encourage startups, looking to fund 24 rising companies
- Download: Startup Outlook Report 2021 from InnoVen Capital India (pdf)
- e-news, latest issue: China’s smart retail, Indian student fund, Philippines’ vegan leather…
- e-news, latest issue: Singapore’s restaurants, China’s digital payment QR codes, India’s deep-tech initiative, Australia’s AI Action Plan…
- e-newsletter, latest issue: Korea & cybersec, Visa India’s offline payments, China’s datasec moves, Xiaomi and autonomous vehicles…
- e-news, latest issue: Singapore’s 5G, India’s education blockchain, ransomware in 2021…
- e-news, latest issue: Singapore & Twitter, PayPal & crypto, HKMA & blockchain bonds, AirAsia super app moves…
- e-news, latest issue: Foxconn EVs, wearable tech, Asia-Pac cybersec, Indian startup pitches, Australian Blockchain Awards…
- e-news, latest issue: Thailand’s aCommerce, ESG in finance, Indian agri-data, Unicorn Pitch in Malaysia…
- e-newsletter, latest issue: Vietnam’s e-commerce, India’s smart cities, World Bank cybersec, social media ethics…
- e-news, latest issue: China’s digital yuan, NFTs for India, SPACs, ed-tech in Singapore…
- e-news, latest issue: Women in tech, EV influencers, Indian fintech, Korean startups…
- e-news, latest issue: Music NFTs in China, Korean food-tech, India’s 19min deliveries, Facebook’s NOVI digital wallet…
- e-news, latest issue: Huawei EVs, Korean gaming curfew, blockchain in Indian finance, Thailand’s digital asset news…
July 2021
- India: Twitter India boss charged over map of the country lacking Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh, which both India and Pakistan claim in full
- India: Sequoia Capital India’s Surge accelerator unveils 5th and largest cohort of 23 early-stage startups
- India: CoinDCX crypto assets exchange becomes official title Sponsor of cricket’s T20I Series between India and Sri Lanka, the first time a crypto firm lands top sponsor billing
- India: An intro to Marwari Catalyst Ventures, angel network launched in June 2019, evolving into an accelerator aiming to impact 1000 startups by the end of 2022
- ICYMI: India’s consumer digital economy expected to reach $800BN in value by 2030, with online retail’s annual gross merchandise value reaching $355BN
- Video: Unicorn Pitches India – nearly 3 hours of tech startup pitching and judging from Startup Network’s invited panel of VCs, tech specialists and entrepreneurs
- India: Hesa rural tech startup raises $2M with platform allowing local brands and businesses to act together to serve rural communities nationally
- Sequoia Capital India announces 5th cohort of rapid scale-up program for startups, and unveils the 11 Indian startups selected
- India: Jio Platforms announces collaboration with Holland’s NXP Semiconductors to develop, test and implement 5G RAN solutions
- India: Here’s a round-up of India’s tech, startup and funding news headlines, reports and downloads from the last month
- Download: The PE/VC Agenda – India Trend Book 2021, from EY and the India PE & VC Association (pdf)
- India: Fountain9 raises $1.9M seed funding with AI-driven predictive inventory planning, in part looking at impacting a global food waste problem of $260BN
- India: An overview of how insurance-tech startups are boosting insurance protection by making the buying and settlement process quick and hassle-free
- India: Twitter loses liability protection against user-generated content, and can now be held legally accountable for anything a user posts or shares using the platform
- India: Powerplay construction management app startup raises $5.2M, providing a one-stop communication platform for all stakeholders in a project
- India: Paytm expands its BNPL solution with addition of Postpaid Mini; PhonePe launches digital payment offering that replaces cash for delivery orders
- India: A brief look at Amazon Pay Later – 2M customers since launch last year, with over 10M transactions and claiming a near 100% payment success rate
- India: Vahaka secures $5M with online marketplace for small and mid-sized road transport businesses, and individual commercial vehicle owners
- India: Teachmint secures $20M with mobile and video-first teaching platform, built to help teachers digitize classrooms
- India: An intro to Slice, fintech focused on changing the country’s credit card industry
- India: AdmitKard gains $1.3M Pre-Series A with education-tech platform that simplifies student access to higher education overseas
- E-news: Startup News Asia Issue 006 – a brief look at recent tech, startup and funding headlines
- India: MediCircle Health launches rapid spectrometry-based test to detect COVID-19 which uses machine learning and artificial intelligence
- India: AWS launches AWS Public Sector Startup Ramp. a new programme to help early-stage tech startups build solutions for the public sector
- India: UrbanKisaan hydroponic cultivation startup gains backing from Germany’s BASF Venture Capital, with produce sales online, via app, bricks-and-mortar shops and locally
- India: Pankhuri secures $3.2M with social platform for women in India to network, learn and shop through live streaming, chat and cohort-based sessions
- India: IIT Madras and Sony India partner for national ‘SAMVEDAN 2021 – Sensing Solutions for Bharat’ hackathon seeking IoT solutions focusing on societal problems
- India: Pratilipi raises $48M Series D led by Krafton to further grown vernacular digital content including audiobooks, podcasts, comics, web series, movies and games
- India: Aquaconnect raises $4M pre-Series A to connect over 30K fish and shrimp farmers to farm management tools, financial services, and customers
- India: 75F secures $5M Series A with design and manufacture of IoT-based building management systems for data-driven building intelligence and energy optimization
- India: Tvasta unveils the country’s first 3d-printed house on IIT Madras campus, built in 5 days rather than conventional 4-5 month timeframe
- India: Credit Fair consumer lending fintech raises $15M with focus on unbanked and underserved segments of the country
- China’s Ant Group likely to sell 5% of 30.33% stake in India’s Paytm parent company, in bid to to comply with Securities and Exchange Board requirements
- India: MobiGarage backed in pre-series A funding with B2B used phones platform, processing 20K orders a month and growing at 3x annually
- India: Venture Catalysts incubator and accelerator acquires India operations of Z Nation Lab, a US-HQ’d seed and early-stage fund and accelerator
- India: Simsim video shopping app acquired by YouTube in video based e-commerce move
- A quick rundown of the investments and acquisitions Google has made in India so far, beyond YouTube’s recent acquisition of video shopping platform Simsim
- India: Credenc student loans firm gains $25M, using AI to track 15M data points when predicting future income of students applying for loans
- India: A brief intro to 4 of the startups on the People Matters TechHR India Startup Program 2021, from Hong Kong, Indonesia, India and Estonia
- India: BitClass education-tech acquires Chase digital learning platform, aiming for a one-stop solution for online learning across wide-ranging course content types
- India: A brief intro to 5 startups from Jaipur, working in social commerce, fantasy sports, retail tech and more
- India’s T-Hub and Australia’s La Trobe University launch Global Markets Accelerator Programme 2, unveiling 3 Australian growth-stage startups
- India: Hyreo HR-tech startup raises pre-series A funding, using AI to improve the hiring process from the candidate’s point of view via ‘candidate experience management’ via
- India: A brief look at 8 of the country’s digital schemes to aid startups, small businesses and farmers
- India: Another 5 of the startups taking part in the People Matters TechHR India 2021 program
- India’s agritech space: “India produces 25% of the world’s pulses and is the 2nd-largest producer of rice, wheat, sugarcane, cotton, groundnuts, as well as fruits and vegetables”
- India: Mailmodo no-code email marketing startup raises $2M to create app-like experiences using AMP – Accelerated Mobile Page – emails
- India: A look at Pepfuels, the country’s first location-based fuel delivery system using IoT and RFID devices
- India: A quick look at 12 early-stage startups from Chennai, working in education-tech, mobility, space technology, 3D printing and more
- Sequoia Capital India announces launch of Sequoia Spark, fellowship program for women founders in Southeast Asia and India
- India: Amazon-backed MyGlamm secures $71M with digital-first direct-to-consumer beauty products
- Australia strengthens cybersec partnerships with India and US Quad partners, with joint research around trusted autonomous systems for cybersecurity
- “China wants its online tutoring companies to go non-profit. This…could not only destroy its $100BN edtech market but also benefit countries like India…”
- India’s Pine Labs merchant commerce platform partners Malaysia’s Atome ‘buy now pay later’ platform to expand BNPL presence in Malaysia
- e-news, latest issue: Chennai’s startups, Australian prop-tech, China’s e-CNY, Singapore food-tech…
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