Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (Dec 16, 2024)

Edept raises $1M in seed funding led by Enzia Ventures and Equanimity Investments

edept, a higher education-focused edtech startup enabling universities and educational institutions to offer industry-led programmes, has raised $1 million in its seed funding round. The round was led by Enzia Ventures and Equanimity Investments. Other investors, include Bhavin Pandya (Founder of Games24x7), edtech leader Arjun Mohan, and Canada-based Loyal VC.

The funds will fuel edept’s expansion plans, scaling its operations, increasing its workforce, and enhancing its proprietary tech platform. 

Founded in 2023, edept specialises in empowering universities and institutions to design and deliver differentiated, new-age courses tailored to meet the global job market demands. With a focus on improving employability outcomes, edept bridges the gap between academia and industry, equipping young graduates with skills for success on a global stage.

ProjectHero launches HomeRun, a 60-minute delivery service for construction materials

ProjectHero, a construction tech startup which had previously raised $3.6 million from Ankur Capital, Omidyar Network, and Titan Capital, has launched HomeRun, a quick commerce platform offering 60-minute delivery of construction materials. HomeRun caters to contractors, professionals, and homeowners and currently delivers to around 800 SKUs across 76 pin codes in Bengaluru.

HomeRun addresses the problems faced by customers who typically depend on local retailers and vendors for ad hoc construction material supplies of cement, hardware, plywood etc—this is a time-consuming and a logistical nightmare, with no tracking or visibility around pricing or availability.

Additionally, HomeRun supports on-demand material delivery directly to construction sites, ensuring quick access to supplies needed unexpectedly or at short notice.

StepTrade Share Services secures FPI licence for StepTrade India Fund

StepTrade Share Services, an asset management company known for launching India’s first successful SME-Exchange-focused CAT II AIF, Chanakya Opportunities Fund, has achieved another significant milestone. Its recently launched CAT III AIF in GIFT City, Gandhinagar, StepTrade India Fund, has been granted a Category I Foreign Portfolio Investor (FPI) license, officially opening the doors to foreign investors.

The StepTrade India Fund represents StepTrade’s debut initiative at GIFT City. With the FPI licence and registration as a Restricted Non-Retail Scheme under the IFSCA FM Regulations, the open-ended CAT III AIF underscores the firm’s commitment to aligning local expertise with global investment standards. This fund is exclusively tailored for private and accredited investors, offering the dual advantage of a Category III AIF framework with the international reach and flexibility of a Category I FPI licence.

DigiCert unveils 2025 security predictions

DigiCert's 2025 cybersecurity predictions highlight key trends shaping the digital trust landscape.

Key points include the rise of post-quantum cryptography, the prominence of Chief Trust Officers, and the necessity of automation and crypto-agility. Enhanced content provenance tools will counter digital misinformation, while resilience and zero outages in IoT security will become critical.

The surge in AI-driven phishing attacks, adoption of private PKI standards, and cryptographic bills of materials will redefine security. Manual certificate management will phase out, and enterprises will prioritize vendor consolidation for improved integration and security.

“The relentless pace of innovation is not just reshaping our digital lives—it’s exposing new vulnerabilities faster than we can secure them, demanding a bold rethinking of how we approach cybersecurity,” said Jason Sabin, CTO at DigiCert.

Mars Veterinary Health invests in Crown Veterinary Services

Crown Veterinary Services (Crown Vet) today announced Mars Veterinary Health has entered the Indian veterinary sector through a minority investment. As part of a family-owned business with nearly 90 years of experience caring for pets, including 30 years in veterinary services, Mars Veterinary Health brings deep global expertise to Crown Vet’s established local presence that will help advance veterinary care in India.

With its network of eight clinics across five cities in India—Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune—Crown Vet is known for clinical excellence. Through this investment, Crown Vet will expand its network and introduce advanced training programs for its 240 employees, including 60 veterinarians.

FedEx elevates logistics experience with launch of one-stop shop solution

FedEx, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp, has introduced the FedEx One Stop Shop, a digital platform that provides access to both shipping and freight forwarding services, simplifying global shipping for businesses.

FedEx One Stop Shop brings order management, booking, and track and trace into a single system, providing businesses with comprehensive visibility and control over shipments. The platform enables streamlined operations through a single point of contact at FedEx, eliminating the complexities of managing multiple freight forwarders. Additionally, it allows businesses to maintain a repository of their past shipments, ensuring a more efficient and transparent logistics process.

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Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (December 13, 2024)

Kotak unveils Kotak BizLabs accelerator programme

Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd. has launched the Kotak BizLabs accelerator programme, a new initiative under its CSR efforts, aimed at empowering early-revenue stage startups. This programme is designed to help startups overcome growth challenges and scale their businesses effectively. In collaboration with top incubators like IIMA Ventures, NSRCEL, and T-Hub, Kotak BizLabs will provide tailored acceleration initiatives, including mentorship, market access, and advisory support.

The Indian startup ecosystem, while vibrant, faces significant challenges such as market expansion, customer acquisition, operational scaling, and strategic partnerships. While many incubator programmes focus on early-stage for startups (ideation and conception), there are very few programmes which focus on early growth startups that face challenges navigating competition, refining product market-fit, securing funding for expansion and scaling operations.

Kotak BizLabs addresses these issues by offering high-touch support, thematic workshops, ecosystem exposure, competitions, mentoring, partnerships, business development, guaranteed seed funding, and demo days.

ServiceNow appoints Ganesh Lakshminarayanan as MD and Group Vice President, ServiceNow India and SAARC Business

ServiceNow, a digital workflow company, has appointed Ganesh Lakshminarayanan as Managing Director (MD) and Group Vice President (GVP), ServiceNow India and SAARC business, effective 06 January 2025. This strategic appointment reinforces ServiceNow’s commitment to one of the world’s fastest-growing markets and a vital driver of digital transformation. 

Ganesh brings a wealth of experience, having served as the CEO of Airtel’s domestic B2B business. Before Airtel, he held the position of President and MD of Dell India, showcasing a distinguished career in leadership roles. 

Known for his inclusive and high-performance leadership style, Ganesh is passionate about fostering strong, engaged teams that deliver exceptional results. As MD and GVP, ServiceNow India and SAARC business, Ganesh will play a pivotal role in further solidifying ServiceNow’s position as a leader in digital transformation and innovation across the APAC region. 

Radisson Hotel Group appoints Rashna Kapadi as Director of Design and Technical Services for South Asia

Radisson Hotel Group announces the appointment of Rashna Kapadi as the new Director of Design and Technical Services for South Asia.

In her new role, Rashna will lead the design strategies and implementation for the Group’s South Asia portfolio, driving innovative projects that elevate guest experiences and set new benchmarks in hospitality design.

With over 24 years of expertise in architecture, interior design, urban planning, and landscape design, Rashna brings a wealth of experience across luxury and budget hospitality, institutional developments, and mixed-use projects. Her visionary approach and commitment to excellence align seamlessly with Group’s dedication to creating exceptional, guest-focused environments.

Uber sees highest ever intercity trips booked in 2024, buoyed by travel demand

Uber, India’s leading ridehailing app today released the latest edition of its ‘Intercity Ride’ index, the annual data compilation of its popular Intercity mobility product, which revealed that the year-to-date number of trips in 2024 have already surpassed last year's highs. 

In 2024, Uber recorded its highest-ever Intercity trip bookings, fueled by Indians' increasing penchant for travel, holidays and transformative improvements in the nation’s road infrastructure. The expansive network of national highways and expressways has significantly reduced travel times, making long-distance road journeys more seamless, convenient, and appealing than ever before. 

The weekend continued to be the most favoured days for Intercity travel by Indians, with Sunday leading the pack with the highest number of trips booked, followed by Saturday and Friday, respectively. 

iD Fresh appoints Gaurav Kwatra as Chief Marketing Officer

iD Fresh, a consumer fresh food brand, announces the appointment of Gaurav Kwatra as its new Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). Kwatra will be responsible for spearheading iD Fresh’s marketing and brand-building strategies, accelerate market expansion and drive greater customer engagement

Kwatra is an accomplished marketing and business leader with over two decades of experience in building and leading iconic global and Indian brands.

His expertise spans across diverse categories in food and beverages over his 20 years in Nestle and Britannia. Throughout his career, Kwatra has led high-impact marketing campaigns, driving disruptive growth and profitability.

Magenta Mobility expands into intercity and interstate logistics

Magenta Mobility, an electric mobility solutions provider, has solidified its position as India’s largest 4-wheeler electric cargo fleet operator. With a fleet exceeding 500 electric cargo 4-wheelers, the company is transforming urban and intercity logistics while reinforcing its commitment to sustainable and efficient transportation.

Building on its leadership in the 3-wheeler EV segment, where it serves major clients such as Amazon, Flipkart, and BigBasket, Magenta Mobility is now aggressively expanding into the 4-wheeler category.

The company has launched interstate services across key corridors, including Rajasthan-Haryana-Delhi, spanning over 180 kilometres, and Delhi-Haryana-UP, covering more than 140 kilometres. Additionally, Magenta’s intercity services include the Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai route, a 422-kilometer round trip.

Zypp Electric appoints Ex-Softbank India Head Manoj Kohli as Senior Advisor

Zypp Electric, India’s leading EV-as-a-service platform, said it had appointed Manoj Kohli as Senior Advisor to the company, a strategic move at enhancing its leadership and further propelling industry dominance in last-mile delivery and further strengthen the organization’s IPO vision.

Manoj Kohli brings a wealth of over 45 years of extensive experience across diverse industries including telecom, renewable energy, EVs, and AI-led digital technology. His addition marks a step forward for Zypp Electric as it accelerates its mission to revolutionize sustainable last-mile logistics in India.

As Managing Director and CEO of Bharti Airtel, he spearheaded the company's expansion to 20 countries across Asia and Africa, growing its customer base to over 400 million and establishing it as the third-largest telecom operator globally. His leadership at SB Energy achieved over 7GW of renewable energy capacity in India and the US, contributing significantly to the green energy revolution.

Sea6 and HPCL sign MoU for R&D on conversion of tropical seaweed biomass to sustainable fuels

Sea6 Energy private limited (SEA6), a portfolio company of Tata Capital Innovations Fund, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Hindustan Petroleum Corporations Limited (HPCL) to carry out joint Research and Development on the conversion of tropical seaweed biomass to sustainable fuels and chemicals. This partnership strengthens India’s journey towards energy security, aligns with global climate goals, and establishes a benchmark in sustainable innovation.

The partnership aims to leverage the combined expertise of both parties to develop a scalable and efficient downstream process for production of biofuels from seaweed biomass. The research will be carried out at Bengaluru where both companies have established state-of-the-art research facilities. The seaweed biomass needed for this purpose will be supplied by Sea6 Energy from its own ocean farms.

Flipkart Partners with NCERT to expand nationwide access to educational books

Flipkart today signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). This collaboration aims to ensure the availability of NCERT publications across the country, leveraging Flipkart’s extensive reach to cater to students and learners, especially in Tier II and Tier III cities.

Under this collaboration, Flipkart will facilitate the sale and distribution of NCERT publications through its online marketplace, ensuring greater accessibility through authorised sellers designated by NCERT.

At the signing of the MoU, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister of Education, Government of India, said, "NCERT has been instrumental in shaping India’s education system, and its collaboration with Flipkart marks a transformative step toward ensuring affordable and accessible education for all. By leveraging Flipkart’s extensive technological and logistical reach, this partnership enhances the availability of NCERT books, empowering students across the country, including those in remote areas".

New Relic doubles size of Hyderabad innovation centre and signs industry first corporate partnership with T-Hub

Intelligent observability platform New Relic is continuing its growth in India with the expansion of its Hyderabad Innovation Centre.

The new 500+ seat office provides a dedicated environment for product, design, engineering, and operations teams to accelerate product innovation, and will support the needs of the growing New Relic customer base, the company stated.

In addition to this, it has signed a new partnership with startup incubator T-Hub, demonstrating its commitment to the local tech ecosystem by becoming the first global observability vendor to sign this partnership. The partnership will see New Relic provide support to the local startup ecosystem through dedicated events, community mentorship opportunities, and discounted rates for the New Relic Intelligent Observability Platform through the New Relic for Startups program.

The programme gives startups access to New Relic’s 30+ world-class capabilities that make up the New Relic Intelligent Observability Platform.

(This copy will be updated with the latest news throughout the day.)