Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (September 7, 2023)
YourStory presents the daily news roundup from the Indian startup ecosystem and beyond. Here's the roundup for Thursday, September 7, 2023.
Funding
Biomaterials startup altM raises $3.5M seed funding from Omnivore
Biomaterials startup has raised $3.5 million in a seed funding round led by Omnivore. Other investors include Theia Ventures, Thai Wah Ventures, Sanjiv Rangrass, Neha Mudaliar, Maninder Gulati from , Mirik Gogri from , and Paula Mariwala from Aureolis Ventures.
altM is the first investment from Omnivore's third fund, which recently reached a first close of $150 million. It is also the fourth investment from the firm's OmniX Bio initiative. OmniX Bio was launched in 2021 to support early-stage agri-food life science startups.
Founded in 2022 by Apoorv Garg and Yugal Raj Jain, altM aims to create scalable biomaterials for large industries to reduce their carbon footprint. The startup uses lignocellulosic agricultural residues as raw materials, offering a unique technological appeal due to their sustainability potential and functional properties. This approach aims to create sustainable alternatives to unsustainable incumbents.
Other news
Google Cloud joins hands with CERT-In
Cloud is partnering with CERT-In within the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), in the areas of generative artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.
This collaboration marks a significant step towards advancing the cybersecurity skills of learners and government officials.
CERT-In and Google Cloud will train 1,000 government officials in cyber defence best practices, using AI and hackathons.
Google will also provide 1 lakh scholarships for Google Cybersecurity Certificates, equipping learners with in-demand skills for cybersecurity jobs.
InCred Capital hires industry veterans for structured products biz
, the wealth, asset management and institutional arm of InCred Group, has onboarded Suchitra Subramanian as the head of trading and risk management and Philipp Orgler as the head of product development for its structured products business.
The on-boarding of Subramanian and Orgler is expected to strengthen InCred's ability to offer differentiated structured products to its client base.
Subramanian has 17 years of experience in finance, trading, structuring, and advisory roles. She managed the structured products business in Southeast Asia for HSBC Global Private Bank. She has also worked at Barclays London and Singapore Exchange.
Orgler has 25 years of experience in financial services, with stints at Deutsche Bank, Barclays Capital, Mizuho Securities, and Rokos Capital.
KredX Collaborates with Mastercard
, a supply chain finance platform, has collaborated with to make B2B digital payments rewarding for both enterprises and vendors.
As part of the collaboration, Mastercard will integrate its commercial card service with the KredX platform, eliminating the complexities associated with B2B payments, especially those made via cards.
KredX, powered by artificial intelligence, offers dynamic discounting, early payment, and price discovery features to enhance cash flows for enterprises and vendors. It facilitates faster invoice matching and processing and uses the Smart Bid algorithm to find the best vendor discount rates.
The platform aims to tackle B2B payment challenges such as lengthy accounting processes, low vendor acceptance, and frequent chargebacks, while promoting digital payments acceptance by enabling small vendors to receive payments without in-house gateways and PoS machines.
CashKaro onboards Genelia Deshmukh as Brand Ambassador
has partnered with Genelia Deshmukh as its brand ambassador, aiming to expand its user base from 20 million to over 100 million in India.
The 360-degree advertising campaign features Genelia and three family members, encapsulating the value proposition of CashKaro in a humorous manner.
L-R Swati Bhargava, Genelia Deshmukh and Rohan Bhargava
The partnership aims to inspire and transform the way India shops online, setting new standards of value-driven and rewarding consumer experiences.
CashKaro, a cashback app, allows more than 20 million users to earn cashback and rewards on over 1,500 ecommerce sites. Users can transfer cashback to their bank accounts. CashKaro has paid over Rs 1,000 crore in cashback and raised over Rs 250 crore from investors like Affle Global Pvt Ltd, Korea Investment Partners, Kalaari Capital, and Ratan Tata.
Glossaread aims to achieve profitability in 2023
Glossaread, an education technology company, is transforming higher education by bridging the accessibility gap for Tier II and III college students.
Glossaread, with a gross revenue of Rs 7 crore, achieved a profit of Rs 60 lakh in 2023 and plans to achieve cash positivity by the end of 2023-24.
Founded in 2018, , under the parent company Glossaread, offers content curated by professors from Tier II and III cities, understanding the specific needs and challenges faced by students in these regions. With a 42% year-on-year growth rate, the platform has expanded significantly, with an 80% year-on-year increase in new users and 2 million unique visitors.
Goseeko plans to raise Series A funding in 2024 or consider listing on the BSE SME stock exchange.
Glossaread has launched SkillCamper, an extension of Goseeko, a skill-building solution aimed at improving employment prospects for students and young professionals in India, with plans for international expansion in 2023.
NoBroker introduces metro-based property search
Proptech unicorn has introduced metro-based property search on its platform that would enable consumers to choose from a wider array of properties within their budget.
The search feature will be available across Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Mumbai, Pune, and Delhi-NCR.
For instance, if your office is in Mandi House in Delhi-NCR, you'd prefer to stay within 5 km, which usually means higher rent due to property scarcity. Metro-based search allows you to choose localities along the linear metro route, such as Janpath, JLN Stadium, Khan Market, and Lajpat Nagar, which offer more accommodation options and cheaper rentals.