Startup news and updates: daily roundup (October 6, 2022)

Simplilearn appoints two key senior leaders

Online courses learning platform Simplilearn has announced the appointment of two key senior leaders–Asem Rostom as the Country Manager of the Middle East and Vishal Shah as the Senior Director of Enterprise Sales in the US. The appointments are a part of Simplilearn’s larger goal of expanding and strengthening its teams globally, it said.

Asem, who has worked in the education management and assessment industry, has a leadership background in spearheading cross-functional sales and operational teams. He has previously worked with Cambridge University Press and Pearson VUE. Vishal comes with over 15 years of enterprise sales experience and has previously worked with Udemy, Coca-Cola, Global Payments, NCR, and Equifax.

“Their (Asem and Vishal) extensive experience in the education and sales domain will prove extremely beneficial to Simplilearn. We are confident that through their addition, we will continue to provide outstanding results to our consumers. We look forward to further strengthening Simplilearn’s global footprint with their efforts and expertise,” Kashyap Dalal, Co-founder and CBO of Simplilearn, said in a media statement.

Betterhalf.ai records $2M annualised revenue in FY22

Matrimony platform Betterhalf.AI announced that it recorded a growth of $2 million in annualised revenue in FY22 with 50% quarterly growth, fuelled by its key matchmaking service.

While the matchmaking service drives 70% of the company’s revenue, non-matchmaking services like wedding decorations, photography, loans, verification, and astrology drive 30% of its revenue, as per Betterhalf.ai.

“The continued momentum of our company speaks the market opportunity we are encashing. Our impressive growth concurs with the trust of our users who have invested in us and we look forward to continuing delivering rich CX and driving ongoing revenue momentum,” Pawan Gupta, Co-founder of Betterhalf.ai, said in a media release.

Apart from the revenue growth, the app also recorded a 250% growth in its team size by adding 75 full-time employees in six months, the firm said, adding that it is working aggressively to touch $3 million in annualised revenue by the end of FY23.

Founded in 2016 by Rahul Namdev and Pawan Gupta, Betterhalf.ai is an AI-driven matchmaking app. It focuses on behavioural matching criteria–compatibility matching with likes, dislikes and interests.

UiPath appoints Lee Hawksley to lead Asia Pacific and Japan region

Enterprise automation software firm UIPath has announced the appointment of Lee Hawksley as Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Asia Pacific and Japan, effective November 2022.

Hawksley, a seasoned executive, with more than 20 years of experience in leadership and senior management roles in the technology industry across all of Asia, has led hyper-growth sales, go-to-market operations, and developing new markets. He joins UiPath to accelerate innovation and drive business transformation and growth, the company said.

“His (Hawksley) experience in leading disruptive technology companies will be vital, and he is well positioned to engage with the local ecosystem to create new opportunities and strengthen our existing customer and partner relationships,” CBO Chris Weber said in a media release. “Asia Pacific, India, and Japan hold huge promise for UiPath, and I look forward to accelerating our leadership as the partner of choice for C-suite leaders driving digital transformation initiatives.”

Quess Corp divests stake in Simpliance Technologies

Business services provider Quess Corp announced that it has entered into definitive agreements to divest its stake in the digital risk and compliance services company, Simpliance Technologies Private Limited to Aparajitha Corporate Services, a leading HR compliance services company and its affiliates.

The deal is valued at an enterprise value of Rs 120 crore on a cash- and debt-free basis, subject to closing adjustments and fulfilment of conditions set out in the transaction document.

“Quess helped the Simpliance team to build a comprehensive tech platform which provides total labour compliance solutions for digital India. While this has created great value for the Shareholders of Quess, we are also happy that Simpliance has found a permanent home at Aparajitha Corporate Services,” Guruprasad Srinivasan, Executive Director and Group CEO, Quess Corp, said in a media release.

For Quess, a strategic investment of Rs 4.5 crore for its total 53% shareholding made between October 2016 and August 2018 has yielded an enterprise value of Rs 120 crore, the company noted.

Medtronic LABS launches ear-screening initiative for Uber drivers in India

Medtronic LABS has launched an ear-screening initiative for drivers on the Uber platform across India. The testing will be conducted under Shruti, a flagship programme of Medtronic LABS in the country.

The ear screenings will help assess the adverse impact of prolonged exposure to traffic noise on drivers and identify cases that need further medical attention. Medtronic LABS will roll out this initiative starting with Bengaluru, followed by Hyderabad and Pune, before scaling to other cities.

“Early intervention can play a significant role in minimising negative consequences of hearing loss. Community-based solutions that combine tele-otology and tele-audiology can aid in timely intervention, especially for at-risk populations such as drivers,” Dr AK Agarwal, President- Society for Sound Hearing 2030, said in a media release.

The screening will be conducted using an innovative ear screening kit called the ENTraview, which is a custom-designed smart otoscope designed by Medtronic LABS. The kit has been specifically built for field usage and the initial screening takes less than two minutes. A telemedicine application on the device enables one to capture and transmit patient ID, symptoms, images of the ear, and preliminary diagnosis to a cloud server which can then be accessed by a clinician.

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