Startup news and updates: daily roundup (April 6, 2023)

Fantasy sports revenue to grow by 30%-35% during IPL season: Report

The revenue in the fantasy sports sector is to expected to grow by 30%-35%, or up to Rs 2,900-Rs 3,100 crore, during the current Indian Premier League (IPL) season, according to a report released by Redseer Strategy Consultants.

The real-money gaming space is also expected to see transactions grow by 25%-30%, attracting 60%-65% users from Tier II cities and beyond.

The average revenue per user is expected to reach Rs 440 per user in 2023, compared to Rs 410 last year.

IPL is the biggest sports league in India, attracting millions of viewers and peaking at 460 million during the 2019 season. The following two years were marred by the COVID-19 pandemic, delaying the sports event, which led to a fall in viewership. But fantasy sports platforms including Dream11, and Mobile Premier League (MPL), keep the viewers hooked on to their platforms during the sports season.

MyInsuranceClub to get acquired by Religare Enterprises

MyInsuranceClub, an insurance web aggregator, is in the process of getting acquired by Religare Enterprises. The diversified financial services company—which offers health insurance and loans to small enterprises, among other services—signed a purchase agreement, which is subject to regulatory approvals.

The acquisition of the insurance web aggregator will let the Religare Group expand its services in the insurance space.

"With this proposed acquisition, the Religare Group will strengthen its insurance offerings, making them available for masses. The transition of MIC will not only propel the company into the next growth phase but will also prove to be a step towards digital evolution,” Dr Rashmi Saluja, Executive Chairperson, Religare Enterprises said in a release shared by the company.

Digital growth firm ADA acquires dhiOmics

ADA acquired dhiOmics Analytics as its digital growth firm and aims to launch an AI (artificial intelligence) delivery and global data hub. Operating across South Asia and Southeast Asia, ADA's acquisition will let the firm expand capabilities and work with global clients, according to a release shared by the company.

dhiOmics, which started in 2017 with 200 marketing analysts, data engineers and tech developers, works with brands operating across healthcare, technology, retail, and ecommerce.

After the acquisition, the hub will leverage marketing cloud, data platforms and customer engagement platforms, among other things, to service brands and enterprises aiming to increase their digital topline.

Imarticus Learning acquires HeroMindmine

Professional education firm Imarticus Learning has acquired Hero Mindmine, a Hero Group platform dedicated to providing learning solutions and training to individuals, for an undisclosed amount.

Imarticus, which has been on an expansion spree for the past year, said this acquisition has further enhanced its presence in the B2B training space. Imarticus’ other acquisitions include Skillenza and StartOnboard.

Post-acquisition, Imarticus will function as an end-to-end Sales Excellence Academy, offering sales onboarding and upskilling programmes, custom training solutions, sales management and leadership programmes, sales enablement and coaching, and e-learning and game-based learning content development services, the edtech company noted.

Through this, Imarticus said it aspires to enhance the sales training capacity of its portfolio and be reckoned as a trusted company in the B2B training field. 

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Shipyaari appoints Manish Bhardwaj as National Sales Director

Shipyaari, a provider of SaaS-based supply chain solutions, has onboarded Manish Bhardwaj as the new National Sales Director.

In his new position, Bhardwaj will oversee the development and execution of Shipyaari's customer acquisition strategy along with driving India expansion and identifying new business opportunities to drive revenue growth, the Mumbai-headquartered company said.

“With a strong focus on customer satisfaction and sales growth, I am confident that we will achieve our ambitious goals and exceed expectations. I am excited to be a part of this journey and can't wait to see what we can achieve together,” Bhardwaj said.

Bhardwaj has worked in different capacities and supply chain roles for companies such as Amazon, FedEx, DHL, and MyPACCO. 

Thyrocare launches  JAANCH

Diagnostic and preventive healthcare service provider Thyrocare has launched JAANCH, a brand that offers focused specialised health packages under one roof. 

Jaanch provides targeted, detailed and affordable healthcare solutions, Thyrocare said, adding that the brand consists of 26 packages under nine vital specialities that cover heart health, diabetes, thyroid, cancer, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), women’s reproductive health, skincare, hair fall, and fever.

Rahul Guha, MD and CEO of Thyrocare Technologies, said, “At Thyrocare, in our endeavour to help people live healthier lives, we are launching Jaanch which is a series of 26 packages curated for nine crucial diseases under one umbrella. 

“Jaanch helps stay one step ahead of diseases by reducing the risk of developing diseases and managing them better,” Guha added, saying that Jaanch helps obtain better treatment and reduce overall medical costs.

Wadhwani AI deploys AI solution for TB treatment

Wadhwani Institute for Artificial Intelligence (Wadhwani AI) announced the deployment of an AI solution to predict the risk of loss to follow-up (LFU) and mortality among TB patients when they start TB treatment from government-run health facilities in Haryana. 

The National TB Elimination Programme (NTEP) staff will provide intensive care to the AI-predicted high-risk patients during six to twelve months of treatment, Wadhwani AI said.

The AI solution, titled Comprehensive Loss to Follow-Up And Mortality Prediction (CLAMP-TB), was developed by Wadhwani AI under the USAID-supported TRACE-TB Project. 

The district TB officers, data entry operators, senior treatment supervisors, and TB Health Visitors will use this AI solution to predict and initiate targeted TB treatments for almost 12,000 high-risk patients in the next 15 to 18 months, the institute noted.

MX Player inks deal with Paramount Global Content Distribution

OTT platform MX Player has collaborated with Paramount Global Content Distribution to bring its all-female sports entertainment show, ‘WOW – Women Of Wrestling’ to Indian audiences. 

MX Player has licensed the new season of the all-women wrestling series, which includes streaming rights to 52 episodes with each episode being of one-hour duration.

WOW - Women Of Wrestling is an all-women wrestling sports show.

“We believe that a fascinating sports entertainment series about strong and inspiring women wrestlers will resonate with our audiences as the individual stories of the challenges, grit and determination of each of the WOW Superheroes are so powerful that it surely makes for a compelling watch,” said an MX Player spokesperson.

Huddle01 raises $2.8M in seed round led by Hivemind

Web3-based video meeting and real-time communication platform Huddle01 has raised $2.8 million in a seed round led by Hivemind, with participation from Superscrypt, M31 Capital, Protocol Labs, East Ventures, Longhash Ventures, and Good News Ventures.

Notable angel investors including Balaji Srinivasan, Stani Kulechov, Dan Romero, and Juan Benet have also backed the startup. The company's total funds raised now stands at $4.5 million.

Huddle01 is a decentralised video conferencing platform that enables synchronous and asynchronous communication for wallets, dApps, DAOs, communities, and users for free. It also gives users access to secure, real-time communication through a toolkit for communication.