Startup news and updates: Daily Roundup (April 18, 2023)
YourStory presents the daily news roundup from the Indian startup ecosystem and beyond. Here's the roundup for Tuesday, April 18, 2023.
RACEnergy, Hala Mobility to deploy 2,000 EV two-wheelers
Battery swapping startup and Hala Mobility have partnered to deploy 2,000 electric two-wheelers across the country.
The fleet, integrated with RACEnergy's battery-swapping tech, will be used for delivery services, the companies said.
Phase I of the rollout will begin by July 2023.
"With RACE's impressive advancements, such as their lightning-fast four-second swapping time and an extensive network of swap points, users are provided with a better vehicle range. We are confident that we will be able to make electric vehicles not only accessible but also convenient for all to use," said Srikanth Reddy, Founder and CEO of Hala Mobility, in a press release.
Deliveroo launches student internship programme
Food delivery company said it has launched an internship programme for graduating college students in India.
The internship, based out of the company's India Development Centre (IDC) in Hyderabad, will give students the opportunity to work with core engineering teams across business functions and units such as restaurant, consumer tech, delivery etc.
Deliveroo might expand the program beyond Hyderabad in the near future, it said in a press release.
Ecommerce platform Meolaa raises seed funding
said on Tuesday it has raised an undisclosed amount in its seed funding round led by Dr Ranjan Pai of Manipal Education and Medical Group.
The company, which was launched in 2022, had raised $165,000 in its pre-seed round, led by angel investors from Swiggy, Sixth Sense Ventures, and Lighthouse Funds, among others.
The new capital will help Meolaa expand its operations, hire leaders, and expand its marketing, product, engineering, logistics, and customer support teams.
Founded in 2022, Meolaa is a Bengalore-based startup that offers sustainability-focused lifestyle products, such as clean beauty products, green, non-toxic floor cleaners, ethically-made fashionwear, etc.
The Ayurveda Experience reports FY22-23 revenue of Rs 270 Cr
Health and wellness platform said its FY22-23 revenue jumped 91.5% to Rs 270 crore.
It added its US, Canada, and Australia businesses were EBITDA positive in the year.
The company did not disclose its net profit or loss number.
Quick Heal names Ankit Maheshwari as CFO
Cybersecurity solutions provider said it has appointed Ankit Maheshwari as its chief financial officer, with effect from April 26.
A chartered accountant with two decades of experience, Maheshwari has worked across business sectors including power, retail, telecom, shared services, manufacturing, etc.
He replaces Navin Sharma, who resigned as the company's CFO effective April 18.
In its latest financial results, the company reported a loss of Rs 6.6 crore for the quarter that ended March 31, 2023, compared with a profit of Rs 28 crore the previous year.
MobiKwik names Gaurav Nayyar as VP-Engineering; Swati Singh as VP-HR
Digital banking startup has appointed Gaurav Nayyar as vice president of engineering, and Swati Singh as vice president of human resources, the company said in a press release.
Nayyar comes from Harness.io where he led a team of 75 engineers, while Singh's latest stint was at Genpact where she was the director of people practice office.
Singh has 21 years of experience, while Nayyar has around 19 years of product development and leadership experience.
Awign names ex-Shadowfax exec as new SVP of Business Development
Gigwork platform said it has appointed Rohit Gupta as the senior vice president of business development.
The move was part of the company's overall goal to strengthen its leadership.
Before joining Awign, Gupta was the head of growth at Shadowfax. He has also worked with Myntra.
"Rohit will play a critical role in driving the next phase of Awign’s expansion, through his strategic thinking, rigour and proven capabilities in propelling business growth," said Annanya Sarthak, co-founder and CEO of Awign.
Construction-focussed SaaS platform Powerplay sees revenue of $1 million in FY 2024
said in a press release it has set its sights on achieving revenue of $1 million in the financial year 2023-2024.
The construction management SaaS platform, founded in 2020 by Iesh Dixit and Shubham Goyal, claimed its active user base grew 110.12% in FY 2022, with a surge of 83,868 users.
"This year Powerplay saw players from mid-big markets like WeWork, Adarsh Group, NR Green Woods, etc using the app," said Dixit in a press release.
"Our next focus is to make our tech infrastructure support multiple geographies seamlessly," added Dixit's co-founder, Goyal.
Powerplay has raised $13 million in funding so far, from investors including Accel, Sequoia Surge, India Quotient and the founders of Snapdeal.
It offers a free app on Android and iOS, as well as premium tools.
Health startup iThrive appoints Avinash Deshmukh as COO
Nutrition startup iThrive said it has appointed Avinash Deshmukh as its chief operating officer.
Deshmukh has spent over 25 years in the oil and gas industry and has led several large projects. In his latest sting, he was the assistant vice president of CIIF Lubricants for eight years.
The startup said Deshmukh became interested in the field after he faced health and psychological issues himself.
" In the process of scaling iThrive into a global company, I've learned a lot about health, nutrition and the overall evolution of human consciousness. Healing may start at the physical level but eventually leads to spiritual evolution and we address all levels at iThrive," he said.
Inflection Point Ventures partners with IIT-Madras for startup investing
Angel investor has partnered with IIT-Madras' alumni association to spread awareness about startup investing.
IPV said it will host curated masterclasses, knowledge sessions, and meet-ups with investors to help the alumni learn about investing in startups and look at this new category as an asset class.
The partnership will also help interested IIT alumni meet startups founded by fellow IIT alums.
"At IPV, we believe that startup investment has the potential to emerge as a long-term wealth creation asset class," said Ankur Mittal, Co-founder, Inflection Point Ventures.
CoinSwitch partners with Jump.trade for advertising in Web3
and have inked a deal to help brands advertise in metaverse, especially in the upcoming game by the latter, called RADDX Racing Metaverse.
Jump.trade launched its racing game platform earlier this year after a successful pre-booking of its RADDX Racing Metaverse NFTs. The game allows brands and individuals to purchase virtual real estate elements within the game for things like advertising, hosting events, etc
CoinSwitch said and have already expressed their interest in purchasing digital lands in the game.
"An essential principle of growth marketing is to meet users where they are. That is why the metaverse is quickly becoming a must-explore frontier," said Swati Pincha, CoinSwitch's head of growth.
GrowthSchool launches $500K scholarship to help people upskill
Edtech startup has launched a $500,000 scholarship fund to help people who've been recently laid off acquire new skills.
Those affected by recent layoffs can apply for the scholarship, and learn from mentors including Abhishek Nag, Partner at Lightspeed India; Abhishek G of OLX Group; Aakrit Vaish, Co-founder and CEO of Haptik; Kanan Rai, Director of partnerships at Razorpay, and ex-Google; and Ashish Singh, Senior Growth Manager at Google, among others.
The selection criteria will be based on parameters such as the latest CTC, number of dependents, household income, and time since the person was laid off.
"With the generous support of our esteemed mentors from top brands, we aim to empower the laid-off workforce by offering access to our intensive courses, expert-led guidance, and job assistance," said Vaibhav Sisinty, CEO and Founder of GrowthSchool.
"Our goal is to provide a lifeline for those affected by mass layoffs, helping them regain their footing in the professional world and rebuild their careers. Together, we can rise again and build a brighter future," he added.
A special course named 'Project Rise Again' will be administered via the scholarship. It will be run by over 150 expert mentors, and will equip people with new skills that will make them more employable.
Healthcare talent firm Qwazent acquired by another HR firm
Healthcare and dedicated executive search company Talent Solutions said it has been acquired by human resources development and talent management solutions company, Dimensions HRD Consultants, for an undisclosed amount.
The deal is expected to help Qwazent's business volumes to grow, and its client to benefit from Dimension's expertise in the domain.
For Dimension, the deal will help it expand into the pharma and healthcare industry.
(The copy will be updated throughout the day with the latest news.)
Edited by Megha Reddy