Bhavish Aggarwal questions “work-life balance”; Zomato's Q1 profits

Delhivery near profitability? 

The logistics startup narrowed its losses sharply in the Apr-Jun quarter as revenue rose on the back of truckload and supply chain services. Its loss after tax narrowed by 78% on a yearly basis to Rs 89 crore from Rs 399 crore in Q1 FY23, bringing it near profitability. 

Elsewhere, big tech companies had a tumultuous day. 

Amazon surged over 9% as both its ecommerce and cloud computing arms fared well despite an uncertain economy. The company reported $6.7 billion in net income for the quarter ending June 30, compared to a net loss of $2 billion in the corresponding quarter last fiscal. 

However, Apple’s share saw a 3% slide after gloomy iPhone sales, with its market cap falling below the historic $3 trillion level. The company reported a drop in its revenue for iPhone, Mac, and iPad lines was down from the year before. Overall, sales fell 1% year over year.

ICYMI: Meta’s Twitter-killer Threads appears to be lost in the crowd of social media apps. Two separate data analysis firms say that the number of users logging in each day on the app has flatlined just a month after its release, Gizmodo reports.

Nokia, meanwhile, is bringing back its “dumb” phones. The Nokia 130 and 150 phones from yesteryears are devoid of all things that could be distracting—except the iconic Snake game.

Who is ready for a digital cleanse?

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Ola’s Bhavish Aggarwal questions “work-life balance”
• Investors, founders celebrate Zomato’s Q1 profits
• India’s one-size-fits-all approach to footwear QC

Here’s your trivia for today: Which book on evolution first introduced the term 'meme' as an element of human culture?

Interview 

Ola’s Bhavish Aggarwal questions “work-life balance”

Ola Co-founder and CEO Bhavish Aggarwal doesn’t believe in a work-life balance, at least not how it is conventionally defined. He, instead, urges society to think about “work-life harmony”. Aggarwal envisions a time when work and personal life will coexist harmoniously, allowing individuals to find fulfilment in both spheres. 

In an interview with YourStory Founder-CEO Shradha Sharma, Aggarwal talks about Ola’s work culture, his pursuit of passion and why he doesn’t believe in weekends. 

Driven by passion:

• The entrepreneur questions the cultural adoption of Saturdays and Sundays as days of rest, seeing them as Western imports stemming from the Industrial Revolution.
• In the past, Aggarwal and his company have faced criticism regarding Ola’s work culture.
• According to Aggarwal, he can come across as “rough and rude”, describing himself as a “straight shooter”.

Foodtech 

Investors, founders celebrate Zomato’s Q1 profits

It’s finally good news for investors and the bourses as foodtech platform Zomato posted its first-ever profitable quarter.

Many founders and investors that YourStory spoke to are convinced that Zomato’s stellar numbers will change the lens through which foodtech and quick delivery startups are viewed and convince more VCs to back them.

Happy news: 

• Zomato’s shares surged 11% on Friday after the firm announced its first-ever profit in the June quarter of FY24.
• The Deepinder Goyal-led company achieved profitability much earlier than its guidance of achieving the milestone by Q2 FY24.
• Hitesh Ahuja, Founder of QSR chain Yumlane Pizza, says Zomato’s growth bodes well for all related members, including cloud kitchens, brands, and the gig economy. 

Policy

India’s one-size-fits-all approach to footwear QC

India’s decision to enforce quality norms for footwear aims to establish standards in the sector that's largely unorganised, reduce reliance on imports, and curb sub-standard imports from China.  

While the footwear industry has largely welcomed the government’s move to make quality standards mandatory for footwear manufacturers, it is also concerned about the implementation of these standards. 

Quality control:

• The Quality Control Orders—issued by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade—apply uniformly to all products in a category and don’t take into account the various price points at which different manufacturers operate, say industry players. 
• These orders are set to bring 24 categories of footwear—including rubber gum boots, sports shoes, moulded plastic footwear, and Hawaii chappals—under the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certification, thus making BIS licence and ISI mark mandatory to sell, or import these products.
• The standards propose to evaluate various attributes of footwear, such as durability, flexibility, and bond strength.

News & updates

• Comeback kid: Huawei announced the latest version of its HarmonyOS 4 and an enhanced AI assistant as it ramps up efforts to re-establish strength for its smartphone business. It is trying to recover from U.S. sanctions dating back to 2019.
• Varying opinion: Coinbase asked a judge to dismiss a SEC lawsuit against it, pointing to a recent decision by another judge who ruled that Ripple Labs’ XRP was not a security when sold on exchanges. The crypto exchange argued that the SEC has no authority over its activities.
• Offloading: Alphabet slashed its stake in Robinhood Markets by nearly 90%, cutting its exposure to the trading app operator that has been grappling with a slowdown in its mainstay business. Alphabet reportedly held over 4.9 million shares in the company as of the end of 2021.

Which book on evolution first introduced the term 'meme' as an element of human culture?

Answer: The Selfish Gene (1976) by Richard Dawkins.

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