Startup news and updates: daily roundup (August 18, 2023)

Flipkart kicks off seller conclave in Delhi

Flipkart has kickstarted a pan-India initiative comprising seller conclaves, the first of which was held in Delhi.

The seller conclaves aim to empower sellers through interactive sessions, insights into customer demands, buying trends and other growth-related plans by the Flipkart marketplace to enhance their readiness for the much-awaited event during the festive season—the 10th edition of Flipkart’s annual flagship event, The Big Billion Days (TBBD).

The conclave also emphasised the ways sellers can optimise their online presence by leveraging the power of ecommerce effectively, and harnessing Flipkart's analytics tools to make data-driven decisions.

The first conclave in Delhi garnered responses from over 1,200 entrepreneurs. Flipkart aims to expand this series of events to other cities across India.

IIT Madras team among top 3 globally at European Hyperloop Week 2023

Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) students’ Hyperloop team Avishkar has emerged among the top three teams globally in certain technical categories at the recently-held European Hyperloop Week 2023 (EHW).

Team Avishkar, comprising more than 50 team members, stands as the only non-European team to be nominated in several award categories in the competition.

The EHW 2023 is an annual international event that enables university students, guest speakers, and companies to discuss Hyperloop technology, including the feasibility and scalability of the Hyperloop.

Around 23 participants from various institutions across the world qualified for the final rounds of the competition hosted this year by the University of Edinburgh.

The team is focused on revolutionising transportation with sustainable Hyperloop technologies with funding support from various stakeholders, including the Indian government. It is also backed by industry partners like Tube Investments of India and L&T Construction.

Team Avishkar Hyperloop participated in the SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition in 2019 and finished in the top 10 among more than 1,600 teams.

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DBS, Infor Nexus collaborate to enhance SME cash flows

Infor Nexus and DBS Bank have launched pre-shipment financing for small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) suppliers in the Infor Nexus supply chain ecosystem.

This solution utilises historical data from the Infor Nexus platform to provide data-based lending solutions that help suppliers meet their working capital requirements. Pre-shipment financing allows suppliers to use their enhanced cash flows to fulfil orders before goods are delivered to buyers.

The offering builds upon the digital trade financing capabilities of DBS, which have been integrated into the Infor Nexus network since 2020. The bank will use alternative supply chain data, such as historical and real-time milestone information on the physical movement of goods from the Infor Nexus platform.

The trade financing solution has been extended to SMEs in India, primarily in the apparel, footwear and textile industries, which are major growth sectors for the economy. As part of the Infor Nexus ecosystem, DBS Bank will underwrite the trade financing facility applications of prospective SME suppliers.

Yulu, Zepto partner to scale green hyperlocal delivery

Shared electric two-wheeler mobility player Yulu and e-grocery service Zepto have partnered to scale green hyperlocal delivery.

The association will expand Yulu’s presence in the fast-growing hyperlocal delivery category in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Delhi, and Gurugram while enabling Zepto to move to an all-electric vehicle fleet.

The partnership will see Yulu deploying 20,000 next-generation shared DeX EVs for Zepto’s delivery partners. 

Under the partnership, Yulu and Zepto will promote each other’s products and services across offline and online touchpoints. 

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