Sunny days ahead for India’s e-mobility; Infosys records muted growth

Hello,

More layoffs in the offing.

Google is implementing workforce reductions, affecting hundreds of employees across various teams, including voice-based assistant and hardware teams, as the tech firm continues its cost-reduction efforts. The augmented reality team will bear the majority of the impact.

Also, nearly 125 InMobi employees stand to lose their jobs to AI as the adtech company deploys the technology across its operations, including technology, organisational structure, personnel, and skills.

Elsewhere, TCS continued its steady performance for Q3 FY24, with its net profit growing by 2% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 11,058 crore. Its revenue grew by 4% to Rs 60,583 crore, topping market estimates. 

Meanwhile, DealShare appointed Kamaldeep Singh—previously the president of its retail business—the CEO as co-founder Sourjyendu Medda exited the social commerce platform months after co-founders Vineet Rao and Shankar Bora stepped down. 

On the other hand, Zoomcar appointed Flipkart's former head of new business, Adarsh Menon, to lead the growth, operations, and customer experience verticals of its business.  

ICYMI: This iconic dress of Sarah Jessica Parker from the show Sex and The City is going under the hammer! 

Would you like to take a guess?

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• India’s e-mobility to grow in 2024
• Infosys records muted growth
• LimeChat bats for profitability

Here’s your trivia for today: For hundreds of years, European women used a white powder called ceruse to lighten their complexions. What was its main component?

Mobility

India’s e-mobility to grow in 2024

With major policy overhauls, the industry-defining initial public offering of Ola Electric, and increasing investor interest in the sector on the anvil, 2024 is set to become a defining year for the Indian electric mobility industry. 

Although the EV sector is still quite young, e-mobility will remain an investor favourite in 2024. Anita Rehman, Partner at Celesta Capital, says that while late-stage deals—Series A and upwards—will be struck, investors will “favour established businesses showcasing robust growth metrics.”

Electrified:

• Logistics players and last-mile delivery companies have been switching over to electric vehicles, in conjunction with startups such as Zypp Electric—and this will pan out more meaningfully in 2024, says Mayuresh Raut, Co-founder and Managing Partner at Seafund.
• The need for sustainable disposal methods of batteries, as well as setting up a circular economy model within the EV sector will further spur activity and investments in battery recycling companies, says Atul Gupta, Co-founder of e-Sprinto.
• It is expected that FAME III will provide subsidies to boost the country’s charging infrastructure either directly to private entities, or via public-private partnerships.

Funding Alert

Startup: ConveGenius

Amount: $7M

Round: Growth

Startup: Amaha

Amount: Rs 50 Cr

Round: Series A

Startup: The Baker’s Dozen

Amount: Rs 35 Cr

Round: Series A

Technology

Infosys records muted growth in Q3 FY24

Infosys reported a 7.2% year-on-year decline in net profit for the third quarter of the current fiscal year owing to lower volume of business and cost increases, including wages. The net profit for Q3 FY24 stood at Rs 6,113 crore, while it generated Rs 38,821 crore in revenue.

Earnings:

• Infosys' operating profit margin for the quarter was 20.5%, which was a 1% decline. It also narrowed its revenue growth guidance for FY24 to 1.5-2%.
• The company said its large deal total contract value for Q3 stood at $3.2 billion, down from $7.7 billion in the previous quarter.
• Infosys also acquired the semiconductor design and embedded services provider InSemi for an enterprise value of Rs 280 crore.

SaaS

LimeChat bats for profitability

Bengaluru-based LimeChat launched an AI-powered chatbot in conjunction with Microsoft. With this, the startup, whose ARR is expected to hit $2 million at the end of this quarter, hopes to triple its revenue over the next 12 months. 

“All SaaS (software-as-a-service) companies want to be profitable, and I’m very happy to notice that we’re on a path to profitability… maybe (in) the first half of this year,” said Co-founder Nikhil Gupta in an exclusive conversation with YourStory.

Teaming up:

• There are two major costs for LimeChat—cloud and salary costs—which the startup claims to have brought under control due to its partnership with the tech major.
• Under the collaboration, it has developed its new platform based on Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service, where it claims to offer superior responses to customer queries using the chatbot.
• Gupta said the team has kept the process cost-effective despite “using inference as a layer” by adopting and developing some techniques, such as calling the APIs “at the right moment of time”. 

News & updates

• Watershed: The US SEC has accepted the applications of 11 spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds. Despite the approval, the SEC warned that bitcoin is, "primarily a speculative, volatile asset that’s also used for illicit activity, including ransomware, money laundering, sanction evasion, and terrorist financing."
• Supply chain: Global trade declined by 1.3% from November to December 2023 as militant attacks on merchant vessels in the Red Sea led to a plunge in the cargo volumes transported in the region. Around 200,000 containers are transported via the Red Sea daily, down from 500,000 per day in November.
• Plugging in: Global sales of battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles grew 31% last year, down from a 60% growth in 2022, according to market research firm Rho Motion. BEV sales in the US and Canada grew by 50% last year, while Europe and China rose by 27% and 15%, respectively.

For hundreds of years, European women used a white powder called ceruse to lighten their complexions. What was its main component?

Answer: White lead. Its occasional use caused lead poisoning, hair loss, and mental deterioration.

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