Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (February 23, 2024)

Zomato launches Gold Carnival to offer discounts on food orders and dining out

Zomato has launched a 'Gold Carnival' to provide a range of offers and experiences exclusively for Zomato Gold members across 29 cities in India.

In addition to offers on food orders and dining out, the carnival also provides exclusive access to privileges at over 20,000 partnered restaurants. The carnival also brings member-only benefits from top payment partners and lifestyle brands, Zomato said in a statement.

“Gold Carnival is a celebration of our Gold members and partnered restaurants, where we are offering exclusive access to never-seen-before culinary delights and privileges. Delivering exceptional customer experience remains our utmost priority. We are confident that the Gold Carnival will be a delight for both our key stakeholders, restaurant partners and customers,” said Rakesh Ranjan, CEO - Food Delivery, Zomato.

Infra.market appoints three independent directors to its board

Construction materials firm Infra.Market has appointed three new independent directors to its board—Mike Glover (former Managing Director of Lafarge), Rajendran CVR, and Shan Jain.

Glover’s experience in various construction categories is expected to drive value into Infra.Market’s expansion and operations.

Rajendran has several years of experience in private and public sector banks and is a board director at NSE. His experience in financial governance and strategy will help steer Infra.Market towards financial robustness and sustainability.

Jain is an EY-certified professional with a three-decade experience spanning various marketing functions.

“As the company enters the next phase of sustainable, profitable expansion, we are delighted to welcome Mike, Rajendran, and Shan to our team. Their experience and expertise instil confidence in our ability to enhance market positioning, deliver enduring value, and achieve long-term success,” said Aaditya Sharda, Co-founder of Infra.Market.

Dixon Technologies launches Dehradun manufacturing unit

Electronic manufacturing services (EMS) company Dixon Technologies (India) Limited has unveiled a state-of-the-art manufacturing unit in Dehradun, Uttarakhand.

With an annual capacity of 24 lakh washing machines, the facility is set to create over 1,000 job opportunities and bolster the region's economy.

"We are thrilled to launch our latest factory, which represents a significant step forward in our journey towards innovation and excellence," said Atul B Lall, Vice Chairman and Managing Director at Dixon Technologies.

"The new plant will enable us to deliver high-quality output to our customers both in the domestic as well as international markets at an accelerated rate. We are very proud to have opened a future-oriented production facility here in Dehradun," he added

Fractional real-estate startup FOIP secures Rs 23 Cr funding for Gurugram office

Fractional real-estate startup Fractional Ownership Investment Platform (FOIP) has raised Rs 23 crore for office space in NEO Square.

NEO Square is a commercial project in Sector 109, Gurugram. FOIP raised investment through a set of HNI investors in a block deal for their office space comprising of 18,000 sq ft area.

"We would like to thank our partners and investors. We have been able to deliver our first commitment in less than a month’s time. This showcases the trust of our investors in our capabilities. The mission is to democratise access to value assets with a smaller ticket size with better returns. Our fractional investment model is seamless online investment experience, and meticulous end-to-end asset management," Aankush Ahuja, FOIP CEO and Founder, said.

"We are looking for Rs 100 crore investment raise in the first year of our operations. We hope to meet our target with more value deals soon," he added.

Kusho raises $600,000 in pre-seed round of funding led by Antler India

Kusho, a Bengaluru-based tech startup, has raised $600,000 in pre-seed funding led by Antler India. The round also saw participation from Blume Founders Fund, Upsparks Capital, and angel investors like Mohit Kumar and Vatsal Singhal (Co-founders, Ultrahuman), and Ashok Hariharan (CEO, IDfy), among others.

Kusho uses proprietary models coupled with foundational LLMs to simulate an AI software developer that can discover bugs in code with significantly greater accuracy and in a lesser amount of time. These AI agents harness the power of LLMs to ensure code is tested during development and with every new release.

Kusho was founded in 2023 by BITS Pilani alumni, Abhishek Saikia and Sourabh Gawande. 

Kusho Co-founder and CEO Abhishek Saikia said, “The cost of shipping suboptimal code is now higher than ever—unreliable software is estimated to cost businesses $2.4 trillion in the US alone. We empower software developers to focus on building and shipping great software without having to worry about unnoticed bugs, ultimately saving time, enhancing overall codebase quality, and making releases stable and error-free.”

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