Ritesh Agarwal gets bigger slice of OYO pie; Nanobots for oral healthcare

Hello,

Privacy violations are back to haunt Meta.

The Competition Commission of India fined the tech giant Rs 213 crore for antitrust violations related to WhatsApp’s controversial 2021 privacy policy.

Combined with a double whammy from a German court ruling regarding compensation for a data breach in 2018 and 2019, it has not been a good day for Meta.

For Indian startups, however, it is definitely a good day to make a deal, especially if you go by MakeMyTrip’s acquisition of Happay and Good Glamm Group’s stake increase in The Moms Co.

Meanwhile, the national capital is choking, yet again. 

Pollution readings in Delhi hit their highest of this pre-winter season as toxic smog engulfed much of north India, with visibility in some places dropping to 100 metres. 

The air quality index at several stations in the capital ticked up to “severe” at about 500, leading the state government to direct all schools to move classes online, along with some diversions and delays at airports and railway stations.

Pollution is a medical emergency, and the prognosis is grim. The globally agreed goal to keep the world’s temperature rise below 1.5C is now “deader than a doornail”.

ICYMI: Finding $1 trillion a year in climate finance is just one of the challenges to be tackled at the UN climate summit.

With the steady renaissance of nuclear energy comes hope for a new renewable source. And some fusion startups are already way ahead of the game.

Harnessing the power of the sun has never seemed more important.

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Ritesh Agarwal pumps money into OYO
• Nanobots for oral healthcare
• Empowering craft-led enterprises

Here’s your trivia for today: Nutmeg spice comes from the seeds of which tree?

Hospitality

Ritesh Agarwal pumps money into OYO

Ritesh Agarwal, Founder and CEO of hospitality management platform OYO is set to invest an additional Rs 550 crore ($65.1 million approximately) into the company to increase his shareholding in the entity to 32%, from 30% held previously. 

The details were mentioned in a company notice for an extraordinary general meeting to shareholders and confirmed by a source for YourStory. 

Key takeaways:

• The current infusion will be at a 45% premium, bringing the company’s valuation to $3.4 billion from $2.4 billion in its previous round in August 2024.
• Agarwal led the company's Series G round with $100 million, with an overall round size of $175 million. The capital was utilised in part by OYO to acquire G6 Hospitality, the parent company of economy lodging providers Motel 6 and Studio 6 brands, from Blackstone Real Estate.
• OYO reported a net profit of Rs 158 crore in Q2 of FY25, Agarwal had announced in a townhall. The company has managed to report profits for two subsequent quarters of FY25 according to reports.

Funding Alert

Startup: HealthKart

Amount: $153M

Round: Equity

Startup: VoloFin

Amount: $50M

Round: Notes programme

Startup: Matrix Geo Solutions

Amount: $1M

Round: Pre-IPO

Startup

Nanobots for oral healthcare

Theranautilus’ solutions utilise core nanorobotics technology to disrupt the $6 billion market for toothpaste that targets sensitivity and takes only 10 minutes to solve the problem as opposed to a toothpaste that should be used every day for a long time to take effect. 

Advanced tech:

• The company has developed two devices—one that can be used by clinicians working at a dentist’s office and an over-the-counter device that looks like a toothbrush.
• These particles manage to go inside the tooth through tiny pores and come together to form a cluster. This cluster then triggers a chemical reaction which the startup has “fine-tuned to make a new tooth basically inside the tooth.” 
• Theranautilus has raised $1.2 million in a seed round led by pi Ventures at a Rs 60 crore valuation (about $7.1 million). The round also saw participation from Golden Sparrow Ventures and angel investors.

Social impact

Empowering craft-led enterprises

As a journalist, Priya Krishnamoorthy saw the rise of the social impact movement in India, with social entrepreneurship coming into focus. This epiphany would lead Krishnamoorthy to start 200 Million Artisans in 2020—an organisation that supports people to reimagine the potential of ‘Handmade in India’ through inclusive entrepreneurship.

Unlocking potential:

• “I had just written an article talking about why we need to build an ecosystem for creative and cultural entrepreneurs. I highlighted a data point saying while official figures put Indian artisans somewhere between 7-25 million, unofficially, there are 200 million artisans,” says Krishnamoorthy.
• A small research project led to the creation of the Business of Handmade (BoH)—dedicated to driving research, insights, and storytelling. BoH has delivered critically acclaimed research projects like Informality and Catalytic Capital using a craft-enterprise lens.
• 200 Million Artisans will launch its second Kula Conclave from December 2-4 at the Kala Academy in Goa. The forum bridges the gap between inclusive capital and networking in India’s creative-cultural and craft-led brands, social businesses, and startups.

News & updates

• Spin-off: Goldman Sachs Group Inc is speaking with potential partners as it plans to spin out its digital assets platform into a new company for large financial firms to create, trade and settle financial instruments via blockchain technology.
• Predictions: The US Federal Reserve is no longer expected to cut interest rates at its December policy meeting, Nomura has said, making it the first global brokerage to signal a pause in the central bank's rate-cutting cycle in the wake of Donald Trump's election win.
• Robust sales: Xiaomi reported better-than-expected net profit in the third quarter on strong sales across its business segments, including smartphones, internet services, and electric vehicles.

Nutmeg spice comes from the seeds of which tree?

Answer: Myristica fragrans tree, a tropical evergreen native to the Banda Islands in Indonesia.

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