Startup news and updates: daily roundup (January 13, 2025)

Funding

ErlySign raises Rs 16 Cr in pre-Series A funding from Ashish Kacholia

CURO Biosciences Private Limited, better known as ErlySign, has raised Rs 16 crore in pre-Series A funding from Ashish Kacholia. 

The funds will help ErlySign complete trials, get CDSCO approvals, and launch its oral cancer detection kit. The company is also looking into CRISPR miRNA technology to expand its ability to detect multiple cancers from a single sample.

Founded by Shubhendra Singh Thakur and Dr Deovrat Begde, and guided by oncologist Dr Vishal Rao, ErlySign aims to make early cancer detection painless, affordable, and accessible. The company has developed a biomarker-based saliva test kit that can detect oral precancerous conditions in just 15 minutes. 

Other news

80% of retailers plan to increase AI capabilities in operations in 2025: research

More than 8 out of 10 retailers plan to increase the use of automation and artificial intelligence (AI) across their operations to adapt to changing consumer behaviours, enhance employee skills, and improve efficiency for shoppers, according to Honeywell’s AI in Retail survey.

The survey found that 35% of major retailers plan to boost AI investment to tackle key challenges, such as return management, customer service automation, and product availability in today’s fast-paced, omnichannel environment.

Over half of retail leaders said AI enhances employee retention, with 52% believing it helps employees advance faster, develop soft skills, and add ongoing value to their roles. About 6 in 10 retail executives said AI tools ease employees’ jobs, while 55% noted they boost job satisfaction.

Two-thirds of consumers have used AI while shopping, including for chatbot queries, price comparisons, and review summaries. The top AI use cases are price comparison (53%), checking availability (41%), and simplifying checkout (34%).

Venture Catalysts named top early-stage investor of 2024

Venture Catalysts, an early-stage investment firm and integrated incubator, was recognised as the top early-stage investor of 2024 by research firm The Kredible. 

The investment firm has closed 48 investment deals throughout the year. It led investments in companies such as CoRover, a conversational AI startup that aims to enhance digital interactions across various sectors; Aikenist, a Gen AI-powered workflow solutions provider; Perceptyne, a deep-tech robotics and AI startup focused on automating complex industrial tasks; and SuperUs, an innovative tech OEM revolutionising display technology.

Venture Catalysts typically invests $250,000 to $2 million in early-stage startups with the potential to create enduring value over a long period of time. 

Founded in 2016 by Apoorva Ranjan Sharma, Anuj Golecha, Anil Jain and Gaurav Jain, Venture Catalysts has invested in over 300 startups since inception. The cumulative valuation of the startups invested by Venture Catalysts is more than $10 billion. 

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