Online Gaming Act’s many casualties; AI-powered startup making hiring smarter
India’s retail landscape is entering a new phase of speed and convenience, with “rapid commerce”, same-day deliveries typically within four to six hours, projected to become a $20 billion-plus gross merchandise value market by 2030, according to a new study.
Hello,
A nearly $3.6 billion industry is grinding to a halt.
Nazara Technologies-backed PokerBaazi’s parent company, Moonshine Technologies, has ceased offering real-money online gaming operations amidst the new online gaming bill, which has now become law.
This follows Junglee Games, one of India’s biggest online rummy operators, shutting down its cash games and deposits as well.
The industry isn’t out for the count just yet. NDTV Profit reported that some of the companies are preparing to challenge the sweeping ban in court. A writ petition could be filed in the Karnataka High Court as early as next week.
The concerns regarding real money gaming are real, though. Here’s a story of a local Mumbai businessman who lost Rs 12 crore to an online betting platform.
In the national capital, India’s top court is taking another chance on man’s best friend.
The Supreme Court modified its order on stray dogs, directing that those picked up from streets in and around Delhi be released after sterilisation and immunisation. Animal lovers, rejoice!
Hyderabad, meanwhile, is set to host the most-anticipated developer summit of the season. Join us for the second edition of DevSparks Hyderabad today at Le Meridien, where leading industry experts will talk about agentic AI, GCC innovation, hiring trends, and much more.
Catch all the action here!
In today’s newsletter, we will talk about
- India’s rapid commerce market
- AI-powered startup making hiring smarter
- How a single deal kept VC momentum going
Here’s your trivia for today: Which 2006 Martin Scorsese film finally earned him a Best Director Oscar after decades of nominations?
Logistics
Inside India’s rapid commerce market
India’s retail landscape is entering a new phase of speed and convenience, with “rapid commerce”, same-day deliveries typically within four to six hours, projected to become a $20 billion-plus gross merchandise value market by 2030, according to a new study by Boston Consulting Group and logistics firm DTDC.
The report positions rapid commerce as a scalable middle ground between traditional ecommerce, which delivers in two to three days, and quick commerce, which promises ultrafast drop-offs in under an hour.
Key takeaways:
- The study shows that more than 60% of Indian online shoppers are willing to pay a premium for same-day delivery. This willingness to pay has pushed companies to rethink their supply chains, and it is beginning to reshape purchasing behaviour itself.
- Quick commerce players relied heavily on small “dark stores”, neighbourhood warehouses stocked for hyperlocal delivery. This “dark store-as-a-service” model spreads fixed costs across clients and turns heavy capital expenditure into variable costs per order.
- Operationally, managing shared inventory across multiple brands requires robust systems to prevent stockouts, pilferage, and wastage. SKU optimisation is crucial; bulky or slow-moving goods strain limited warehouse space.
Top Funding Deals of the Week>
Startup: Weaver Services
Amount: $170M
Round: Equity
Startup: Amnex Infotechnologies
Amount: Rs 460 Cr
Round: Equity
Startup: R for Rabbit
Amount: $27M
Round: Series B
Startup
AI-powered startup making hiring smarter
Many companies, particularly startups and MSMEs, struggle with delayed hiring and limited in–house expertise. Interview panels are frequently unavailable, technical evaluations are often inadequate, and it can take more than 40 days to fill a single position.
InCruiter provides both human and AI-powered interview solutions, along with scheduling, coding assessments, and exit interviews, to help businesses hire faster, reduce bias, and improve the quality of talent selection.
HR matchmaking:
- The company’s portfolio includes six products designed to streamline hiring processes. IncServe connects companies with a network of over 3,000 expert interviewers for technical and non-technical roles, while IncBot is an AI-powered one-way video interview tool.
- In 2023, as AI adoption accelerated, InCruiter launched its second flagship product, AI Interviews. The system can conduct the first or even second round of interviews, analyse candidate responses, and assess confidence, grammar, and domain knowledge.
- Next month, InCruiter plans to launch AI Recruiter, an AI-powered tool that will speak directly with candidates, either through chat or voice, to gather key information such as salary expectations, preferred job location, notice period, and availability to join.
Funding
A single large deal keeps VC momentum going
Venture capital into the Indian startup ecosystem sustained in the $300-million range this week, largely on the back of a single $170-million transaction of Weaver Services, as without this deal, the overall value would have dropped.
The total funding for the third week of August stood at $306 million across 13 deals. In contrast, the comparable previous week saw a total infusion of $324 million. There were fewer deals this week compared to the previous week.
News & updates
- Resurgence: Zoom Communications’ shares soared as much as 9.8% after the company delivered a stronger-than-expected forecast, suggesting that customers are buying more of its expanded line of software products.
- Resupply mission: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency will launch its uncrewed cargo spacecraft HTV-X to resupply the International Space Station on October 21. HTV-X, built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Mitsubishi Electric, will be lifted by MHI’s H3 rocket from the Tanegashima Space Center.
- AI spending: Meta Platforms has agreed to a deal worth at least $10 billion with Alphabet’s Google for cloud computing services, as part of the social media giant’s spending spree on artificial intelligence.
Which 2006 Martin Scorsese film finally earned him a Best Director Oscar after decades of nominations?
Answer: The Departed.
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