A hackathon to empower girl innovators; Rohit Sharma’s investment in FITTR
WitchHunt is a large-scale AI hackathon organised by HopeWorks Foundation in partnership with AI4India and the Karnataka Digital Economy Mission. In other news, cricketer Rohit Sharma has joined health and fitness platform FITTR as an investor and equity partner.
Hello,
SpaceX’s massive IPO has made Elon Musk the world’s first trillionaire… at least on paper.
The American aerospace company—with a record $75 billion IPO and $1.77 trillion valuation—has received massive investor interest, making it one of the most valuable companies globally and propelling Musk towards trillionaire status.
While SpaceX executives rang the bell on Friday at Nasdaq, New York City, Musk and employees celebrated opening day in Starbase, Texas.
Back home, it’s raining funds in the world of technology.
The Karnataka government has approved four initiatives worth over Rs 27 crore for startup growth, industry-academia collaboration, biotech infrastructure, and deeptech innovation.
Speaking of deeptech, deeptech innovation-focused Aum Ventures plans to invest Rs 750 crore in 25-30 startups in 5 years.
Meanwhile, the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre has chosen three space startups as the first set of non-governmental entities for funding under its Technology Adoption Fund scheme. The startups are Bengaluru-based Astrobase and SatSure Analytics India, and TM2SPACE from Hyderabad.
In other news, Meesho has acquired B2B commerce platform Kirana Club for Rs 202 crore. This gives it deeper access into the grocery market and a platform for B2B play.
Lastly, if you thought IPL tickets were expensive, FIFA World Cup’s ticket prices are no better. FIFA’s pricing model has drawn criticism from supporters who say the cost of attending matches is now prohibitive.
In today’s newsletter, we will talk about
- A hackathon to empower girl innovators
- Rohit Sharma’s investment in FITTR
Here’s your trivia for today: Which failed Google experiment let users create their own personalised homepages with widgets and news feeds but was shut down in 2013?
Women in Tech
A hackathon to empower girl innovators
WitchHunt is a large-scale AI hackathon organised by HopeWorks Foundation in partnership with AI4India, an initiative to democratise AI access, and the Karnataka Digital Economy Mission, which acts as the knowledge bridge between the Government of Karnataka and the tech industry.
WitchHunt 2026 is designed to bring women from underserved regions into the country’s innovation conversation.
Key takeaways:
- WitchHunt 2026 drew 6,151 participants; women made up 73% of the participant pool, while 98% were between the ages of 18 and 30. Forty teams have secured a spot in the grand finale.
- 373 real-world solutions were submitted by young women from 668 cities across 23 states through WitchHunt. Among the various ideas submitted, healthcare and well-being was a dominant theme. Smart cities came in second.
- The top five winners will be announced at the grand finale to be held at Jyoti Nivas College, Bengaluru, on June 14. The finale will be attended by Karnataka state ministers Priyank M. Kharge and Ramalinga Reddy, along with Intel India President Gokul V Subramaniam and NITI Aayog Fellow Debjani Ghosh.
Top Deals of the Week
Startup: GPS Renewables
Amount: Rs 635 Cr
Round: Series C
Startup: Equal AI
Amount: $30M
Round: Series B
Startup: Ethereal Machines
Amount: $28.5 M
Round: Series B
Partnership
Rohit Sharma’s investment in FITTR
Cricketer Rohit Sharma has joined health and fitness platform FITTR as an investor and equity partner through an undisclosed investment. He previously served as the company’s first brand ambassador.
The Pune-headquartered firm said the partnership is based on a shared view that long-term health is influenced by sustainable habits, consistency, and lifestyle choices. It follows a broader alignment in the approach to health and fitness.
Key takeaways:
- Following several months of engagement with the founder and management team, Sharma is said to have joined FITTR after assessing its business, objectives, and long-term plans.
- “I’ve spent time with the team, understood the business, and seen the growth trajectory first hand. The fundamentals are strong, the mission is clear, and the opportunity to make real, lasting impact on how millions of people can make meaningful lifestyle changes that last,” said Sharma.
- In FY25, FITTR generated Rs 128 crore in revenue and recorded a profit before tax of Rs 11 crore, compared with losses in the previous three financial years. Subscription-based offerings accounted for the majority of revenue at Rs 122 crore.
News & updates
- Legal battle: BYJU’S founder Byju Raveendran has received temporary relief in Singapore, but the legal fight around him is still very much alive. Singapore’s High Court has stayed the committal and surrender provisions of a civil contempt order against Raveendran, pending his appeal against the finding.
- Experience centre: EY Global Delivery Services has launched the ey.ai Center for Reimagination, an immersive flagship client experience centre, designed to help organisations experience how emerging technologies and industry shifts will reshape industries, the workforce, and business decisions. The centre, which is spread over 40,000 square feet, is located in Bengaluru.
- AI usage: OpenAI’s ChatGPT reached 1 billion monthly app users in May, according to estimates from market intelligence firm Sensor Tower. Other AI apps including Anthropic’s Claude made triple-digit year-over-year percentage gains in users, the data company said.
Which failed Google experiment let users create their own personalised homepages with widgets and news feeds but was shut down in 2013?
Answer: iGoogle
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