Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (September 16, 2026)
YourStory presents the daily news roundup from the Indian startup ecosystem and beyond. Here's the roundup for Tuesday, September 16, 2026.
YourStory brings you today's headlines and the latest news across sectors.
Featured stories
Agimol Pradeep wins $250,000 global nursing award
Indian-origin nurse Agimol Pradeep from the UK has won the $250,000 Aster Guardians Global Nursing Award 2026 for her pioneering work in organ transplantation and stem cell donation. A Senior Transplant Coordinator at King’s College Hospital and Honorary Senior Lecturer at the University of Salford, she began her career as a transplant nurse in Manchester in 2001. Her work in transplant care and research has focused on addressing the shortage of donors from Asian communities.
In 2014, Agimol founded Upahaar, an organisation dedicated to promoting organ and stem cell donation. Through community and faith-based outreach, the organisation has grown into a UK-wide network supported by roughly 100 volunteers and has registered around 10,000 potential donors.
Funding news
Hero Motors raises Rs 300 Cr from anchor investors ahead of IPO
Hero Motors has raised Rs 299.99 crore from anchor investors ahead of its initial public offering (IPO), which opens for public subscription today.
In a communication to the stock exchanges, the automotive technology company said it had allocated 57,14,284 equity shares at Rs 84 per share to anchor investors. The company has priced its IPO in the Rs 79–84 per share range.
Institutions participating in the anchor allocation include ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company, 3P India Equity Fund 1M, Edelweiss Life Insurance Company, Societe Generale – ODI, and ASAS Global Fund Incorporated VCC Sub Fund.
Other stories
JSW One Platforms expands board with two independent directors
JSW One Platforms, a B2B digital platform serving India’s manufacturing and construction ecosystem, has appointed Olympian Aparna Popat Ved and Prabhjeet Singh as Independent Directors on its Board.
The appointments come as the company seeks to scale its technology, distribution and financial services capabilities across India, while strengthening the Board’s expertise in technology, talent and governance.
A two-time Olympian and three-time Commonwealth Games medallist, Aparna Popat Ved received the Arjuna Award in 2005. She holds an MBA and serves as an Independent Director on the boards of Eternal Limited (formerly Zomato Limited) and Hero FinCorp Limited. She has also co-founded All Is Well of Meboki Technologies Private Limited and served as Executive Director of the Olympians Association of India.
Her appointment brings expertise in performance culture, resilience and talent development to the Board. Prabhjeet Singh, previously associated with McKinsey & Company, Inc. and Uber Systems India Private Limited, brings experience in technology platforms and scaling businesses in India.
PointAI appoints Afshan Banu as Global Head of Fashion & Beauty
PointAI Private Limited, a Simulation AI company serving the global commerce ecosystem, has appointed Afshan Banu as Global Head of Fashion & Beauty.
Based in Singapore, Banu will lead the company’s global fashion and beauty strategy, brand and retailer partnerships, and category expertise across its product portfolio. She will work with brands, retailers and marketplaces to translate merchandising, fit and creative requirements into deployed Simulation AI capabilities.
Banu brings more than 30 years of experience across fashion, retail, e-commerce and brand building, including senior leadership roles at Nike, Lazada and Victoria’s Secret.
TRUE ARTIS raises Rs 11.4 crore in seed round to expand aesthetic surgery centres
TRUE ARTIS, an integrated aesthetic surgery platform, has raised Rs 11.4 crore in a seed funding round led by Zeropearl VC, with participation from Eleven, a diversified business group co-founded by Medanta co-founder Sunil Sachdeva, and a group of angel investors.
The round also saw participation from healthcare investors and operators, including Arjun Vaidya of V3 Ventures, Dr Dhruv Joshi, co-founder of Cloud Physician, Ambarish Gupta, founder and CEO of Basis Vectors Capital, and Vivek Lohcheb, CBO at PhonePe. Former senior executives from Airtel and OYO also participated.
TRUE ARTIS will use the funds to open two new centres in Delhi NCR over the next six to eight months, expand its network of plastic and aesthetic surgeons, strengthen surgical and recovery capabilities, and enhance its technology and patient-care systems.
The company plans to consolidate its presence in Delhi NCR before expanding into other markets.
Amazon launches Alexa+ in India
Amazon has announced the launch of Alexa+ in India, its generative AI-powered personal assistant designed to offer conversational, personalised and action-oriented assistance.
Alexa+ integrates with services and devices used in everyday life, supporting tasks such as smart home control, shopping, meal planning, restaurant reservations, travel planning, music discovery and entertainment. The assistant is designed to understand natural conversations in English, Hindi and Hinglish.
Starting today, customers in India can access Alexa+ for free under the Early Access programme on eligible Echo smart speakers and smart displays, Fire TV streaming devices and the Alexa mobile app.
(This article will be updated with the latest news throughout the day.)