Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (August 9, 2024)
YourStory presents the daily news roundup from the Indian startup ecosystem and beyond. Here's the roundup for Friday, August 9, 2024.
Funding news
NuvoRetail secures $350,000 to advance Enlytical.ai
NuvoRetail has secured $350,000 in funding to accelerate the development of Enlytical.ai, an AI-ML platform for ecommerce bid automation and global expansion.
Enlytical.ai allow brands to manage ecommerce platforms and KPIs like sales, marketing, portfolio, content, supply chain management, pricing, and loyalty. It features an AI-driven media spend optimization engine to enhance campaign performance, budget allocation, and ROI.
The platform also offers tools for digital shelf measurement, on-shelf analysis, and competition benchmarking, enabling businesses to track competitors' strategies, pricing, and product offerings in real time, aiding informed decision-making and increasing market share and ROI.
Gruhas invests in Weaving Manpower Solutions
Staffing and workforce services provider Weavings Manpower Solutions has raised funding from Gruhas, an investment firm co-founded by Nikhil Kamath and Abhijeet Pai.
Founded in 2011, Weavings Manpower is focused on blue-collar staffing services with a presence in over 100 cities spread across 22 states. The funding will be used to enhance the technology platform of Weaving to expand into new geographies and introduce specialized staffing solutions across various industry sectors, according to a statement.
Weavings aims to provide blue-collar workers fair employment and social security benefits. This investment will enable Weavings to pursue a 4x growth trajectory over the next five years.
Weavings Managing Director Ashish Talwar said, “This investment will support Weavings in expanding its avenues into newer sectors as well as building long-term collaborations and establishing strategic partnerships.”
Other news
2,000 students+ join Arena Animation, Bharti Airtel Foundation's Design-a-thon Challenge
Arena Animation, a brand of Aptech Limited, collaborated with Bharti Airtel Foundation to organise the inaugural Design-a-thon Challenge 2024. Held from July 4-7, 2024, the event aimed to tap into the potential of budding creative students.
Over 2,000 students from 180+ Arena Animation centres across India participated, creating thousands of impactful educational illustrations, showcasing their ingenuity and innovative spirit.
The winner, Tithi Bain from Arena Animation, Kolkata, earned a one-year paid apprenticeship with Bharti Airtel Foundation, while runners-up Arnab Maitra (Kolkata) and Panish Sen (Ahmedabad) received paid internships. Over 20 participants were also awarded certificates and cash prizes.
BluSmart secures patent for full-stack EV ride-matching and charging solution
, an electric mobility ride-hailing service and EV charging infrastructure network, has been awarded a patent by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The patent titled "Systems and Methods for Allocating Vehicles to Ride Requests" was granted on August 6, 2024.
BluSmart's system employs a full-stack approach to ride-matching, efficiently guiding drivers from initiating the ride to picking up the customer and, when necessary, navigating to the nearest EV charging station. This creates a connected ecosystem of EVs and chargers.
Its predictive analytics model predicts real-time demand for its EV ride-hailing service, ensuring drivers are well-positioned to meet peak demand. It also addresses range anxiety by matching rides based on EV charge levels and charging station availability. Its drivers arrive on time or early for 97% of trips, enhancing adoption in Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, and Dubai, and contributing to carbon emission reduction and sustainable transportation in India.
BluSmart Fleet
Exicom acquires Tritium to expand global EV charger presence and R&D capabilities
Exicom Tele-systems Limited and its subsidiaries, including Exicom Power Solutions B.V. Netherlands, have announced a definitive agreement to acquire the business and assets of Tritium, a global DC Fast Charger manufacturer headquartered in Australia.
This acquisition includes Tritium’s manufacturing facility in Tennessee, USA, and its engineering centre in Brisbane, Australia, enhancing Exicom’s presence in Asia. It broadens Exicom’s global reach and strengthens its commitment to R&D, driving innovation in the EV industry. The combined product portfolios of Exicom and Tritium will support diverse global use cases and expand EV infrastructure adoption.
Tritium, founded in 2001, manufactures over 13,000 DC Fast Chargers across 47 countries. It designs and produces advanced, reliable liquid-cooled chargers with proprietary hardware and software, focusing on aesthetics, durability, and ease of installation and use.
NPCI surpasses 100,000 cross-border UPI transactions in Nepal
NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), the international arm of NPCI, has achieved a significant milestone by surpassing 100,000 cross-border UPI person-to-merchant transactions in Nepal.
In collaboration with Fonepay, Nepal's largest payment network, NIPL launched cross-border P2M UPI acceptance in March 2024, marking a new era of digital payment connectivity between the two neighbouring countries.
Nepali travellers can now use UPI payments through the UPI One World app, allowing them to pay at merchant locations by scanning QR codes. UPI is accepted in Bhutan, France, Mauritius, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and the UAE. NIPL has partnered with Nepal SBI Bank Limited to introduce RuPay cards in Nepal, offering wide acceptance at ATMs, POS devices, and ecommerce sites.
KPMG names FluxGen as India’s top tech innovator in GTIC 2024
has named as the winner of the 4th KPMG Private Enterprise Global Tech Innovator Competition (GTIC) 2024 – India Finale. FluxGen will represent India at the global finals at Web Summit 2024 in Lisbon, Portugal, where they will showcase their innovations and pitch their growth plans.
The KPMG Global Tech Innovator Competition (GTIC) is a global event that recognises and promotes tech startups, aiming to accelerate their growth by showcasing their innovations and solutions, supported by KPMG's extensive business network.
Its Startups and Innovation team managed a competition attracting 23 countries, with 14 finalists presenting their innovations to a panel of top business and technology leaders in India, showcasing substantial participation from the tech startup community.
CloudKeeper, WiseOps partner to enhance AWS cost savings
has partnered with WiseOps, a cutting-edge platform specialising in AWS cost and usage optimization, to enhance its cloud cost optimisation services.
WiseOps' solutions will be integrated into CloudKeeper's offerings, enhancing its portfolio and transforming the cloud cost optimisation landscape, allowing businesses to fully realise their cloud potential.
CloudKeeper is a provider of cloud cost optimisation services, helping over 350 global businesses save an average of 20% on their cloud bills. It offers expert consulting and a robust analytics platform.
Meanwhile, WiseOps offers intelligent tools that integrate into work processes as well as actionable cost-saving measures across AWS services. Its AI-driven recommendations and automated optimisations enable teams to reduce cloud spend without compromising performance or workflow efficiency.
LifeCell forays into skincare with AreoVeda
has launched AreoVeda, a new skincare range for pregnant women, new moms, and newborns. Known for its high purity and safety standards.
AreoVeda, founded in 2024 by Mayur Abhaya and Taru Mayur, is a skincare brand accredited with Ecocert and EWG certification. It offers products for expectant mothers, new mothers, and newborns.
It has achieved the EWG and ECOCERT COSMOS certifications, ensuring its products are pure and free of harmful chemicals. It noted that 95% of its ingredients are natural and plant-based.
Its products are available on its own website and ecommerce platforms like , with plans to expand to , , , and quick commerce.
(This article will be updated with the latest news throughout the day.)
Edited by Kanishk Singh
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