Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (October 8, 2024)

Funding News

Adloggs raises from Auxano Capital and others to scale hyperlocal delivery

AI-powered delivery orchestration platform Adlogg has raised fresh funding led by Auxano Capital, Multiply Ventures, with participation from Faad Network, facilitated by investment banker Ashish Sawargi. This new investment which remains undisclosed, will be used to scale Adloggs' delivery partner network and enhance its AI-driven platform to support deeper integrations, aiming to transform India’s last-mile logistics sector.

With this funding, Adloggs is positioned to address the increasing demand for hyperlocal deliveries by aggregating smaller, local delivery fleets (5 to 500+ riders) and providing them with access to consistent business demand.

"This investment enables us to scale rapidly and meet the rising demand for hyperlocal deliveries across India. We are committed to building a more inclusive and efficient delivery ecosystem, benefiting both businesses and local delivery partners," said Darshan Krishnaswamy, Founder of Adloggs.

Flyzy To Invest Rs 10 Cr in Tryvisa Visa solutions provider

Travel tech platform Flyzy has announced an investment of Rs 10 Cr in Tryvisa, a platform that streamlines online visa applications. With this investment, the brand is expanding in the B2C space. Tryvisa is projected to reach 100 Cr in revenue by FY27 having already processed 1000+ visas successfully in just its pre-beta launch version.

With this investment, Flyzy will provide a dedicated visa support team for documentation ensuring that Tryvisa users have a hassle-free experience.

“Tryvisa is an innovative platform to optimise visa application process in the country. With this investment we will be able to further automate processes and provide best in class services to our customers,” said . Deepak Meena, CEO and Co-founder, Flyzy.

Dorje Teas raises Rs 1.8 cr in seed round

Darjeeling-based D2C startup Dorje Teas has raised Rs 1.8 crores in its seed round. In 2023, Dorje Teas appeared in the Season 2 Premier of Shark Tank India, where they got deals from marquee D2C investors like Anupam Mittal & Vineeta Singh. As part of their latest fundraise, Dorje Teas cofounder Sparsh Agarwal took to social media to do a public Fundraise Challenge documenting the 30 day journey leading up to the close of the fundraise.

Dorje Teas has raised the seed round, led by Coast Fund VC, with participation from Untitled Ventures, Ice VC, SSK Exports, and a consortium of Ashoka University alums.

As part of the round, Dorje Teas also saw participation from creators and entrepreneurs like Arjun

Vaidya and Varun Mayya. The company will also be welcoming TV star Nakuul Mehta as an

investor and their brand ambassador.

BizDateUp leads $1 Million Pre-IPO Funding Round in Sorich

BizDateUp, an ecosystem enabler for startups that provide comprehensive support services, has announced a $1 million investment in the pre-IPO funding round for Sorich, a pharmaceutical packaging company.

The funds raised will be utilised to optimise production capacity and enhance working capital, facilitating the development of patented products and necessary certifications. A considerable portion of the investment will also focus on upgrading existing machinery to produce high-margin products, including the recently introduced Heat Transfer Labels (HTL).

“Recent studies have revealed that thousands of chemicals used in food packaging and production are leaching into the food itself, with over 3,600 chemicals identified in human bodies, some of which pose health risks while little is known about others. This issue extends to pharmaceutical packaging as well. These alarming findings have driven us to develop solutions aimed at preventing such contamination,” said Chandrahas Kotian, Founder of Sorich.

Other News

Uber Pet launches in Bengaluru

Ridesharing app Uber has announced the launch of Uber Pet in Bengaluru, allowing riders to bring their pets along for the ride. With this new reserve-only service, pet owners can travel with their furry companions, whether it's a quick trip to the vet or an outing.

Uber Pet offers riders the option to book a ride with their pet—either a dog or a cat—ensuring a comfortable experience for both themselves and their pets. By selecting the Uber Pet option, drivers will be notified that a pet will be traveling.

The new service also offers additional earning opportunities for drivers on the Uber platform.

MoU signed to launch India's first Energy Transition-focused Startup Accelerator Program

Transition VC venture capital fund has signed an MoU with T-Hub and IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) to launch the country's first energy transition-focused Startup Accelerator. The first cohort of the accelerator aims to support four to five startups, while it will expand its support to seven to eight startups in following cohorts.

The application process for the accelerator will be announced by soon.

Hyderabad-based T-Hub will function as the Innovation Execution Partner under this collaboration. It will play a key role in structuring and executing the Accelerator Program, while also helping startups with R&D and product prototyping. As the Funding and Market Access Partner, Transition VC will ensure that startups receive the financial support, market resources, and mentorship needed for commercialisation and growth. Similarly, IEEE will serve as the Knowledge Partner, providing founders and their teams with academic support, access to technical domain experts, skill training, and university network.

ICICI Bank partners with PhonePe to offer instant credit on UPI

ICICI Bank has announced a partnership with PhonePe to offer instant credit on UPI to its pre-approved customers on the app of the digital payments company. The partnership enables millions of pre-approved customers of ICICI Bank to activate short term credit line instantly on the PhonePe app, and use it for UPI transactions in a seamless and secure manner.

The Bank offers credit line on UPI for up to ₹2 lakh with a repayment period of 45 days.

The facility is announced during the festive season to empower customers to purchase high ticket items like electronics, travel and hotel bookings, bill payments, and much more.

Appreciate becomes first company to enable mutual fund investments on ONDC Network

Appreciate has announced that it has carried out the first low ticket (Rs. 100) mutual fund transaction on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) Network. It is one of the first buyer apps to go live on ONDC Network offering mutual fund (MF) investments via Appreciate integrated investment platform.

The launch forms part of Appreciate and ONDC Network's broader strategy to democratize access to investment products across India, especially in regions underserved by traditional financial services. Appreciate, acting as a buyer app, facilitates seamless interaction between AMCs and customers, with Nippon India AMC being the first AMC to accept investments through the ONDC protocol.

ONDC Network, initially designed to boost e-commerce in India, is now diversifying its services to include a full range of financial products. Its entry into the mutual fund space comes on the heels of its successful digital lending services, which went live in August 2024, offering paperless loans.

magicpin becomes the largest food delivery seller app on ONDC

India’s third-largest food delivery app has achieved a significant milestone by touching nearly 150,000 daily food and logistics orders on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) becoming the

largest food delivery seller app on the network.

Over the past year, magicpin witnessed increased growth in its order volume on the ONDC network. Within its first four weeks, the platform scaled from 100 to 10,000 orders in May 2023, to further climbing to 1,50,000 this year on food and logistics orders, the company said.

“In the last 15 months, we have touched double-digit market share in major cities, with more than 10% market share in key markets like Delhi or Bengaluru in terms of overall food delivery. At the same time, we are thrilled with magicpin's success on ONDC, where we have reached 1.5 lakh daily orders for food delivery and logistics on the network. 90% of food orders from prominent buyer apps such as Paytm, Tata Neu, and Ola are now fulfilled by magicpin," said Anshoo Sharma, CEO & Co-Founder, magicpin.

IppoPay partners with tamilnad Mercantile Bank for UPI-based digital payments:

Chennai-based fintech company IppoPay has announced a partnership with Tamilnad Mercantile Bank (TMB) to provide UPI QR-based payment solutions to small businesses in the underserved segments of South India, particularly in Tamil Nadu.

As part of this Partnership, Techfini's UPI switch will be processing all UPI payments using TMB handle. Techfini is a financial tech infrastructure company empowering fintechs, banks, and businesses with UPI switching services certified by NPCI.

Mohan K, the Founder of IppoPay, commented on the partnership, stating, “TMB’s focus on providing banking solutions and IppoPay’s focus on providing Digital Transaction Solution would make this partnership a win-win. Tamil Nadu alone has over 1 Crore MSMEs, of which over 75% are in Tier 2 cities and rural areas. This partnership will help us bring digital financial inclusion to a significant base of these merchants.”

Evenflow strengthens its leadership with four key hires

Evenflow has strengthened its leadership team with four key hires in major verticals such as business, category, supply chain, and sourcing.

The company has hired Priyesh Singh from Decathlon to expand its supplier network and enhance supply chain efficiency in India. Aparajitha Vijayaraghavan from Dunzo will lead the quick commerce segment, and Prashant Agarwal will head its marketplace and D2C business.

The company also hired former HP project manager and a D2C entrepreneur Ruchi Shaikh to oversee the growth of BabyPro and CRED as a strategic channel for importance and growth.

The move comes in a month after, the Bengaluru-based startup promoted Shashank Ranjan as its co-founder. The company said it aims to increase its revenue by 10x and profits by six-fold by 2027 through building a strong core team, scaling the business, and maintaining a healthy bottom line.

ChangeInkk and CoRover collaborate to launch AskPurpleFlame AI

CoRover and ChangeInkk, have collaborated to launch AskPurpleFlame, a multilingual AI-driven help desk for learning disabilities. Built based on the learnings of sensitising, building capacities and understanding the needs of over a lakh of government school teachers, thousands of employers, higher education institutions, parents and policy makers at the state and central levels, this innovative AI-driven chatbot is designed to raise awareness, provide critical resources, and build capacities for stakeholders, a statement from the companies said.

AskPurpleFlame, available 24/7, is guided by a dyslexic female superhero, Purple Flame. Designed for students, parents, educators, and policymakers, AskPurpleFlame aims to bridge communication gaps, drive informed decision-making and promote inclusiveness across our country.

It is available in multiple languages, beginning with English and Hindi, and enables users to interact using text and voice.

Arya.ag's new initiative to transform 200 Farmer Producer Organisations into Smart Institutions

Integrated grain commerce platform Arya.ag has announced an initiative to transform 200 Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) into Smart Institutions. The initiative, launched in collaboration with key partners, aims to empower FPOs by leveraging technology and fostering collaborations to improve efficiency, promote sustainable farming practices, and build climate-resilient value chains.

The 200 Smart FPOs initiative will focus on FPOs across Bihar, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Karnataka. Arya.ag will work closely with these FPOs to provide them with access to technologies, training, and support to enhance their capabilities and drive sustainable growth.

"We believe FPCs can evolve into Smart Institutions, which leverage technology to improve efficiency in input sales and output procurement and offer a diverse range of services. Smart FPCs will also promote sustainable farming practices and through corporate collaborations to support sustainable sourcing of produce," said Prasanna Rao, CEO & Co-Founder of Arya.ag.

T-Hub Partners with XDC Network to accelerate Blockchain Innovation for Web3 startups

Startup incubator T-Hub has announced a strategic partnership with XDC Network, an enterprise-grade blockchain platform. This collaboration is aimed at accelerating the growth of Indian Web3 startups by providing them with world-class blockchain technology and resources.

The partnership will enable Indian startups to build on XDC Network’s hybrid blockchain platform, which combines the best features of both public and private blockchains. T-Hub and XDC Network will work together to offer an incubation program that includes access to XDC’s technology, mentorship from industry experts, funding opportunities, and networking with global blockchain leaders. With XDC Network already listed on prominent Indian cryptocurrency exchanges such as CoinDCX, Giottus, and Unocoin, Indian developers and investors can easily access the platform.

“Blockchain technology holds immense potential to revolutionise industries across the board. Our partnership with XDC Network will give Indian startups the tools and support they need to innovate, scale, and drive significant change,” said Mahankali Srinivas Rao, CEO, T-Hub.

Ranveer Singh's Bold Care launches women wellness brand 'Bloom'

Bold Care, the sexual wellness brand co-founded by Ranveer Singh has launched its new brand, 'Bloom', with a vision to offer targeted solutions for specific health issues for women across their life stages, Bloom by Bold Care offers solutions in the women’s wellness categories such as Sexual Health, Hygiene, Period Care to help them manage their specific concerns.

Bloom by Bold Care aims to solve root cause concerns women face over the years - gut issues, sexual health, menopause or nutritional deficiencies - with their new range.

Truecaller appoints Seema Jindal as Head of Public Affairs, Telecom, India

Truecaller has appointed Seema Jindal as the Head of Public Affairs, Telecom, in India. Seema joined Truecaller following a 25-year career at Airtel, where she held multiple key roles in regulatory, interconnection, and compliance roles in different telecom business units.

Most recently, she served as the Head of Regulatory Affairs for DLT, DTH, Teleports, VSAT and Head of Compliances & Audit for Regulatory.

At Truecaller, Seema will work closely with government ministries and agencies such as TRAI, DoT and MEITY to ensure regulatory and policy support for Truecaller’s continued growth and innovation in India.

Probus appoints Ajay Verma as Head of Rural and Agriculture Insurance

InsurTech platform Probus has announced the appointment of Ajay Verma as the Head of Rural and Agriculture Insurance. Verma has nearly four decades of experience in agricultural and rural-focused insurance products—including crop insurance, microinsurance etc.

His background includes leadership roles in insurance projects at Oriental Insurance and Future Generali, as well as contributions to global initiatives such as a Swiss Government project on disaster insurance. His expertise spans Business Relationship Management, Risk Management, Reinsurance, and strategic leadership, positioning him to drive transformative solutions in the insurance landscape.

"My vision is to enhance the accessibility and affordability of insurance products for rural communities across India. My goal is to make insurance products and trusted services available to those living in rural and remote areas," he said.

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