BUSINESS
Perplexity AI has more than 1 million users in India, says co-founder Aravind Srinivas
Perplexity AI plans to collaborate with startups such as Sarvam AI that are developing India-specific LLMs in the future
TECHNOLOGY
Atal Setu, Coastal Road, Metro: Why Dream11's Harsh Jain believes Mumbai startup scene will take off
Navi Mumbai can be to Mumbai what Brooklyn and Queens are for New York, says Dream11 co-founder Harsh Jain
BUSINESS
HCLTech warns employees to report to office thrice a week or face disciplinary action
“Non-compliance... will be treated as unauthorised absence and call for disciplinary action in line with company policy,” the company said in the missive.
TECHNOLOGY
Efficiency engineering, cost reduction driving BFSI deals: HCLTech’s Srinivasan Seshadri
HCLTech posted 13% YoY growth in constant currency terms for financial services in Q3, while peers TCS and Infosys reported a YoY decline.
TECHNOLOGY
Insurance to Internet: Can Tata Digital’s new CEO Naveen Tahilyani fix Neu?
Tapping an insurance veteran to lead a company that operates in a fierce internet battleground may seem unconventional, but those familiar with Tahilyani see it as an inspired choice.
TECHNOLOGY
Ankur Dhawan steps down as upGrad Abroad president
This is the second such top-level switch in 2024 at the higher education and upskilling unicorn upGrad. The company has now appointed Ankur Nyati, former COO of WhiteHat Jr and Utkarsh Classes, to take over the position effective immediately.
BUSINESS
Ather Energy CFO Deepak Jain to leave, Sohil Parekh named successor
These changes come at a time when Ather is gearing up for a public listing in the next year, and months after it raised funds from existing investors
BUSINESS
PhonePe expands board, inducts former revenue secretary Tarun Bajaj, two executives from Walmart
PhonePe has been broadening its ambitions beyond payments, with the launch of an e-commerce-focused app called Pincode and an investment app for stocks and mutual funds called Share. Market.
BUSINESS
Group of Indian startup founders write to PM Modi, FM, RBI urging rollback of sanctions on Paytm
The letter signed by at least 12 founders claimed that the punitive directions of the Reserve Bank of India on Paytm Payments Bank can have "detrimental consequences for the FinTech ecosystem"
TECHNOLOGY
Byju's investors issue EGM notice for founders' ouster, say 'deeply concerned' about stability of company
Byju's recently launched a rights issue to raise $200 million from existing investors at $225 million valuation
BUSINESS
Increasing customer frequency to Flipkart app is key, says CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy
Flipkart has around 500 million users on its platform, while expansion is key the firm has turned its main focus towards increasing the user frequency to the app.
BUSINESS
Flipkart will go slow on hiring, says CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy
The Walmart-owned e-commerce giant recently let go of 1,000 employees, as part of its annual performance review exercise. The prolonged funding winter saw major Indian startups handing out pink slips to their employees in 2023, as companies attempt to realign cost structures.
BUSINESS
MC Interview: No better job than Flipkart CEO in the world, says Kalyan Krishnamurthy
After seven years at the helm, e-commerce chieftain talks about steering the internet behemoth through changes in India's retail sector, changing ownership of the company, and ongoing AI disruption. Krishnamurthy believes the next phase in e-commerce growth lies in fixing the gap between people who buy monthly and those who buy once a year.
TECHNOLOGY
Governance in Indian startups needs to improve, more independent directors needed: Flipkart CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy
According to Krishnamurthy, shareholders and management are too closely involved with the company for them to raise tough questions.
TECHNOLOGY
MC Interview: Flipkart to launch its payment product within a month, says CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy
Even as e-commerce giant Flipkart is expanding its financial services portfolio with credit, UPI and insurance, Krishnamurthy says the aim is to enhance the frequency of transactions on the ecommerce platform, adding that it has no ambitions to become a large payments company.
BUSINESS
Overhiring or AI impact: Indian IT firms divided on why employee headcount is declining
The industry is divided over whether disruptive technologies such as generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) are making certain jobs redundant.
BUSINESS
Top honchos of TCS, Infosys, Wipro, HCLTech, Cognizant turn optimistic amid uncertainties
The broad consensus that green shoots are perceivable on the horizon by the who’s-who of the IT world assumes significance as these companies have struggled in the past couple of quarters with tepid demand leading to muted quarterly performance.
TECHNOLOGY
Byju's launches rights issue to raise $200 million from existing investors at $225 million valuation
Rights issues are typically valued much lower than the fair market valuation of a company to attract existing investors to double down on their bet
TECHNOLOGY
Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal to stay on at PhonePe board
Binny Bansal’s decision to step down from Flipkart's board comes months after he sold his remaining stake in the firm and at a time when he is starting up again, in the e-commerce space with OppDoor.
BUSINESS
Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal exits board marking the end of an era
Binny Bansal Resigns: Bansal has exited the board of Walmart-owned Flipkart, months after selling his remaining stake. He is also building a new e-commerce venture called OppDoor
TECHNOLOGY
IPO-bound Swiggy to slash 400 jobs in second round of layoffs
It had let go of 380 employees in January 2023 and even shut its meat marketplace in a bid to lower costs.
BUSINESS
Zomato-backed Cult.fit lays off 150 employees to lower cash burn
The unicorn, which also counts Tata Digital as an investor, is realigning its business strategy to transition into an offline-heavy gym company, departing from its previous identity as a tech-enabled fitness startup.
BUSINESS
Nothing personal, just enforcing contracts: Wipro's Rishad Premji on suing 2 former executives
Rishad Premji said senior leaders get incentivised and compensated well to maintain the confidentiality of what they're doing
BUSINESS
Davos 2024: AI has gone from hype to execution, says SAP’s Thomas Saueressig
SAP already has 130 active AI use-cases, with over 16 generative AI use-cases since the end of last year
