One quick thing: Bengaluru Yellow Line’s August 10 launch promises relief for techies. The wait for fully automated driverless trains, however, continues.

In today's newsletter: 

• India’s VC fundraising tops 2024 haul at $3.2 bn
• SBI MF, Permira mop up Urban Company shares
• Indian IT braces for Trump tariff ripples

P.S. Ready to dive into some political drama? Not the one you are seeing on the news but a fictional one. Scroll below for our binge pick of the week!

P.S.: Introducing the Tech3 Podcast, your daily dose of tech and startup insights. Monday to Friday! Check it out on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

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India’s startup cash registers are ringing louder than a unicorn’s doorbell, as VC fundraising leaps past last year’s tally.

VC cash is streaming in again, riding a wave of improved exits and stronger startups

• Fundraising among India-focused venture capital firms has reached $3.2 billion, racing past 2024’s $2.7 billion total, and still climbing.

VC majors like Accel, A91, and Bessemer lead the charge — but smaller stars like Prime Venture and Cornerstone are storming the field too.

• With players like Nexus, Fireside, Info Edge, and others still raising, 2025’s total could thunder all the way up to $4.6 billion.

Fund cycles are revving up, and limited partners (LPs) are warming to India’s promise.

“High-quality funds can raise capital in any cycle. Fund cycles are kicking in, and LP sentiment towards India is cautiously optimistic,” says Dr. Pankaj Jethwani, Managing Partner at W Health Ventures.

With India’s AI talent pool expanding and a stable macro environment, the country is increasingly seen as a safer bet compared to riskier markets.

• Meanwhile, improving governance standards and stronger startup fundamentals are fueling a fresh wave of investor confidence and capital inflows, say investors.

Clearer exit routes are also sparking fresh investor interest and fueling market optimism.

• With IPOs tripling in 2024, marquee startups like Swiggy, Ola Electric, and Mobikwik have set a strong precedent.

• This momentum continues into 2025, with over 25 startups filing or preparing to file for IPOs despite some market volatility.

If fundraising rounds close and markets stay liquid, 2025 could mark a reset — bigger capital backing fewer, stronger bets.

Dig deeper

Urban Company’s cap table is getting a makeover ahead of its big day – the IPO. 

SBI Mutual Fund and Permira are picking up Urban Company shares in secondary transactions, people familiar with the development told us. 

• Shares worth around Rs 450 crore (around $50 million) will change hands.
  
  
• Early backers Accel, Bessemer Venture Partners, Tiger Global and Elevation Capital are the sellers, the company had revealed in its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP).
  

Investors are valuing Urban Company at around $1.8 billion during these transactions, a discount of 30% from its 2022 valuation. 

• This is a common practice during secondary transactions to leave some room for the incoming investor to make gains.

Urban Company is slated to go public later this year. 

• The IPO will be a mix of fresh issue of shares worth Rs 429 crore and the offer for sale (OFS) component will be Rs 1,471 crore.
  

Revenue from operations rose from Rs 437.6 crore in FY22 to Rs 637 crore in FY23, and Rs 828 crore in FY24.

• Urban Company reported a net profit of Rs 242.3 crore in the first nine months of 2024, a sharp reversal from the Rs 514.1 crore loss in FY22 and Rs 312.4 crore loss in FY23.

• The profit was largely driven by a deferred tax credit of Rs 215 crore.

Find out more

Trump’s trade strike skipped India's $280-billion IT services sector, but the aftershocks could hit deal flow, sentiment, and client spending.

• On August 6, the Trump administration imposed new tariffs and penalties on Indian goods over continued Russian crude imports.

The sector, which was just beginning to see a revival in discretionary spending in Q3FY25, now faces fresh headwinds.

Clients in tariff-hit verticals may pull back on tech investments, while higher hardware import costs could marginally impact offshore operations.

• More significantly, blurred perceptions between goods and services are creating hesitancy around large deal announcements or new GCC setups.

A regulatory pushback from India, especially involving digital or tax policy, could further complicate operations for MNCs with a footprint in India or relying on cross-border tech talent.

It’s the ripple effects that matter.

• While the IT sector has avoided a direct hit, optics, client caution, and delayed decision-making could stall recovery.

India’s tech exporters now find themselves in the awkward position of managing damage that isn’t yet visible, but very much real.

Dig deeper

• OpenAI has released GPT-5, its most advanced AI model yet, to all ChatGPT users and developers. GPT-5 is OpenAI’s first “unified” AI model and is designed to feel like “talking to a team of PhD-level experts”, the company said. 

• Tesla is reportedly disbanding its Dojo supercomputer team with leader, Peter Bannon, set to depart the company.

Wondering what to watch tonight? How about a political drama where friendship turns into a fierce fight for power.

Set in Andhra Pradesh during the 1970s–1990s, Mayasabha follows the story of two student leaders turned political rivals as they navigate caste, power, and ambition.

The gripping 9-episode Telugu political thriller is said to be inspired by real-life political legends N Chandrababu Naidu and Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy (although the show states that “any resemblance to real people is purely coincidental”)

Watch on Sony LIV

In the mood for a supernatural mystery instead? Wednesday, one of Netflix's most-watched series, is back with a second season.

The new season picks up with Wednesday Addams back at Nevermore Academy, where she becomes entangled in a new murder mystery as locals are killed by an unknown force controlling crows.

• Only four episodes are out so far, with the rest arriving when Part 2 drops on September 3.

Watch on Netflix