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In today’s newsletter:

• Juspay becomes 2025’s first unicorn
• AI sparks SaaS spending revival
• US tariff fears haunt Indian IT outlook

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India gets its first unicorn of 2025: Juspay joins the billion-dollar club!

Bengaluru-based payments infrastructure company Juspay has raised $60 million in a Series D round led by Kedaara Capital, with participation from existing investors SoftBank and Accel. 

• While earlier reports suggested the company was looking to raise up to $150 million, the final round size is significantly lower and includes both primary and secondary components. 

Despite the scaled-back round, the fresh capital has pushed Juspay past the $1 billion valuation mark, making it India’s first unicorn of the year.

The company plans to invest heavily in AI-led productivity tools. Juspay aims to reduce manual work and enhance dashboards for merchants. 

• Juspay is also eyeing international expansion across Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Europe, the UK, and North America. 

However, challenges remain. Major partners like Razorpay and PhonePe have moved away from Juspay’s stack in recent months, potentially impacting future growth. 

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After a long dry spell of frozen budgets and cautious enterprise spending, SaaS companies are finally seeing green shoots — and AI is leading the charge.

2023 and the beginning of 2024 were tough for SaaS. Frozen budgets, slower deal cycles, and a shift in focus from growth to profitability left startups on edge. But 2025 is telling a different story. 

Founders from companies like Freshworks, Chargebee, and Exotel say customer sentiment has improved significantly — especially in the US market.

“Customers are now more open to optimisation with SaaS tools, they are relooking budgets. However, AI is playing a key role for enterprise customers, even at Freshworks we see AI starting to contribute to revenue,” said Girish Mathrubootham, Founder and Executive Chairman of Freshworks.

Enterprises are now more willing to spend on tools that deliver value, with some SaaS budgets going up by 10–15%. 

“Most SaaS founders that I speak to say that things have improved in the last 18 months. Almost everyone has said this, most likely we see the sentiment improving in the US market,” said Shivakumar Ganesan, cofounder and CEO of Exotel.

Companies are beginning to see real productivity gains from AI-powered products, making them more open to purchasing and expanding software solutions.

• AI is no longer just a feature — it's the foundation. From boosting deal win rates to expanding the Total Addressable Market (TAM), AI is helping SaaS firms shift from survival mode to scale mode

Founders say the new demand is centred on mission-critical tools, automation, faster workflows, and outcome-based pricing.

Find out more 

Concerns over Trump's tariffs cast a cloud over Indian IT's Q4 earnings.

India’s $282 billion IT sector enters the Q4FY25 earnings season this week, with TCS set to kick it off on April 10.

• The Street is bracing for the fallout from Trump’s tariffs, which have sparked fears of a US consumption slowdown—threatening to further dent tech spending in the world’s biggest market for Indian IT

North America, which contributes over 60% of India’s IT revenue, has now emerged as the biggest risk factor, after early signs suggested a recovery following 18 months of subdued performance.

Analysts at Kotak Institutional Equities expect all large IT firms to report sequential revenue declines.

• Infosys is likely to guide for just 1–4% growth in FY26, while HCLTech may project 3–5%

Even high-growth mid-tier firms may not be completely immune, despite a strong Q4 performance.

Even as macroeconomic issues worsen, deal pipelines are holding up, but not at the mega-deal level.

• Cost takeout contracts and ACV-led momentum are providing some relief, and brokerages believe resumed discretionary spending could be back in FY26

Dig deeper

In a quiet corner of Bharat Mandapam, a founder building a 3D-skin bioprinting startup met someone working on regenerative bones. "We should talk," one said. 

• This hallway moment, rather than a panel or a pitch, defined Startup Mahakumbh 2025 

Flying taxi prototypes, a beeline at the DPIIT booth, tribal innovations, student entrepreneurs, and deeptech demos made the event more than just a startup showcase – less noise about unicorns, more focus on early-stage tech and real problem-solving. Dig deeper

• DeepSeek is working with Tsinghua University on reducing the training its AI models need to lower operational costs.
  
  
• Microsoft unveiled an interactive AI-generated Quake II gameplay demo, showcasing the potential of artificial intelligence in gaming.

Lutyens’ Delhi is the VIP section of Indian real estate—and the guest list just got more interesting. 

• From mattress moguls to fintech founders, India’s elite are snapping up colonial-era bungalows

The latest? A Rs 155 crore Golf Links deal by ChrysCapital’s Sanjay Kukreja and Central Square Foundation CEO Shaveta Sharma.

Who else bought their way into India’s most exclusive neighbourhood? Read the full story here 

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