One quick thing: Amitesh Jha takes helm at Instamart as CEO, co-founder Phani Kishan leads Swiggy One 

In today’s newsletter: 

• Mukesh Ambani outlines AI ambitions 
• RBI Deputy Guv asks fintechs to build trust
• Fintech firms gear up for IPOs
  

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For a moment, it would have been easy to mistake RIL chief Mukesh Ambani's address at the company's annual general meeting for a keynote event by a SoftBank or a Silicon Valley giant like Nvidia.

• While unveiling the conglomerate’s deep tech plans, Ambani mentioned AI (artificial intelligence) at least 50 times

Also Read | Reliance Retail announces entry into luxury jewelry segment

Reliance is on an AI overdrive, with plans to offer AI cloud services, build data centers, create a skilling programme for AI talent, and more.

"We plan to establish gigawatt scale AI-ready data centres in Jamnagar, powered entirely by Reliance's green energy, reflecting our commitment to sustainability and a greener future,” said Ambani.

Also Read | JioCinema crossed 15 mn paying subscribers in just 100 days of new pricing plans, says Mukesh Ambani

The RIL supremo highlighted the group’s efforts to transform into a deep tech company — with elevated R&D spends, filing of patents in areas like AI and telecom, and hiring top-notch technology talent.

• Ambani said that the deep tech strategy would help RIL become one of the world’s top 30 most valuable companies in the near future

• It spent over Rs 3,643 crore ($437 million) in FY24 towards R&D, taking its spend on research to over Rs 11,000 crore ($1.5 billion) in the last four years

The conglomerate has more than 1,000 scientists and researchers working on critical research projects across businesses.

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The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is sending a clear message to fintechs: build trust!

Speaking at the Global Fintech Fest, Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) deputy governor, T Rabi Sankar, called upon fintech companies to foster trust with the country's financial sector regulator. 

"Compared to normal financial entity, fintech has not made track record to build trust," Sankar said.

Sankar said most of the fintech sector is unregulated and hence they should behave responsibly to build trust.

The comments come after several of the banking regulator’s guidelines over the last two years tripped multiple fintech business models.

• The most recent example of this regulatory tension is the case of Paytm, which has faced significant challenges due to restrictions imposed on its associate banking entity

Efforts are underway to improve the relationship between fintechs and the RBI. 

• The formation of a Self Regulatory Organisation in the Fintech (SRO-FT) sector and ongoing dialogues are positive steps

The Indian fintech ecosystem is on a roll.

With over 35 companies valued at $500 million or more considering IPOs, the race for public capital is heating up, according to a report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and Z47 (fka Matrix Partners India). 

• Overall, IPO filings have surged, nearly doubling from 75 annually in 2018-2019 to 120-140 per year between 2021 and 2023

While the market remains optimistic, competition for capital is fierce across sectors. 

• The report reveals that only 40-60% of fintech founders feel fully prepared for an IPO in terms of profitability, leadership, and governance 

• Moreover, nearly 70% of fintechs listed in India in the past five years experienced a decline in their share prices within six months

Fintechs like Mobikwik are already in the IPO pipeline for this year, while others such as PhonePe, Groww, Perfios, PayU, Pine Labs, and Fibe are eyeing a public listing within the next two to three years.

Yesterday, at the Global Fintech Fest, PhonePe CEO Sameer Nigam expressed concerns about the company's IPO plans, citing a lack of clarity regarding market share regulations for UPI as a major obstacle.

"We can’t IPO until we have clarity on market share regulations for UPI," Nigam said.

In light of recent trends, fintechs are sharpening their focus on unit economics, profitability, and investment in technology and security. 

• While growth and market share remain critical for sectors like LendingTech, InsurTech, and SaaS/InfraTech, PayTech firms are prioritising robust unit economics

The Indian fintech ecosystem, now valued at over $100 billion, is poised for further growth, potentially creating 2-3 times this value in the next decade, the report said.

Find out more

Indians will have to increase their travel budgets for the festive season this year with airfares increasing as much as 35%. 

• Flight tickets on some routes can cost as much as Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000 during Dussehra and Diwali holidays 

For Dussehra, the highest hike in airfares is for Delhi-Dehradun route at 80%, while airfares for Mumbai-Udaipur are the most costly route during Diwali. 

Find out more

• OpenAI is reportedly in talks to raise billions of dollars in a new funding round led by Thrive Capital, potentially valuing the company at over $100 billion.
  
  
• Google has reinstated image generation of people in its Gemini AI chatbot, following a temporary pause due to concerns about inaccurate outputs.

Have you ever accidentally dropped your phone into a puddle, only to find that the speaker sounds like aliens trying to communicate with you?

Fear not, for there's a seemingly magical solution out there: a YouTube video that promises to remove water from your phone's speaker using nothing but sound.

• But does it actually work? We put this theory to the test (which involved, you guessed it, dropping a phone in water). And surprisingly, it works!

P.S.: This stunt was performed by a trained professional. Don’t try this at home unless you’ve already turned your phone into an accidental underwater adventure.

Picture credit: Microsoft Copilot

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