ETSA comes at a time when the global tech startup ecosystem is surrounded by economic and geopolitical turmoil. The volatility in public company valuations that began in the US late last year has spilled over into private markets. Indian startups are also feeling turmoil and falling investor interest after funding has stopped in the past six months.
This year’s judges are looking for startups with resilient business models, very long-term thinking, and the ability to become corporate giants in just over a decade.
The ideal winner would be a startup that has the potential to become a category-defining enduring company that is not only successful now, but can shape the ecosystem for decades to come, says Sequoia India & Shailendra Singh, M.D., of Southeast Asia, said:
“Given the ever-evolving socio-economic environment and its impact on goods and services, having a resilient business model is essential to success. Innovation, creativity and the ability to scale in a given environment are A few other things to keep an eye on, said Sahil Barua, co-founder and CEO of Delhivery.
Learn more about jury expectations
Check out the candidates below
top innovator
comeback kid
bootstrap champ
CCI cracks down on tech companies
The Competition Commission of India (CCI), an antitrust regulator, is cracking down on digital companies and checking them for abuses of market domination. Regulators have fined global tech giant Google Rs 1,337.76 for abusing its dominant position in the local smartphone market.
The regulator said manufacturers of devices running Android shouldn’t be forced to pre-install Google services on their devices. We also asked Google to provide fair access to all stakeholders.
Google’s Android mobile operating system is by far the most dominant player in India, powering 95% of all smartphones in the country, according to research firm Counterpoint.
The company said it would review the decision and consider its next move. “CCI’s decision is a major setback for Indian consumers and businesses, posing significant security risks to Indians and driving up the cost of their mobile devices,” said a Google spokesperson. .
Read: CCI draws a line between tech companies fined by Google and booking sites
Android comes with a suite of Google apps pre-installed on the phone, including the company’s own search engine, “giving Google’s search service a significant edge over its competitors,” CCI said in a statement late Thursday. Stated.
“Markets should be allowed to compete on merit, and it is (Google’s) responsibility that their conduct does not affect this competition on merit,” he added.
Google faced a similar antitrust ruling in the European Union that found the company imposed “illegal restrictions” on smartphone makers to benefit the search engine. Last month, the EU’s second-highest court upheld his $4.1 billion fine against the company. Global regulators have followed suit, and Google faces a series of lawsuits based on similar allegations in the US and Asia.
Google wasn’t the only one to incur the CCI’s ire. Antitrust regulators last week fined his hotel reservation firms MakeMyTrip Ltd and Goibibo, as well as the IPO-slated hotel chain Oyo, $47 million, citing unfair practices.
CCI fined MakeMyTrip and Goibibo (MMT-Go) about $27 million before instructing them to correct their market behavior. Oyo said he was fined $20 million.
READ MORE: Google Reviewing CCI Penalty Order, Considering Next Steps
Technology and the public market
Shares of logistics and supply chain company Delhibury fell 32% in two trading sessions after the company said on Wednesday it expects modest growth in shipments through the rest of its 2023 fiscal year. It came to 383 rupees.
“The surge in shipments due to festive season sales will spill over into the third quarter of 2022, but we expect shipments to increase moderately through the remainder of the fiscal year.”
Shares listed on the stock exchange in May dropped below their issue price of Rs 487 for the first time on Thursday.
Read | Delhivery shares reach record low, fall another 18% on conservative guidance
ET eCommerce Index
We launched three indexes to track the performance of recently listed technology companies: ET Ecommerce, ET Ecommerce Profitable, and ET Ecommerce Non-Profitable. This is their journey so far.
Tracxn Debuts on the Stock Exchange
Software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform Tracxn made its discreet debut on the stock exchange on Thursday. The shares are listed at Rs.84.5, 5.63% higher than the issue price of Rs.80 on the NSE. However, the share price rose somewhat after listing and finally on Friday he closed at 91 rupees at 2.41%.
Founded in 2013, Tracxn Technologies provides market intelligence data to private companies. The company has adopted an asset-light business model and operates a SaaS platform.
In fiscal year 2021, the company recorded a total revenue of Rs 5.574 billion. This was one year ago he was worth Rs 6.313 crore. It reported a net loss of Rs 5.35 crore. This was significantly lower than the net loss of Rs 54.03 crore recorded last year.
Click here for details
Tata-Backed Cult.fit Considers IPO in 12-18 Months
ET recently learned that fitness startup Cult.fit is targeting an initial public offering (IPO) within 12-18 months. Cult.fit’s revenue has also increased by more than 50% compared to pre-Covid-19 levels, business head Naresh Krishnaswamy said.
“Over the next 12 to 18 months, Cult. It will lead the cost of fit.-18 months,” Krishnaswamy said.
Formerly known as Cure.fit, Cult.fit has made 14 acquisitions in recent years, including home fitness equipment businesses RPM Fitness and Fitkit. The company also spun off its Care.fit business into Sugar.fit. Krishnaswamy said it is “doing very well” in the area of treating diabetes. Cult.fit’s operating revenue was around Rs 161 million in FY21.
refocus on the moonlight
Infosys allows side jobs such as: Amid ongoing debate over side hustle, IT giant Infosys has allowed its employees to do gig work outside the office with prior approval from managers and HR executives.
This was after CEO Salil Parekh adamantly declared that the company does not support dual employment. The unexpected announcement comes amid a growing number of side jobs among Indian technologists.
Infosys employees who wish to do gig work can now only do so with prior consent from their managers and BP-HR and at facilities that do not compete with Infosys or Infosys clients, an internal email said. . Reviewed by ET.
Corporations hire forensic firms to catch bootleggers. Forensic and employment verification firms have documented an increase in the number of companies hiring them to weed out traffickers.
In addition, they are also being asked to review their compliance and control frameworks as concerns about side jobs grow and the true extent of the problem becomes increasingly apparent.
Nikhil Bedi, Head of Deloitte’s Forensics Practice, said:
READ | The IT Industry Could Crash in the Moonlight: TCS’s Subramaniam
Hiring Trends in IT Departments
The net headcount of top IT service providers is expected to drop by about a quarter in the first two quarters of the fiscal year and nearly halves for the full year. Software export industry.
This is as the sector faces fallout from geopolitical turmoil in Europe and macroeconomic concerns in the US.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, Wipro and HCLTech reported net headcount additions of approximately 81,700 in the first half. That’s almost 24% less than his net hiring of 107,616 during the same period last year, ET analysis shows. Analysts say that since July, he’s net additions in the September quarter (second quarter) are also below those in the first quarter.
We previously reported that TCS, Infosys, Wipro and HCL together added just 28,836 people on a net basis in the September quarter of FY23. Wipro employed the fewest at 605. Multiple CEOs say global macroeconomic uncertainty is growing and businesses need to be cautious.
Newer jobs are unaffected
The IT firm said new additions will continue in the second half of the fiscal year, and macroeconomic factors will not affect this.
TCS Chief Human Resources Officer Milind Lakkad said in the company’s earnings call that another 10,000 new hires are expected to join the company in the second half of FY23.
HCL CEO C Vijayakumar said the company will hire at least 30,000 new graduates this year.
Read: IT Services New Hires Up Year-Over-Year in First Half
in other top stories
Interview with Satya Nadella: In an exclusive interview with ET, Microsoft chief Satya Nadella said the world is undergoing a once-in-a-lifetime shift in “how, where and why we work” and that “in 2019, I will not return,” he said.
Businesses need to embrace it and find new avenues, he said, adding that in the current macroeconomic scenario, investments in digital infrastructure and skills are just as important. He noted that digital technology is a “deflationary factor in an inflationary economy” and helps “overcome uncertainty”.
Nadella talked about hybrid working, growth opportunities in India, competition in the cloud space, and more. Read the full interview here
Byju’s Raises $250 Million: Byju’s completed a $250 million funding round from existing investors, including the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), leading the round with more than $100 million.
The primary fundraising was executed at the previous valuation of $22 billion, and the secondary equity sale was at a discounted price, the sources said.
The Bengaluru-headquartered company faces scrutiny over its finances and business model and is looking to raise another $500 million through convertible bonds from new and existing investors as part of its pre-IPO financing. are in negotiations with
