Can Plastic Waste Become a Valuable Energy Resource? Plastic pollution has become one of India’s most pressing environmental challenges. The country generates nearly 9.3 million tonnes of plastic waste every year, but only a small fraction is effectively recycled. Much of the remaining waste ends up in landfills, open dumping sites, rivers, and oceans, where it can persist for decades. Over time, exposure to sunlight, heat, and weather causes discarded plastic to break down into tiny particles known as microplastics. These particles, typically smaller than five millimetres, have now been detected in water, soil, marine life, food, and even the…
Author: Aman Atulya
AI-Native Consumer Brands Platform Begins Operations With Backing From 3one4 Capital BCT Ventures, an AI-native consumer brands platform, has officially launched its operations after raising ₹42 crore in a seed funding round led by 3one4 Capital. The startup aims to redefine how consumer brands are built by combining artificial intelligence with practitioner-led expertise across product development, consumer insights, and go-to-market execution. It will initially focus on the nutrition and wellness segment before expanding into other consumer categories. The funding comes as investors increasingly back AI-first startups that leverage data, automation, and technology to build scalable consumer businesses. AI to Power…
Lab-grown diamond jewellery brand Limelight Diamonds has raised ₹275 crore in a strategic funding round led by its core promoters, the Bhathwari Group, along with participation from key strategic partners from the jewellery industry. The investment marks one of the largest funding rounds in India’s fast-growing lab-grown diamond segment and comes as consumer demand shifts toward sustainable, technology-driven alternatives to mined diamonds. According to the company, the capital was raised through a combination of equity and cash consideration and will support its next phase of manufacturing, retail, and product expansion. Capital to Strengthen Manufacturing and Innovation Limelight Diamonds plans to…
Nutrition startup Supply6 has raised ₹48 crore ($5 million) in a funding round led by Unilever Ventures, with participation from existing investor Zeropearl VC. The round also saw investment from actor and entrepreneur Kriti Sanon, further strengthening the startup’s investor base. The latest funding comes as preventive healthcare and nutrition products continue to witness strong consumer demand in India. With increasing awareness around daily wellness, immunity, and lifestyle diseases, startups offering science-backed nutrition solutions are attracting significant investor interest. The fresh capital will support Supply6’s next phase of growth as it expands both its product portfolio and market presence. Funds…
Hospitality Tech Firm Seeks ₹6,650 Crore Fresh Issue as Public Listing Moves Closer PRISM, the parent company of hospitality platform OYO, has filed its Updated Draft Red Herring Prospectus (UDRHP-I) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), moving one step closer to its long-awaited initial public offering (IPO). The updated filing follows SEBI’s approval earlier this month and marks another milestone in OYO’s multi-year journey toward becoming a publicly listed company. According to the filing, the proposed IPO will comprise a fresh issue of equity shares worth up to ₹6,650 crore, with no Offer for Sale (OFS) component.…
Digital lending platform Fibe (formerly EarlySalary) has filed its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to launch its initial public offering (IPO). According to the filing, the Pune-based fintech company plans to raise ₹750 crore through a fresh issue of equity shares, along with an Offer for Sale (OFS) of up to 4 crore shares by existing investors. The IPO marks another significant milestone for India’s fintech sector, as digital lending platforms continue to tap public markets amid strong investor interest in technology-driven financial services companies. The proceeds from the fresh issue…
SenseAI Ventures Leads Pre-Seed Round as Enterprises Adopt Agentic AI for IT Operations AI-native incident management startup Sherlocks AI has raised ₹7.5 crore in a pre-seed funding round led by SenseAI Ventures, with participation from Uppekha. The company plans to use the fresh capital to strengthen its product capabilities and accelerate go-to-market efforts in North America, where demand for AI-driven operations platforms is growing rapidly. The funding comes at a time when enterprises operating cloud-native infrastructure are facing increasing operational complexity. While observability and monitoring tools have become widely available, diagnosing production incidents still remains a largely manual process that…
Healthcare-focused venture capital firm HealthQuad has secured ₹550 crore in commitments for its third investment fund and is targeting a total corpus of ₹1,700 crore to back early-growth healthcare startups across India. The fund also includes a greenshoe option that could increase the total corpus to ₹2,500 crore. The latest fund reflects growing investor confidence in India’s healthcare innovation ecosystem, particularly in sectors such as healthtech, medtech, biopharma technology, and emerging healthcare delivery models. HealthQuad expects to achieve the final close of the fund by the middle of next year. The commitments have come from a mix of existing domestic…
Nazara Technologies Leads Pre-Series C Round as Startup Bets on AI and Original Content Digital entertainment startup Rusk Media has raised ₹100 crore ($10.6 million) in a Pre-Series C funding round led by Nazara Technologies, with participation from Info Edge Ventures, IvyCap Ventures, and a consortium led by Audacity VC. The latest funding comes less than a year after the company raised ₹103 crore ($12 million) in its Series B round. With the new infusion, Rusk Media has now raised approximately $32 million since inception. The investment highlights growing investor confidence in India’s creator economy and digital entertainment sector, particularly…
Bessemer Leads Funding Round as Startup Bets Big on AI and Nationwide Expansion Pet healthcare startup Vetic has raised $40 million in a fresh funding round led by Bessemer Venture Partners, with participation from existing investors Greenoaks Capital, Lachy Groom, and JSW Family Office. Bessemer, one of the company’s earliest backers, also participated in previous funding rounds. The investment comes amid growing momentum in India’s pet care industry, where rising pet ownership and increasing spending on healthcare, wellness, and insurance services are creating significant opportunities for organized players. The fresh capital is expected to accelerate Vetic’s expansion plans as it…