Electric vehicle OEM 3ev Industries has raised ₹120 crore in a Series A funding round led by Mahanagar Gas Limited (MGL), marking a significant step in its plan to build an integrated EV ecosystem for last-mile and urban mobility. The round also saw participation from Equentis Angel Fund, Thackersey Group, and multiple family offices. MGL invested ₹96 crore as the lead backer, while Thackersey Group contributed ₹10.46 crore and Equentis added ₹8.15 crore. The remaining ₹4.82 crore came from a consortium of HNIs and UHNIs. This follows the company’s earlier $2 million seed round raised from family offices. Investment to…
Author: Aman Atulya
Clean energy startup Enerzi has raised ₹16.5 crore ($2 million) in a seed funding round led by Capital-A, with participation from 8x Ventures and a group of strategic angel investors. The financing will accelerate the company’s push to commercialise its methane-to-hydrogen technology in India and international markets. Building a Microwave-Plasma Hydrogen Platform Enerzi is developing a methane-to-hydrogen system powered by microwave plasma reactors. The platform converts methane into clean hydrogen while generating solid carbon nanopowder as a co-product. This dual-output model strengthens hydrogen unit economics and opens opportunities in battery materials, composites, and advanced engineering applications. The company’s proprietary integration…
Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang has made his stance on workplace AI adoption unmistakably clear: employees should use AI as much as possible and not fear losing their jobs because of it. His remarks, first reported by Business Insider, came a day after Nvidia posted another quarter of record earnings. “Are You Insane?” Huang Rejects Calls to Limit AI Use Responding to a concern that some Nvidia managers were asking teams to limit AI usage, Huang said he disagreed entirely. “Are you insane?” he reportedly asked, emphasizing that every task AI can handle should be automated. He added that employees…
Lab-grown diamond jewellery brand ONYA has raised ₹5.5 crore in a pre-seed round led by Zeropearl VC, with participation from a group of notable angel investors including MyGate founders Vijay Arishetti, Abhishek Kumar, Shreyans Daga, Rohit Jindal, as well as Amal Mishra and Alkendra Pratap Singh. Backing a New-Age Luxury Brand Co-founded in 2024 by Himani Yadav and Gaurav Choudhary, ONYA positions itself as a modern, conscious-luxury brand offering lab-grown diamond jewellery at a significantly more accessible price point. The company aims to democratize fine jewellery by offering pieces at nearly 20% of the cost of natural diamonds, while maintaining…
B2B banking-infrastructure platform Blostem has raised its Pre-Series A round led by Rainmatter, the investment arm backed by Zerodha. While the investment amount remains undisclosed, the round gives Rainmatter a 9% stake in the company, marking a strong endorsement of Blostem’s API-driven approach to digital retail banking. Unified Banking Stack for Fintechs and Wealth Platforms Founded by Ravi Jain, Sandeep Garg, Uday Sharma, and Pankaj Pratap Singh, Blostem provides a plug-and-play infrastructure layer that enables fintech apps, brokers, wealth-tech firms and payment companies to offer retail-banking products without building separate integrations with every bank. Its unified API supports fixed deposits,…
Manufacturing powerhouse Zetwerk is reportedly gearing up to file for an initial public offering (IPO) that could raise up to $750 million, positioning it among the largest public market debuts by an India-based manufacturing platform. Bankers Appointed, Filing Expected Early Next Year According to Bloomberg, Zetwerk has appointed Kotak Mahindra Capital, JM Financial Services, Avendus Capital, and the India units of HSBC, Morgan Stanley, and Goldman Sachs to manage the offering. The company is expected to file its draft prospectus early next year via the confidential route, with the issue likely to include a mix of fresh shares and an…
AI-driven procurement platform Zinit has raised $8 million in a seed round led by AltaIR Capital, valuing the company at $48 million. Early-stage fund DVC, known for backing Perplexity, also participated and will support the company’s AI roadmap as it accelerates product scale and global presence. Strategic Hires to Drive Global Expansion As part of its expansion, Zinit has strengthened leadership across key regions. Michel Boczko has been appointed Regional Director for Latin America, while former McKinsey executive Stan Moskovtsev will lead operations in the US as CEO. For India, Zinit has onboarded Naveenn Suri as Regional Director. Suri previously…
Edtech firm SpeakX (formerly Yellow Class) has introduced a $1 million ESOP buyback programme, marking the company’s first liquidity event for employees. The initiative will benefit 15 of its 20 employees, underlining SpeakX’s focus on long-term ownership and early wealth creation for its team. Buyback Follows Fresh $16M Funding Round The buyback follows the company’s recent $16 million pre-Series B round, which included performance-based stock grants and tenure-linked allocations. SpeakX said employees who complete two years at the company automatically qualify for ESOPs with a 10-year exercise window, ensuring flexibility. Unlike many startups where equity remains concentrated at the top,…
Biotechnology startup CrisprBits has raised $3 million in a Pre-Series A round led by Spectrum Impact, the family office of Rajendra Gogri of Aarti Industries. Existing investor Vijay Alreja Family Office (VJ Technologies Group) and new backers from the promoter family of HBL Engineering also participated, taking the company’s valuation to $12 million. Scaling PathCrisp and Global Diagnostics Expansion The fresh capital will be used to accelerate the commercial rollout of PathCrisp, the company’s CRISPR-based molecular diagnostics platform. Funds will also be deployed toward expanding manufacturing capacity for test kits across human health, food safety and animal health. CrisprBits plans…
Global venture capital firm Accel and tech major Google have announced a new co-investment initiative to back early-stage AI startups founded in India or by Indian-origin entrepreneurs building for global markets. The programme will be jointly operated through Accel’s Atoms accelerator and Google’s AI Futures Fund, and is set to begin with the 2026 cohort. A $2 Million Push for Early AI Innovation Under the partnership, each selected startup will receive up to $2 million in co-investment from the two firms. In addition to capital, founders will gain access to Google Cloud credits, Gemini and DeepMind models, and hands-on technology…