All Posts in startups

|In: Mobile|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

In alignment with its philosophy of financial fitness, Money View – an android app – has recently incorporated yet another feature to its app called ‘reimbursements’. This feature can be used by anybody maintaining bills to track all out-of-pocket outlays thereby curtailing the hassle of physically maintaining or logging in expenses.

The ‘reimbursable’ feature is particularly helpful and saves time for busy professionals who travel extensively on business either locally or out of station and have to maintain records of incidental expenditures for submission.

There are two ways that the Money View app helps its users maintain their bills – by categorising the bank SMS alerts one receives, under ‘reimbursements’ & by uploading photographs of hard-copy receipts taken with the user’s smartphone and then uploaded under the Bill & Receipts category which can further be tagged with a note on the type of expenditure it represents.

The following, further illustrates how this feature works, in a simplified manner

From banks SMS alerts

  • When a financial transaction is made (debit card, credit card, NEFT), one immediately gets an SMS notification that is summarized on the app (Rs. 780 – Dining, Rs. 1000 – Transport etc.)
  • On clicking on the particular transaction, the ‘Edit Transaction’ window opens up
  • By selecting ‘Yes’ and ‘Save’ under the entry ‘Reimbursable’, this particular detail gets captured
  • Cash transactions can also be manually entered and marked as ‘reimbursable’

Through receipt images

  • After taking a picture of the bill receipt the image can be uploaded on the app directly under the category – Bill/ Receipt (Add New)
  • Thereafter, the specific details of the expenses have to be entered for further reference by making entries under ‘Notes’ – (Lunch with Client etc.)

For more information visit Money View

|In: Embedded|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

eInfochips is working with Qualcomm & Techstars to engage with Qualcomm Robotics Accelerator powered by Techstars participants to bring their innovative ideas to life. Qualcomm has selected 10 robotics companies that will be participating in the four-month mentorship-driven startup program to focus on building the next generation of robots and intelligent machines.

eInfochips’ team is providing support and resources to the accelerated companies to help build the next generation of intelligent machines. Robots are no longer just the business of research laboratories and secretive corporate divisions. With emerging innovative technologies, the next generation robots will soon surprise us by enabling Robots to do things that people thought were impossible.

einfochips

The support for Robot Operating System [ROS] on Qualcomm Snapdragon processors will enable functionalities such as interpretation, machine learning, artificial intelligence, facial and gesture recognition, voice command operation etc. These platforms aim to provide an integrated, low power solution for multiple robotics applications and will extend the processors applicability for diverse selection of products, from drones to toys and to home appliances.

Charles Bergan, Vice president of engineering for Qualcomm Technologies, Inc said

We are excited to see what this new batch of companies will achieve with help from eInfochips especially given their deep expertise in Snapdragon platforms and their sophisticated engineering capabilities.  

eInfochips has strong expertise in system software along with Snapdragon processors and has developed proof of concepts and demo applications for robotics. In addition to the engineering support services for the Robotics Accelerator companies, eInfochips also has to offer Eragon product line comprising of system on modules, development kits based on Snapdragon 600 and 410 processors.

The latest Eragon 410 is an ultra-small [35 mm * 26 mm] System on Module with low power consumption and superior multimedia experience and processing capability makes it an ideal building block for robotics application.

Parag Mehta, Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer at eInfochips said

We are excited to be part of the Robotics Accelerator and are helping the start-ups in development by providing development kits and design services. eInfochips along with Qualcomm will play a critical role in driving this innovation forward.

About eInfochips

eInfochips provides product design and software services. With over two decades of experience, eInfochips has helped customers design over 500+ products that are deployed across 130 countries. eInfochips SoMs and design services are made available globally in Asia, North America and Europe. For more information, please refer eInfochips

|In: Hyperlocal|Last Updated: | 2 Comments

Helpchat, a personal assistant messenger app, today announced that it was opening up its platform for API integrations [technical integrations] to businesses. With this integration, businesses would be able to integrate directly into the Helpchat app and acquire and serve new users for their businesses.

Over the next few weeks, Helpchat will include transactional functionality from companies including Ola, OLX, Freshmenu, CommonFloor, RoadRunnr, Limetray, Mast Kalandar, RedBus, MyWash to integrate APIs into its personal assistant app. There are currently 25+ businesses in the integration waiting list.

Helpchat_small

Ankur Singla, Helpchat, Founder and CEO

Our vision is to help users win their daily battle with tasks and make their lives easier. In order to build a one-stop horizontal platform, we will rely on curated partners to expose to our users.

Like a personal assistant, our job is to find for you the best solution for your task – be it ordering food or finding a local services provider. We help you choose from the different options out there and ensure that you get a good experience

Post integration, users would be able to call a cab, order laundry, or food directly within the Helpchat app and the fulfilment of the order would be done by the partners.

Sudarshan Gangrade, VP – Marketing, Ola said

This API integration with Helpchat will further strengthen our mission of building mobility for a billion Indians. Ola is committed to making available a range of personal transportation options within minutes, now also on the Helpchat app! We are excited about the possibilities of this partnership in the time to come.

Mohit Kumar, Co-founder & CEO, Roadrunnr said

At Roadrunnr we aim to provide merchants in India the capability to deliver orders rapidly and on-demand to customers in their locality by connecting them with a supply force using mobile technology. Our association with Helpchat will help the consumer in getting a personalized experience in hyper-local services.

Vishrut Chalsani, VP – Enterprise Solutions, Helpchat added

Our chat sessions are growing at a healthy rate, with a high transaction intent from users. The next logical step was to leverage our deep enterprise relationships to help businesses to build on top of this audience. I can foresee us partnering with more than 1000 businesses over the next 6 months.

About Helpchat

Helpchat [earlier called Akosha] launched it’s personal assistant chat app in January 2015 and raised Rs. 100 crores from Sequoia Capital in June 2015. It recently opened a Bangalore office to add more engineers and product people to its team. Be it anything, from recharging your phone to tech support, from travel booking to holiday guidance, from grocery to food ordering, from shopping assistance to finding deals & coupons, from finding gifts to suggesting the best electronic item, from doing a web check-in to getting your laundry done – Helpchat can get all of them done for you.

|In: Blogging|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

Gurgaon based Visual Blogging Platform Bluegape has raised USD 600,000 from ah! Ventures, Rudy Gopalakrishnan of Fidelity & Times Internet. Barclays Capital India has been advising Bluegape & helping in getting connected with right investors. The deal has been closed on ah! Ventures’ equity investment platform, CLUBah Bluegape had earlier raised USD 184,000 in April 2015 from Rudy Gopalakrishnan & ah! Ventures. Bluegape is backed by TLabs and has received a total funding of USD 500,000 [excluding the recent round] till date.

Long form of content is dying in this mobile era where users have a very short attention span. Bluegape is giving users a platform to create and consume content in a visual format. Currently Bluegape has over 15 Million+ unique visitors every month and around 100,000+ posts are getting created on the platform every month.

bluegape-team

Sahil Baghla, Co-Founder & CEO, Bluegape said

Our vision is to make communication of ideas and knowledge very easy. On Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat we are connected to our close group of friends and they are like your private social identity. Bluegape, on the other hand will be your public social identity which is about self-expression with the world. Bluegape will be A Social Profile You Can Be Proud Of.

The startup was founded in August 2011 by Sahil Baghla & Ayush Varshney [Company has pivoted from Merchandise Business to Visual Blogging Platform in January 2015]. Both the founders are IIT-Kanpur alumni.

Ayush Varshney, Co-Founder & CTO added

We will use the money on technology and for expanding our engineering team. The existing investors have lead the round which is a very good sign that we are on the right track.

People are doing amazing stuff at Bluegape like their niche fashion blog, on feminism, on celebrity fan-clubs or Individual bloggers

Abhijeet Kumar, Co-founder of ah! ventures said

In today’s inter-connected, plugged-in world, nothing is more fast-paced than technology. It constantly evolves to meet our ever-increasing need to stay connected. Technology has enabled the world to shrink into a global village where everybody is connected to one another through one platform or the other. Bluegape is a social media disruptor, it’s the black swan. Sahil and Ayush have created the future of social media.

Within a short span, Bluegape has seen traction of over 15 unique million visitors each month and growing, which is the proof of the platform and reflects the dedication of the team in delivering a world class product out of India. CLUB ah! is proud to be associated with Bluegape in its quest to success.

CLUB ah!, an angel network of over 450 investors, including some of the renowned angels and early stage VCs represent the maturity of Indian early stage investment ecosystem. Started in 2012, the CLUB ah! platform boasts of over 2000+ startups, 450+ seed/angel investors and over 60 VC’s & institutional investors. It also has an impact investment network and a mentor network to assist startups in their growth and expansion. Till date CLUB ah! has invested close to USD 6 Million across 15 startups including Bluegape.

Talking about the transaction, Harshad Lahoti, Founder & CEO, ah! ventures said

Some may wonder whether the valuations for some of these new tech companies are exaggerated, but, exaggerated or not, they are reinventing some of the most basic structures of human interaction and for those looking for the next Facebook or LinkedIn, Bluegape is the answer. Social media platforms have a cyclic process, you have to be constantly innovating to stay relevant to the audience.

Bluegape by all virtue is very innovative in its approach and will soon become the new normal. Visual blogging is a new concept and by the traction that we see on the portal, we believe this will be the next big social interactive platform. The Bluegape team has a clear vision to disrupt the existing social interaction landscape. For an investor, the pedigree of the team and idea are critical. In Bluegape, investors can find disruptive growth and a team committed to deliver.

ah! Ventures is in the final stages of closing 2 more deals in the coming weeks.

About Bluegape

Bluegape is world’s first visual blogging platform. The biggest promise of internet was democratization of ideas and knowledge. Everyone has some knowledge or learning to give back. Visual Blogging is a great way to express yourself in this fast moving world of short attention span.

About ah! ventures

ah! Ventures is a startup focused growth catalyst that brings together promising businesses and investors by creating wealth creation opportunities for both. ah!’s unique model serves investors, entrepreneurs and enablers through a unique blend of customized services, skill and industry & domain experience.

About CLUB ah!

CLUB ah! is India’s first full-spectrum startup investment network and platform comprising of over 500 investors, including some of the renowned angels and early-stage VC’s which represent the maturity of Indian early-stage ecosystem. Setup in 2012, the CLUB ah! Platform today has over 2500+ startups, 450+ seed/angel investors and over 60 VC’s & institutional investors. CLUB ah! has till date invested close to INR 36 crores in over 15 startups spread across varied industries and domains.

|In: startups|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

InfoTrack Telematics, one of the globally leading suppliers of taxi dispatch, GPS tracking & fleet management solutions tied up with Hello cabs, Myanmar’s only radio taxi service. As part of this partnership, InfoTrack will be offering end to end state of technology for Hello Cabs rider and the driver.

HelloCabs_Logo

The booking confirmation, text message will be sent to passengers once they book cab. InfoTrack Telematics is also expanding partnership with Hello cab where the passengers would soon be able to use InfoTracks app to share their location and provide live journey tracking to their friends & family.

With this app, Hello Cab’s passengers can immediately share their location with their choice of contact as soon as they enter the cab. And as they travel, the riders can be tracked by their near and dear ones of their choice.

Mr. C.K. Ramakant, Managing Director, InfoTrack Telematics. said

We are pleased to be building our international presence and also delighted to successfully deploy end to end solutions which includes InfoTrack’s InfoDispatch and GPS monitoring to support Hello Cab’s taxi business and taxi aggregation business. With InfoTrack’s end to end solutions and mobile apps, hello cab’s riders will have totally new experience in the city of Yangon, Myanmar.

Speaking about the partnership, Says Mr. Aung Win, Founder Hello Cabs said

We are delighted to provide first radio taxi services in the city of Yangon, Myanmar partnering with InfoTrack Telematics, one of India’s leading suppliers of GPS dispatch and tracking. InfoTrack’s app will help our drivers and riders with two flow information. Safety of our passengers is our priority and InfoTrack’s GPS technology and its app will help us to provide safety to our passengers.

About InfoTrack Telematics

InfoTrack Telematics is one of the globally leading suppliers of taxi dispatch, GPS tracking and fleet management solutions with offices in India, Singapore and partners in Malaysia, Indonesia and Middle East. InfoTrack Telematics is a joint venture between Infotrack Telematics Pte Ltd, Singapore and ZENRIN Datacom Ltd., Japan. InfoTrack Telematics provides customizable software with a variety of choices for hardware as well as editions for meeting industry or region specific requirements. Mobile Edition is for Android, SE Asia Edition for specific geographic needs, and Professional Edition for advanced management tools.

About Hello Cabs

Hello cabs started in the year 2015 is the first radio taxi in Myanmar, a taxi in two-way radio communication with a dispatcher, who sends it directly to persons who phone in for a taxi.

[Image Credit* – Hello Cabs]

|In: Entrepreneurship|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

Intellecap Impact Investment Network [I3N], Rianta Capital along with ah! Ventures have invested Rs. 10 Million in waste management startup Sampurn(e)arth. Co-founded by Debartha Banerjee, Jayanth Nataraju, & Ritvik Rao, Sampurn(e)arth provides end-to-end decentralized and customized waste management solutions such as  dry waste collection and processing, bio-gas plant installation, composting, O&M and consulting services.

SampurnEarth

It works closely with the non-profit waste picker organization Stree Mukti Sanghatana and actively incorporates waste pickers into the process, thereby up-skilling them and increasing incomes. Its clientele includes municipal bodies, corporate parks educational campuses and residential units.

Sharing the statistics on the scale of the problem in the waste management segment, Co-founder Jayanth Nataraju said

In Mumbai alone, about 10,000 tonnes of waste is generated daily, so there is a huge opportunity for intervention. With initiation of the Swacch Bharat Abhiyan, there is an increased interest in our solutions and we are seeing tremendous support from stakeholders across the value chain. We are confident that with the guidance of investors on scaling the business, we will be able to move the needle on this vast challenge.

Talking about the investment, Ajay Dalmia, I3N, said

The current method of dumping waste into landfills leads to several environmental and societal problems. This practice adversely affects the health of people and also fails to recognize the inherent value in the waste. Sampurn(e)arth is bringing in an effective decentralized asset light business model that is environmentally sustainable, generates employment and is profitable. This is an execution intensive model and we have full faith in the promoters’ passion for the cause and ability to deliver.

Sidharth Pansari, Angel Investor & Director, Primarc Projects added

It is our responsibility to give our environment and the people living around us, a more sustainable future than we have today. By investing in Sampurn(e)arth we are directly contributing in creating a positive impact on the environment, coming up with innovative ways in which one can turn waste into re-usable resources and renewable energy. Primarc Group’s real estate projects have been developed with environment friendly features like rain water harvesting, sewage treatment plant, Solar hot water, fly ash bricks and organic water treatment. We should put our knowledge and experience to come up with new sustainable solutions for the greater benefit of the planet by creating better disposal options and safer treatment of waste.

Harshad Lahoti, Founder & CEO, ah! Ventures. said

ah! Impact, the platform through with the investment in Sampurn(e)arth was made, validates our commitment and foresight towards social investing in India, also the large number of our investors, which are mostly first time investors have shown great interest in investing in social enterprises with high potential and measurable social or environmental impact. ah! Impact recently reinvested in Ketto, a crowdfunding platform for social, personal and creative projects.

ah! Impact also recently reinvested in Ketto, a crowdfunding platform for social, personal and creative projects.

About Sampurn(e)arth

Sampurn(e)arth Environment Solutions Pvt. Ltd provides wet and dry waste management solutions for corporates, residential societies and construction companies. A TISS [Tata Institute of Social Science] incubator project, Sampurn(e)arth was launched in 2012 with an objective of making solid waste management efficient, decentralized and even profitable. Sampurn(e)arth works on the principle that transporting waste to the city’s dumping grounds is inefficient and expensive and also hazardous. It encourages on-site segregation, wherever possible. It also sets up on-site bio-gas or composting facilities for wet waste, while non- biodegradable waste is transported directly to recycling units. This leaves only a small amount of dry waste to be transported to the dumping grounds.

About ah! Ventures

ah! Ventures is a startup focused growth catalyst that brings together promising businesses and investors by creating wealth creation opportunities for both. ah!’s unique model serves investors, entrepreneurs and enablers through a unique blend of customized services, skill, and industry & domain experience.

Founded in 2010, ah! Ventures has systematically disrupted India’s early stage funding ecosystem through its innovative approach toward startup investing. First of its kind initiatives like the CLUB ah! network & platform, ah! Angels (India’s largest angel network), ah! Seeders and ah! VC networks (India’s first seed & VC investment networks respectively), have brought together and integrated the otherwise previously segregated startup funding lifecycle, under one roof. This, coupled with ah! Impact network, an impact investment network for investing in social enterprises and ah! Mentors network, a mentor network to assist startups in their growth and expansion, has today made ah! Ventures not just one of India’s most respected change leaders, but also a formidable industry force to recon with.

About I3N

Intellecap Impact Investment Network (I3N or I-cube-N) is a global network of impact investors, both individuals and institutions who come together to co-invest in impact enterprises across India and East Africa. It’s aim is to plug the pre-VC funding gap early stage enterprises face by mobilizing domestic capital and connecting international investors to domestic investors. Investors come together to support brilliant and passionate entrepreneurs who are dedicated to solving difficult problems at the bottom of the pyramid.

|In: Events|Last Updated: | 1 Comment

The August Fest, India’s largest Startup Conference that Celebrates Arts & Entrepreneurship is coming up with the 2015 edition. The August Fest is on its way to building India’s First International Startup Conference apart from being one of the Largest Startup Conferences in Asia.

TheAugustFest

It is geared to host around 5000+ great minds from across India and few of them from Asia, Middle East, Europe and the U.S.A ! Along with the awesome participants, there would be 50+ Speakers, 50+ Incubators & 200+ Investors would be participating in the event.

The event will be held on 29th & 30th of August in Hyderabad [JRC Convention]

AugustFest_2015_Dates

August Fest – Detailed Agenda

  • Action Packed Two Day Conference | Applications For Startup Demos/Arts Track Submissions open from July.
  • 15 Boot Camps In 8 Countries Before August ! Dates Will Be Out Soon !
  • Startups Can Pitch In Respective Cities to Win a Wild Card Entry to Demo @The August Fest Stage !
  • Remarkable Journeys | Incredible Talks | Intriguing Panels
  • Best of The Best Startup Demos | Non Stop Film Screening
  • IoT/Makers Edition | Startup Expo
  • Intense Workshops | Interactive Sessions
  • 50+ Speakers | 50+ Incubators | 200+ Investors
  • Live Music | Witty Skits | Stage Plays
  • Heritage Crawls | Unbelievable After Party

August Fest – Speaker Desk

There is an awesome line-up of speakers for the 2015 edition of August Fest [and still the team at August Fest are working to bring some more speakers on-board :)]

Registration & Launchpad for Startups

You can register for the event by Buying tickets from here If you are a startup founder, you can pitch your idea by registering for the Launch Pad. The August Fest Launch Pad is for Startups looking to Pitch on Stage ! Film Makers and Creative Folks looking forward to Showcase their works can submit entries too !

Past Event Snapshots

Follow August Fest on Twitter @TheAugustFest and connect with them on Facebook at facebook.com/TheAugustFest

|In: Events|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

Accenture, in partnership with Yahoo India, has launched the fourth season of Innovation Jockeys – The Hunt for India’s most Innovative Minds. Undergraduate, graduate & post graduate students across India are welcome to submit innovative ideas for using technology to transform India.

This year’s contest, which will focus on disruptive technology innovations related to the themes Cognitive Computing and Internet of Things and ‘Digital Application Marketplace, aims to discover bright, young, home-grown innovators.

Raghavan Iyer, MD, Technology Delivery and Innovation Council lead for Accenture in India said

We’re looking for India’s next generation of innovators – young people with drive, passion and creativity who will make a difference in the way businesses and society function. In the previous three seasons, the program drew over 7,180 idea submissions from over 900 campuses and more than 125,300 newsletter sign-ups from students at more than 1,000 colleges across India. We have seen an encouraging response each year and are expecting more students to participate and showcase their solutions.

This year’s contest winners will be selected by a renowned jury, consisting of Ravi Gururaj, Chair – Product Council & Member-Executive Council, NASSCOM; Kalyan Veeramachaneni, Research Scientist, Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Unni Aravindakshan, Vice President – Production Engineering & Head, Yahoo Software Development India; Raj Dam, Founder, QuizWorks; Vinay Gupta, CEO, Via.com; Nandini Vaidyanathan, CMD, CARMa Venture Services & Alok Goyal, Partner at Helion Advisors.

Unni Aravindakshan, VP – Production Engineering & Head, Yahoo Software Development India Pvt. Ltd said

Over the last three years, Innovation Jockeys has surfaced ideas that solve real-world problems and make a difference in our daily lives. We are happy to be part of the process that fosters this innovation. We are looking forward to how India’s bright young minds will innovate and push the envelope this year, as they take on new challenges.

Each member of the winning team will receive a trip to Accenture Technology Labs, San Francisco, a Lenovo tablet & an Apple iPhone 6. Winning entries for each category will also receive an Apple  iPad and a Pebble Smart Watch. The five most popular ideas will win an Amazon Kindle.

To find out more and participate in Innovation Jockeys: The Hunt for India’s most Innovative Minds, log on to Innovation Jockeys. The deadline for submitting entries is September 20, 2015. The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony on November 6, 2015 in Bangalore.