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|In: Funding|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

Venuelook, an Online-to-Offline [O2O] platform and marketplace for venue aggregation, recommendation and booking has raised an undisclosed amount in their pre-series A funding from marquee angel investors and successful entrepreneurs like Srikant Sastri [Co-founder, Crayon Data], Shailesh Rao [Senior Advisor – TPG; McKinsey & Co; Board Member – JLL], VP Rajesh [Managing Partner – Banyan Capital Advisors LLP] and Vishal Sampat [Founder of Convonix].

Venuelook’s proprietary aggregation and AI backed algorithms help identify and match customer requirements with the best venue options available, thus simplifying the venue discovery and booking process for weddings, social and corporate events. Their experienced event managers help ensure the event is smooth and hassle-free.

Founded by a first-generation woman entrepreneur, Ruchi Garg, with over 12+ years of experience in technology and events industry, Venuelook was started with an aim to create an end-to-end solution for every event, from weddings to corporate events, celebratory occasions and get-together parties. Venuelook helps discover and book the right kind of venue using a combination of technology and domain expertise thus offering the Indian consumer a one-stop-shop solution for all their venue booking and event requirements.

Started from Delhi and first covering NCR, Venuelook has helped over 2 lac people discover the right venue for their events. Venuelook’s engine has also resulted in better fill rates. Srikant Sastri, Co-founder, Crayon Data commented

Our investment decision was influenced by the robust tech and execution capabilities built by Ruchi and her team which has resulted in a phenomenal growth rate of over 20% month over month in the last 1 year.

VenueLook’s founder Ruchi said

Venuelook has over 15,000 venues already listed, making us the biggest marketplace of event spaces in India. We plan to use the funds from the current round to replicate our success in Delhi-NCR to other major cities of the country. We have already put in place a team for Mumbai and are in the process of expanding to 16 other cities.

By making the most of technology and analytics, we will provide better value to both, our end customers who want a hassle free experience while organizing their events and venue owners, who can leverage our algorithm to improve their occupancy levels.

About VenueLook

VenueLook is a venue aggregation, recommendation and booking platform for weddings, social and corporate events. Since its launch, the company has served 2 lac+ real events and now has 15,000+ venue spaces showcased on the platform making it the biggest aggregator of venues [event spaces] in India.

|In: startups|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

Coworly, an online co working space reservation business, has announced the launch of its operations in Delhi-NCR region. Coworly aims to reshape the way professionals search for and compare co-working and alternative office space solutions.The platform allows professionals to make informed decisions by personalizing their office space search and providing them access to a deep supply of co-working company’s information and prices.

Image Source – CoWorking

Coworly enables its partners/advertisers to grow their businesses by providing access to a broad audience of professionals via its websites and app. As of December 31, 2018, Coworly has partnered with 55 co-working space providers serving more than 1000+ bookings per month. The platform currently provides solutions across Delhi, Gurgaon, Faridabad and Noida and aims to enter five markets in the country in 2019.

Speaking about the launch, Sandeep Singh, Founder- Coworly said

Coworly aims to help professionals and freelancers find the best solution for their office space needs. The platform brings together space providers and customers by giving them options according to their needs and in their budget.

Co-working sector has seen exponential growth in the country in past 5 years and with more than 350 operators looking to tap into the market, the customers have pool of options to choose from. We identified the need for a platform which will bring together all the players and make it easier for customers to compare and choose the best suited option in their budget. We plan to enter more markets like Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad soon as these markets are seeing huge demand for such flexible workspaces.

Other than providing smooth experience in booking office spaces to customers, Coworly also helps their partners to manage their inventory and resources through its own SaaS based software.

About Coworly

Coworly is a flexible space as a service provider offering meeting rooms, conference rooms, training rooms.Launched in 2018 and serving more than 1000+ bookings per month.Our customers start from an entrepreneur to large corporations. 50+ space providers across India trust Coworly to accept bookings on their behalf and growing rapidly. It is a backed by a small team of 5 people, who are making Coworly a service loved by professionals to achieve more in less time. For more information, please visit Coworly

|In: Funding|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

Indian Angel Network, Asia’s largest network of Angel investors, has invested Rs. 3.5 crore in Pune-based start-up SparesHub, an automobile parts start-up. SparesHub will utilize the funds for its geographical expansion and to strengthen its technology capabilities. The funding was led by Indian Angel members Neeraj Garg, Harsh Gandhi, and Ankur Agarwal.

Founded by Tapas P. Gupta and Arijit A. Chakraborty, the SparesHub team currently comprises 27 employees. It solves the problem of the unavailability of, and over-expensive, automobile parts which result in a significant loss of time, money, and efforts for car owners in India. Since its inception, SparesHub has been working to dis-intermediate and digitize the automobile parts industry in India.

To this end, it is introducing modern supply chain and logistics methodologies in the industry, and caters to B2B customers. SparesHub works with India’s leading car companies and part manufacturers to make OEM and OES parts available to its customers [multi-brand service centres, service aggregators, fleet owners and insurance companies]. Existing investor Holomua Group Inc, also participated in the investment round.

Padmaja Ruparel, President and Co-founder of Indian Angel Network, added

The decision to invest in SparesHub was taken after a careful assessment of the business, the team’s vision, and its strategy to achieve the same. The company has the makings of a modern tech-based venture, with a unique business model, a strong technological framework, a product that fills a major gap in the market, and of course, a strong team. We are confident that the team will continue to enhance its product and build its USP, and emerge as one of the leading players in its domain.

Tapas Gupta – CEO of SparesHub, commented

Our mission is to create a whole new level of customer delight by leveraging technology. SparesHub is challenging the traditional methodologies and bringing in global best practices in the automobile parts supply chain and logistics domain.

We are truly grateful for the funding from Indian Angel Network and the faith they have shown in our business model, and we hope for a long and fruitful collaboration with the Network.

Indian Angel Network is Asia’s largest network of angel investors that invests in early-stage businesses, which have the potential to create disruption. The members of the network are leaders in the entrepreneurial ecosystem with strong operational experience as CEOs or a background of creating new and successful ventures. IAN goes beyond the normal, informal, local club structure of angel groups to a larger institutionalized model because of its nimble but robust, standardized, and transparent processes that allow it to scale across geographies and a large number of members.

|In: Technology|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

CropIn, a SaaS-based AgTech company, has made it to the list of THRIVE Top 50 Companies 2019 in recognition of its scalable and disruptive agtech solutions. The full-stack agtech company has expanded across Southeast Asia, Africa and Europe, and is generating more than 50% of its current revenue from its international markets.

Image Source

Listed among the top 50 companies this year, CropIn would be showcasing its technology at the annual THRIVE Innovation Summit scheduled to be held on 27th March 2019 at Santa Clara, Silicon Valley. Beth Ford, CEO Land O’lakes and other top leaders and investors in the AgTech and FoodTech space would be participating in the event. The summit is a platform for innovative organizations to engage with leaders of Fortune 500 food and agriculture corporations scouting for the latest disruptive technologies.

Commenting on the development, Krishna Kumar, CEO, CropIn, said

We are thrilled to be recognized as an innovative player in the agtech domain. The ranking corroborates the enterprise readiness and scalability of our platform, and encourages us to build more ground-breaking innovations for the agricultural sector.

CropIn has been actively doing some high impact work with a very diverse set of clientele and partners globally with the ultimate goal of making farming sustainable. So far, CropIn has digitized over 5 million acres of farmland and enriched the lives of nearly 2.1 million farmers, while managing 3,500 crop varieties across 30 countries.

CropIn has raised investments amounting to a total of $12 million till date, including Series A funding for an undisclosed amount from Singapore-based BeeNext in 2016 and $8 million in a Series B funding round from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Strategic Investment Fund [SIF] and Chiratae Ventures [formerly IDG Ventures] in 2018. The current institutional investment partners of CropIn are Ankur Capital, BEENEXT, BSP Fund LLC, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation SIF and Chiratae Ventures.

CropIn won the ‘Best Innovation in Digital Farming Technology’ at Agrow Awards in London for its flagship product, ‘SmartFarm’. A case study on SmartFarm is also published by IVEY for classroom training of management students. ‘SmartRisk’ was the winner at the ‘HDFC Bank Digital Innovation Summit’, for its capabilities that will make agri-lending and agri-insurance processes more data-driven.

About Thrive 50

The THRIVE Top 50 Innovation Showcase and report spotlights fifty growth stage companies from around the world pushing the boundaries of innovation and technology in agriculture. THRIVE Top 50 is part of SVG Partners’ corporate innovation program, which connects major corporate brands like Coca-Cola, Corteva, Trimble, Land O’Lakes, Wells Fargo, Heidenhain, EY, Forbes, National Pork Board, Driscoll’s Berries, Taylor Farms, and others with promising growth stage companies for custom pilots and partnerships. Top 50 startups are scouted for exemplary leadership, technology, and traction, and selected based on alignments with specific organizational criteria and industry pain points outlined by corporate partners. For more information, please visit THRIVE Top 50 Innovation Showcase.

|In: startups|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

Robotech Private Limited has been selected by Startup Grind, powered by Google for Startups, as one of the top 60 startups inducted into the 2019 Accelerate Program. Additionally, Robotech will be a featured startup for the 2019 Startup Grind Global Conference held February 12th through February 13th in Redwood City, California.

India’s real flag-bearer of 21st-century education, Robotech, recently launched an online peer-to-peer learning platform named My STEM Time, comprising a plethora of STEM-based educational videos.

This ground-breaking program imparts among the learners the most desired skills of the current scenario. These skills revolve around automation systems, AI, IOT, Drones, 3D Printing, Advanced Microcontrollers, Robotics, Programming languages, and other technologies in demand. Through My STEM Time, the users [mentors and students] work in synergy to create an ecosystem where hands-on learning is accessible to everyone.

Expressing enthusiastic views over the selection for Startup Grind’s Accelerate Program, Nishant Jain, MD, Robotech Pvt Ltd said

Robotech’s year of expertise in hands-on educational practices, teacher training programs, and PAN India-spread tinkering labs have empowered it to design this [My STEM Time] portal that caters to the future’s technological needs. We expect the Startup Grind’s Accelerate Program to be instrumental in the evolution of such ed-tech offerings by Robotech.

Apart from this online platform, Robotech has forayed into numerous other programs to prepare the learners for the next industrial revolution. These offerings include tinkering labs, STEM competitions, assessments, STEM educator program, and educational kits.

About Startup Grind

Startup Grind is the largest independent startup community, actively educating, inspiring, and connecting 2,000,000 founders in more than 600 chapters globally. Founded in Silicon Valley, it nurtures startup ecosystems in 130+ countries through events, media, and partnerships with organizations such as Google for Startups. Startup Grind also hosts two flagship conferences annually — the Global Conference and Europe Conference. To date, Startup Grind has helped millions of entrepreneurs find mentorship, connect to partners and hires, pursue funding, and reach new users.

|In: Funding|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

InsurTech startup Kruzr has raised 1.3 Million USD [Rs. 9.5 Cr] for its seed round led by Saama Capital with participation from Better Capital. Kruzr is a preventive motor insurance technology which helps insurance companies personalize policy premiums & improve their risk model by delivering an engaging preventative driving assistant to their customers. Kruzr is founded by Pallav Singh, Ayan, and Jasmeet Singh Sethi.

Kruzr blends the power of voice technology and artificial intelligence in its personal driving assistant that helps drivers minimize mobile distractions, drowsy driving, speeding and external risks like weather and accident-prone zones. In pilots with insurers, Kruzr managed to cut down distracted driving by 80%. Kruzr is working with motor insurance companies in Europe, UK and India to bring its technology to their customers to prevent accidents & improve claims.

Pallav Singh, co-founder and CEO, said

Road accidents cause over 1.3 million deaths globally every year, and motor insurance companies lose billions of dollars due to these. However, more than 75% of accidents are actually preventable with timely driver assistance. We at Kruzr are building technology to minimize these accidents and help make motor insurance truly preventive and customer-centric.

The funds raised will be utilized to grow the technology team, scale the product, and expand the business in Europe and UK.

Pallav, Ayan, Jasmeet of Kruzr

Suresh Shanmugham, Managing Partner, Saama Capital, said

We were very impressed by the founding team’s vision for Kruzr and their significant customer progress in the European automobile insurance market.  We believe Pallav, Ayan and Jasmeet can build a world-class product company out of India serving this sizeable and growing global market.

Vaibhav Domkundwar of Better Capital, said

Kruzr is leveraging the latest advances in mobile, big data, and AI to build a unique preventive driving technology that will save lives and help motor insurance companies design personalized policies. I’ve watched the Kruzr team learn and iterate to build traction with the world top insurers & am excited about the future ahead.

About Kruzr

Kruzr is positioned as the world’s first technology powered smart driving assistant and is designed to automate driver safety. The mobile app automatically detects driving and begins to play the role of your driving assistant. It filters out all important calls and messages, thus reducing distraction while driving, one of the major causes for road traffic incidents across the globe.

|In: Fintech|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

NiYO [earlier coverage here], the new-age digital banking solutions provider for salaried employees, has launched NiYO Global Travel Card, which is the first-ever forex card with ‘zero forex mark-up’. Travelers, using this card, will not pay any currency exchange premium and international transaction fees – unlike a regular forex card.

With the NiYO Global Travel Card in her pocket, the overseas traveller will effectively have no need for the usual multi-currency forex cards or travellers’ cheques – all the while making international transactions cost-effective across 150-plus countries and 35 million merchants worldwide.

Besides the cost-effective feature, NiYO Global Card also offers instant digital on-boarding, convenient loading from the user’s bank account via NEFT/IMPS. The card is supported by a cutting-edge mobile app, which gives users the ability to lock and unlock either the full card or a payment channel anytime, anywhere in the world. The app also provides real-time notifications on usage, exchange rates and refunds, while helping users find convenient ATM locations, avail nearby offers – thus making it one of the most modern cards in the world today.

Further, business travellers can submit claims on-the-go by adding bills for each transaction right in the app. These claims can be instantaneously approved by their employer organizations via the NiYO Corporate Portal.

Vinay Bagri, Co-founder & CEO, NiYO said

The forex card market in India is worth $17 billion; around 20 million people are expected to travel abroad this year. By 2020, this number will rise to 50 million. With such a staggering number of Indians travelling abroad, we aim to capture a lion’s share of the market.

Virender Bisht, Co-founder & CTO, NiYO said

Our aim has been to facilitate hassle-free experience among our customer. Forex is one of the key components for travel and remains a concern. International travellers are always burdened with high currency exchange rate charged by banks, which varies between 1~3% of the amount transacted. Banks also charge either a flat fee or a set percentage of the transaction amount in addition to the currency exchange charge.

Moreover, people are also very worried about card security abroad. This card is a one-stop solution for all of these problems. We have invested our best effort and technology in the designing process to provide the safety feature along with other components. The card has already been reviewed and appreciated by many top executives from the India Inc. and today, we are glad to present it to our customers at large.

Founded by Vinay Bagri and Virender Bisht, NiYO works at the intersection of financial services, HR and technology. NiYO was launched in July 2015 and since then has already clocked in more than 3000 corporates and is being used by over 5 Lakh salaried employees in these organizations.

About NiYO

NiYO is a fintech startup conceptualized in 2015 that offers digital banking solutions for salaried employees across various sectors. Currently, with over 5 Lakh customers and relationships with 3000 corporates, NiYO is growing to be a truly trusted digital banking platform across India.

|In: startups|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

The Grand Finale of Super Starter Inc. – The Healthcare Start-up Challenge was held at Fortis Memorial Research Institute [FMRI], Gurgaon. FMRI is the first healthcare delivery Institution to have pioneered the start-up challenge which will act as a launch pad for new, previously untested and unimplemented healthcare technology/idea.

Image Source

Close to 50 entries were received from all over the world. After a detailed scrutiny by an esteemed panel, consisting of Saurabh Srivastava, Padmashree awardee and former chairman-NASSCOM; Dr Ajit Singh, MD-Artiman Ventures; Dr Amit Varma, MD-Quadria Capital; Mr Varun Khanna, Chief Commercial Officer- Fortis Healthcare; Col Harinder Chehal, COO-Fortis NCR and Dr Ritu Garg, Zonal Director, FMRI Gurugram; 10 finalists were selected and the final presentation of ideas was held today at Fortis Memorial Research Institute. The top three teams which made to the finale were Lyfas, Keyer and Team Shubham Mishra.

The thought behind this initiative was to provide a platform to young entrepreneurs where they could have seamless access to clinicians, patients, data, and infrastructure and hospital ecosystem. This would help them build their products keeping in mind the real time outcomes. The winners will be given four months’ time to implement, test, re- design their idea at FMRI. The idea is to gain opportunity to showcase talent, meet and woo capitalists & investors, earn credibility in association with Fortis, instant entry into the mindset of masses and product’s feedback by industry’s thought leaders.

Team Shubham Mishra wins #Super Starters Inc. Challenge pioneered by Fortis Gurugram

The Winning Team Shubham Mishra said

Winning this challenge will give us the much required launchpad. Our work is going to be a game changer, helping us bring about a massive change in the healthcare landscape. We are hoping that through our work we are able to develop a point care diagnosis equipment which can detect different kind of biological analyses within a minute, at an estimated cost of just 20-25 rupees.

The #StartupInc Challenge platform gave us an opportunity to learn, interact with caregivers-patients, and get unsurpassed exposure and valuable feedback. It was an extremely good networking opportunity and most importantly it gave us the chance to refine and launch our product. We will forever be grateful to Fortis Healthcare for this fantastic opportunity that has spearheaded our work in the right direction, motivating and enabling us to continue innovating, developing and creating technologies that will help change the face of medicine in India.

The 2nd runner up, Lyfas, had innovated a non – invasive mobile diabetic screening device which would help  address the challenges of diabetic screening, monitoring and real – time streaming of results. The 1st runner up, Keyer, had created a device which enabled contraction monitoring during the intrapartum period which will be instrumental  in saving of lives at birth [for both the mother and the baby].

Dr. Ritu Garg, Zonal Director, Fortis Memorial Research Institute, said

I would like to congratulate Team Shubham Mishra for winning the 1st ever ‘Super Starter Inc. – The Healthcare Start-up Challenge’. Ten ideas were presented that were unique and exemplary in their own way. We selected Team Shubham Mishra as the winner as their idea had the most potential for value based real time outcomes. I would also like to thank everyone who enthusiastically participated in the event and made it a huge success. We will surely be gearing up for a second edition soon.

Col. H S Chehal, Chief Operating Office of Delhi/NCR Region said

I would like to congratulate Fortis Memorial Research Institute for creating the first ever ‘Super Starter Inc.- The Healthcare Start-up Challenge’. In today’s scenario establishing a healthcare leader requires us to go hand in hand with start-ups, making healthcare affordable and accessible to all. Through this initiative, Fortis is establishing itself as a thought leader in the healthcare field, facilitating the growth and expansion of healthcare technology. Fortis will become a ‘real life experimental lab’ for these budding young enthusiastic entrepreneurs.

A healthy startup eco-system is the need of need of the hour. Start-ups continue to remain the center of innovation with the potential to enhance employment generation and bring about the much needed change to boost up the customer satisfaction.