Unifying the “bunch of grapes”: Rishabh Kumar on building Angoor AI as an agentic AI layer for customer communication
In an exclusive interview with Indian Startup Times, Rishabh Kumar, co-founder of Angoor AI, explained why he and his team are building an agentic AI platform designed to unify customer communication across multiple channels instead of adding yet another standalone automation tool. His conviction was straightforward: B2C businesses in India and beyond are drowning in […]
ByteAsk Raises $1 Million Pre-Seed to Build AI Coding Agents for C and C++ Codebases
AI coding agent startup ByteAsk has raised $1 million in a pre-seed funding round led by Y Combinator and Entrepreneur First, with participation from angel investors. The startup plans to deploy the capital toward product and infrastructure development, engineering and research hiring, GPU compute, training data, and enterprise-grade security infrastructure. Founded in 2026 by Anirudha […]
Fulva: How Four College Friends Are Turning India’s Traditional Halwa Into a Global Brand
For centuries, halwa has been a beloved part of India’s food culture, yet it has remained largely unbranded and fragmented across regions. Fulva, founded by four college friends from Kerala, is working to change that by building the country’s first dedicated halwa brand starting with the 500-year-old Calicut halwa and expanding to regional and modern […]
Indian Walker Raises Pre-Seed Funding from Palette Wealth Management at ₹20 Crore Valuation
Delhi-based carry-first streetwear brand Indian Walker has raised an undisclosed amount in a pre-seed funding round from Palette Wealth Management (PWM), at a post-money valuation of ₹20 crore. The round marks the brand’s first institutional funding since its inception. Indian Walker is part of CoFounder Circle (CFC) Venture Studio, a consumer-focused venture studio founded by […]
PhonePe Secures In-Principle Approval From UAE Central Bank for Two Payment Licences
Digital payments platform PhonePe has secured In-Principle Approval (IPA) from the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) for two payment licences, marking a key step in the company’s plans to establish its regulated payments presence in the UAE. The approval covers the Retail Payment Services and Card Schemes (RPSCS) licence and the Stored Value Facilities […]
Lavni Ventures Closes Rs 200 Crore Fund II to Back Deep-Tech Health and Climate Startups
Early-stage venture capital firm Lavni Ventures has closed its second deep-tech impact fund, securing its target corpus of Rs 200 crore, or approximately $21 million, in committed capital. The closure comes a year after the first close of Fund II in August 2025. The fund also retains a green-shoe option of Rs 100 crore, which […]
Demoverse Raises $600K Pre-Seed Funding Led by Lumikai to Build AI-Powered Product Co-Creation Platform
Bengaluru-based AI-powered product co-creation startup Demoverse has raised $600K in a pre-seed funding round led by gaming and interactive media-focused venture capital firm Lumikai. Lumikai invested $500K in the round through its Pixels programme. The funding round also saw participation from Marlan, a UAE-based investor-operator focused on deep tech, along with a group of angel […]
Suresh Jain on What Makes a Startup Investable: Conviction, Technology and the Future of India’s Startup Ecosystem
India’s startup landscape has opened up a wide range of opportunities for entrepreneurs and investors, particularly as technology continues to reshape how businesses are built and scaled. But for early-stage investors, finding the right opportunity often comes down to understanding what lies behind the numbers: the idea, the founder and the problem the startup is […]
Definedge Raises Rs 22 Crore in Pre-Series A Round to Scale Wealth-Tech Platforms
Pune-based fintech and brokerage startup Definedge has raised Rs 22 crore in a pre-Series A funding round, taking its total funding raised to Rs 30 crore. The round saw continued participation from existing investors Nitin Agarwal and D. Prasad, along with new investors Anant Jain and Sachin Kasera. Definedge had previously raised its first institutional […]
From Tournament Halls to 10,000+ Students: How Chandrajeet Rajawat Is Building Kingdom of Chess Into a Cognitive Learning Platform
For Chandrajeet Rajawat, founder of chess education startup Kingdom of Chess, the journey from competitive chess to entrepreneurship was shaped by a combination of personal hardship, teaching experience and a desire to create better chess infrastructure for young learners. What started as an individual pursuit of competitive chess has evolved into an education venture that […]
