S Shanthi

Karnātaka

Senior Assistant Editor at Entrepreneur IN

Covering startups @ Financial Express

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Articles

Seafund eyes 18-20 deeptech bets

2 weeks ago | financialexpress.com | S Shanthi

Early-stage deeptech venture capital firm Seafund is targeting 18-20 investments by FY27 from its Rs 250 crore Fund II, with a near-term plan of making 6-8 new investments in FY26. The Bengaluru-based firm is shaping its portfolio around deeptech, AI SaaS, mobility, and sustainability, with sub-sectoral interests in semiconductors, space, dual-use defence, IoT & robotics, cybersecurity, biotech, EV infrastructure, clean energy, fintech infra, and smart manufacturing.
Investors spend big bucks on patent-led innovation

2 weeks ago | financialexpress.com | S Shanthi

Venture capitalists (VCs) are increasingly placing their bets on startups with strong intellectual property (IP) portfolios, especially in foundational technologies. The push towards deeptech and verifiable innovation is steering funding flows away from startups built on incremental improvements, and more towards those with patent-backed technologies. According to data from Tracxn, Indian deep-tech startups with significant IP raised $994 million across 284 rounds in 2024.
Code goes auto-pilot: Startups eye 85% automation by 2025

2 weeks ago | financialexpress.com | S Shanthi

Coding automation is advancing at an unprecedented pace across the startup ecosystem, with companies currently reporting automation levels between 15% and 50% and targeting 40% to 85% by the end of 2025. What once seemed like a distant vision has quickly become a strategic priority as startups adopt generative AI tools to reimagine the way software is written, tested, and deployed.
10 pivots and multiple iterations

2 weeks ago | financialexpress.com | S Shanthi

Rohan Nayak, the 32-year-old co-founder and CEO of Pocket Entertainment, was in grade 6 in DPS RK Puram, Delhi, when he discovered his first love – Naruto, a Japanese manga television series. The first love affair lasted seven to eight years before it gave way to movies. When he joined IIT Kharagpur in 2010 to pursue a degree in mechanical engineering, he spent the first year watching around 150 movies from different genres, languages and formats.
Quality over cost: New-age dairy brands on the rise

2 weeks ago | financialexpress.com | S Shanthi

The growing demand for preservative-free and traceable dairy products, coupled with the adoption of quick commerce and direct-to-consumer (D2C) models, is fuelling the rise of new-age dairy brands. These startups are not only expanding rapidly but also attracting significant investor interest. In the past year alone, around nine dairy startups raised funding, with 5-6 brands such as Doodhvale Farms and Cremeitalia securing investments in the last six months.
Celebs turn cold towards startup investments

2 weeks ago | financialexpress.com | S Shanthi

The once-booming trend of celebrities investing in startups seems to be fading. After a surge in 2023, when movie stars and sports personalities eagerly backed young companies, their participation in startup funding has declined significantly. Analysts broadly attribute this change in trend to reputational risks, shifting to safer investments, higher scrutiny by financial advisers, and high marketing costs.
How a love affair with Kolkata’s famed kathi rolls gave birth to a unicorn

3 weeks ago | financialexpress.com | S Shanthi

During his younger days, Jaydeep Barman, the 51-year-old co-founder of Rebel Foods, was fond of “football, food and laziness”. While the first two remain an abiding passion — the second one, in fact, has reaped rich dividends in his professional life — Barman has obviously given up on his fondness for the third one.
In IPO season, startups look for seasoned CFOs

3 weeks ago | financialexpress.com | S Shanthi

In a bid to prepare for public listings, startups are in a race to secure top-tier chief financial officers (CFOs) with extensive market experience. SUGAR Cosmetics recently announced the appointment of Naveen Bhadada as its CFO, bringing over 19 years of experience to the company. Similarly, The Sleep Company appointed Gaurav Shah as its CFO in January this year.
Jackpot after four failures

1 month ago | financialexpress.com | S Shanthi

For Naveen Tewari, CEO and founder of adtech unicorn InMobi, a degree from an Indian Institute of Technology was a given. Reason: everybody in his family was a professor at IIT, starting from his grandmother, who joined IIT Kanpur in the 1960s to teach Mathematics. She was also the first female professor across all IIT branches. Already a subscriber? Sign inTewari was, in fact, born and raised in, in his words, ‘an academic bubble’ on the campus of IIT Kanpur.
Investors sound alarm on startup ‘AI washing’

1 month ago | financialexpress.com | S Shanthi

Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy’s recent concerns over the growing hype surrounding artificial intelligence (AI), wherein many systems being marketed as AI are merely traditional programming, resonate strongly with the venture capitalist community. “I think somehow it has become a fashion in India to talk of AI for everything. I have seen several normal, ordinary programmes touted as AI,” Murthy remarked at a recent conference in Mumbai.