Author: Arabian Media staff

B2B ecommerce unicorn udaan has acquired retail-tech startup ShopKirana in an all-stock transaction, as it looks to accelerate its offerings and scale ahead of a planned public debut. The acquisition, subject to regulatory approvals, will see Info Edge join udaan as a shareholder. Other ShopKirana investors including Sixth Sense Ventures, Oman India Joint Investment Fund, and Incubate Fund will also hold stakes in the combined entity. The deal values ShopKirana at the same valuation from its last fundraise. Founded in 2015 by Deepak Dhanotiya, Sumit Ghorawat, and Tanutejas Saraswat, ShopKirana works with over 50,000 kirana stores across Madhya Pradesh, Uttar…

From Shiprocket’s decentralised quick commerce push to ServiceNow India’s ambitions to harness AI and build for global markets, YourStory brings you today’s headlines with the latest developments across sectors.Featured storiesNo dark stores, no fleets: Shiprocket’s decentralised quick commerce playNew Delhi-based Shiprocket, best known for powering India’s direct-to-consumer (D2C) logistics, is quietly scaling up its plans in the quick commerce space with a sharp focus on enabling hyperlocal sellers. Still in the MVP (minimum viable product) phase, the startup’s new service is processing 300,000-400,000 quick commerce deliveries a month across six cities, including Delhi, Bengaluru, and Mumbai, through a network of last-mile…

Indore retained the top position among the cleanest cities for the eighth time in a row, followed by Surat and Navi Mumbai in the government’s annual cleanliness survey.The results of the Swachh Survekshan were announced on Thursday.In the category of 3-10 lakh population, Noida emerged as the cleanest city, followed by Chandigarh and Mysore.President Droupadi Murmu presented the awards at a ceremony in New Delhi, celebrating the achievements of top-performing cities under the Swachh Bharat Mission. The event was also attended by Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal and other dignitaries.The annual cleanliness survey evaluates cities across multiple…

Streaming giant Netflix reported a 16% year-over-year jump in revenue for the second quarter of 2025, reaching $11.08 billion. The growth was driven by a rising subscriber base, higher subscription prices, and increased advertising sales.The company also raised its full-year revenue forecast to between $44.8 billion and $45.2 billion, up from the previous range of $43.5 billion to $44.5 billion.“The majority of the increase in our revenue forecast reflects the recent depreciation of the US dollar vs. most other currencies, with the balance attributable to continued business momentum driven by solid member growth and ad sales,” it said in a…

For over a decade, India’s startup ecosystem has been enamoured with unicorns—those elusive startups valued at over $1 billion. They have long symbolised scale, speed, and headline-worthy growth. But as economic headwinds gain force globally, the ecosystem is undergoing a quiet but powerful recalibration.From my vantage point as an early-stage investor, it’s clear: the age of the unicorn is giving way to something more grounded and sustainable. Investors are now favouring startups that build slow and steady, with capital discipline and long-term value creation at their core.The tide has turnedOnce upon a time, capital was cheap and abundant. The mantra…

New Delhi-based Shiprocket, best known for powering India’s direct-to-consumer (D2C) logistics, is quietly scaling up its plans in the quick commerce space with a sharp focus on enabling hyperlocal sellers.Still in the MVP (minimum viable product) phase, the startup’s new service is processing 300,000-400,000 quick commerce deliveries a month across six cities, including Delhi, Bengaluru, and Mumbai, through a network of last-mile delivery partners.The service is available on a separate app called the Shiprocket Quick Delivery App on Android and iOS.“We are big believers that the next evolution of e-commerce is quick commerce. Not just for grocery or food, but…

Gurugram-based Smartworks Coworking Spaces Ltd has made a successful market debut this week, with shares trading at a 7% premium following its initial public offering (IPO). The stock commenced trading at Rs 435 on the National Stock Exchange and Rs 436.1 on the Bombay Stock Exchange, compared to the issue price of Rs 407. The public offering generated Rs 445 crore through issuance of new shares, while existing stakeholders sold shares valued at Rs 137.6 crore through an offer for sale (OFS).The IPO was oversubscribed 13.92 times with total bids reaching approximately Rs 5,700 crore. This strong response was driven…

While India’s deeptech ecosystem is full of potential, it currently grapples with funding challenges. At Prosus Luminate, entrepreneurs Kunal Shah, Mukesh Bansal, and Shradha Sharma came together to discuss how the sector’s true strength lies in compounding talent, ideas and markets. Once a niche within the broader startup landscape, Deeptech is now emerging as a critical pillar of the country’s innovation economy. With nearly 4,000 deeptech startups spanning areas such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, robotics, space tech, and biotech, India is cementing its place as a global innovation hub.According to Nasscom’s 2024 report, India’s Deeptech Dawn, cumulative global VC investments in…

ChatGPT can now create a PowerPoint presentation or make purchases online for you — with just a prompt.OpenAI released the new ChatGPT agent on Thursday, a general-purpose AI tool that can complete complex tasks on a user’s behalf, like searching the web, running code, and creating slideshows and spreadsheets. The AI agent can click, type, and submit forms on its own based on a natural language prompt, and users can interrupt it at any time. It’s part of OpenAI’s effort to make ChatGPT more of a tool capable of handling autonomous tasks instead of just a chatbot that answers questions.…

Flipkart has introduced a new initiative called ‘Advertise Now, Pay Later’ (ANPL) that allows sellers on its platform to launch advertising campaigns without making an upfront payment. The programme aims to simplify access to digital advertising for small businesses and new sellers by removing financial and procedural barriers.The model enables sellers to run ads across Flipkart’s platform with no joining fees, no interest, and no penalties for delayed payments. Instead, the cost of the campaign is deducted from the seller’s earnings at the beginning of the following month.According to Flipkart, the offering is designed to support sellers who may not…