Week in Review 🏆 (Feb 17 - Feb 22)
Catch up on the week's biggest tech advances and funding milestones – your ultimate guide to what’s new and noteworthy!
Hey, Rise & Shine family!
Get set to dive into this week’s tech marvels and funding triumphs.
Let’s explore the latest breakthroughs and celebrate our shared passion for innovation and progress!
Let's dive into the tech marvels that dominated the headlines:
Quick Recap of the Week
Lenskart sharpens focus on IPO at $10 billion valuation
Pristyn Care opens its first super-speciality hospital in South Delhi
Rebel Foods launches 15-min food delivery app ‘QuickiES’
Sirona buys back brand from The Good Glamm Group
Zomato launches AI-backed customer support platform Nugget
Elon Musk’s xAI launches Grok 3, challenges ChatGPT with new reasoning models and AI agent
Pocket FM-parent launches webcomic platform Pocket Toons
Elon Musk’s Tesla begins hiring in India
Meesho launches creator marketplace to pump influencer-driven sales
OYO launches European holiday brand DanCenter in India
Grok to be a standalone app for MacOS, Windows
PhonePe starts IPO preparations, no word on timeline yet
Apple says latest iPhone 16e being made in India
Let’s move on to the top funding deals from the week.
Funding Deals
Cloud and data centre networking solutions provider Lightstorm has raised Rs 700 crore (around $80.5 million) in funding led by NIIF Infrastructure Finance Limited (NIIF IFL).
B2B e-commerce platform Udaan has raised $75 million in a Series G equity funding round at a flat valuation, as announced by the company’s co-founder and CEO, Vaibhav Gupta, during a town hall.
Waterfield Advisors, a wealth advisory and multi-family office, has secured $18 million in a funding round led by Jungle Ventures, combining primary and secondary investments.
Spyne, an AI-powered visual merchandising platform for the automotive industry, has raised $16 million in its Series A round, which was led by Vertex Ventures. Existing investors, including Accel, Storm Ventures, and Alteria Capital, also participated in the round.
Clean-label health food brand The Whole Truth (TWT) has raised $15 million in a Series C round led by Sofina, with participation from all existing investors, including Z47, Peak XV Partners, and Sauce.VC.
Enterprise AI startup Singulr AI has raised $10 million in its seed round led by Nexus Venture Partners and Dell Technologies Capital.
Natural pet treat brand Dogsee Chew has raised $8 million in its Series B round led by Ektha.com, with participation from promoters, Shivanssh Holdings, and Poddar Family Office.
Omnichannel fashion retailer Rare Rabbit has raised Rs 50 crore from existing investor A91 Partners at a valuation of $279 million.
Ikonz Studios, specializing in hyper-realistic, multilingual digital avatars and holographic technology, has secured $5 million in strategic funding as part of its ongoing pre-Series A round from Marc Jordan.
IoT Communications and data analytics startup Probus Smart Things has raised $5 million in Series A1 led by Unicorn India Ventures. The round also saw participation from US-based and Indian family offices.
As we wrap up this edition, let's reaffirm our commitment to positivity, resilience, and seizing every opportunity.
In the vast canvas of the tech world, let's pick up our brushes and paint a masterpiece of optimism and innovation together.
Here's to Rising & Shining Together! 💡
