1947 Tech 🇮🇳: 137

Once a week newsletter: Insights on Tech, markets, startups, venture capital, and foreign investments in India

1. India added 1,600 tech start-up, 12 unicorns in 2020: Nasscom report

Excellent breakdown of the tech ecosystem of India in 2020.

A few takeaways:

• Tech start-up base continues to expand steadily at 8–10%

• Record 12 unicorns added in 2020 — highest ever in a calendar year

• Investor sentiment recovered with H2 2020 funding up by 90% over H1 2020

• 2,100 start-ups leveraged deep-tech up from 1,600 in 2019

• Potential unicorn pipeline stays strong with 1.5X growth since 2019

Depending on headwinds, 2021 promises to be a positive year for Indian tech start-ups — marching steadily towards a trillion-dollar digital economy goal.

India added 1,600 tech start-up, 12 unicorns in 2020: Nasscom report

2. YouTube and WhatsApp inch closer to half a billion users in India

With China keeping its doors closed to U.S. tech giants, India emerged as the top market for Silicon Valley and Chinese companies looking to continue their growth in the last decade. 

India had about 50 million internet users in 2010, but it ended the decade with more than 600 million. 

In the month of December, YouTube had 425 million monthly active users on Android phones and tablets in India, according to App Annie, the data of which an industry executive shared with TechCrunch. In comparison, WhatsApp had 422 million monthly active users on Android in India last month.

Factoring in the traction both these apps have garnered on iOS devices, WhatsApp still assumes a lead in India with 459 million active users1, but YouTube is not too far behind with 452 million users.

YouTube and WhatsApp inch closer to half a billion users in India

Worth your attention:

1. The Indus Valley Playbook link

2. FirstCry’s early investors look to sell stake at $2.1 billion valuation link

3. Growth-stage startups get biggest VC dealslink

4. Zerodha launches non-profit org Rainmatter Foundation to fight climate change link

5. Mirae Asset launches early stage-focused fund for Indian startups link

Funding:

1. Indian B2B e-commerce startup Udaan raises $280 million link

2. India’s CRED raises $81 million, buys back shares worth $1.2 million from employees link

3. Google and Snap in talks to invest in India’s ShareChatlink

4. Bira 91 raises $30 million from Japan’s Kirin Holdings link

5. Warburg invests $100 mn in boAt link

6. La Renon raises $30 million from A91 Partners at $500 million valuation link

Thank you for reading. Please share any feedback, questions or comments with me on Twitter :)