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1947 Tech 🇮🇳: 141
Indian-origin founders, TikTok India, Twitter India, Grofers going public through SPAC and more!
1. At two buzzy US startups, Indian-origin founders
Their rise marks a shift from the Indian-American dream of past decades, when the ideal career path would see a techie secure stable jobs at large and profitable IT companies and rise up the ranks. While Indian-American executives have had a dream run helming storied tech companies — Google, Microsoft, IBM and Adobe are all currently led by such leaders — success stories as founders at major startups have been less common
“Indians are part of the cultural fabric of Silicon Valley today, and there is a mild stereotype that an Indian will be successful owing to their legacy with tech in the Valley. In the 80s, Indians did face heavy discrimination, and they were considered ‘outliers’. But the community came together and uplifted each other,” said India-American technology entrepreneur and academic Vivek Wadhwa
2. ByteDance in Talks to Sell Its Indian TikTok Assets
ByteDance Ltd. is said to be exploring a sale of the India operations of TikTok to rival unicorn Glance, in an attempt to resuscitate the once-thriving short video sharing app that’s been banned indefinitely in the South Asian nation.
The discussions have been initiated by Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp. conglomerate, according to people familiar with the talks, who declined to be identified because the talks are private as well as early and complex. SoftBank is a backer of Glance’s parent InMobi Pte as well as TikTok’s Chinese parent, ByteDance.
Worth your attention:
Koo app: Amid govt vs Twitter row, A-listers go Koo link
Twitter suspends over 500 accounts in India after government warning link
Tata Group reaches agreement to buy majority stake in BigBasket link
Byju’s nears $150 million acquisition of Edtech rival Toppr Technologies link
SoftBank-backed Grofers weighs listing via US SPAC deal link
TrueScale Cap sets up a maiden fund for investments in startups link
Funding:
SoftBank to lead a $250 Mn round in Meesho at $1.5–1.8 Bn valuation link
Google may lead $300 million round in ShareChat app link
BharatPe lands $108 million in funding led by Coatue Management link
KreditBee bags $75 Mn in Series C round from Premji Invest, Mirae Asset and Alpine link
Zolve raises $15 million for its cross-border neobank aimed at global citizens link