Know What's Happening in Entrepreneurship
Know What's Happening in Entrepreneurship
PopSockets turned phone backs into a $169 million business
PopSockets began as a garage prototype in 2011, converting the unused back of smartphones into a grip accessory. By 2017 the company generated $169 million in revenue, driven by word‑of‑mouth growth, celebrity endorsements, and embedding the product into daily phone use.
China’s leading hog breeder Muyuan Foods raised roughly HKD 10.7 billion (US$1.4 billion) in its Hong Kong H‑share offering, pricing at HKD 39 per share. The IPO was heavily subscribed, with domestic demand 5.88 times and the international tranche 8.62 times, and attracted cornerstone investors such as Charoen Pokphand Foods and Wilmar International. Proceeds will fund R&D, smart‑farming technology, and overseas expansion, while the company projects a 12‑18% profit decline in 2025. The deal signals a revival of Hong Kong’s IPO market after recent regulatory easing.
Southeast Asia’s cybersecurity sector saw venture funding plunge to US$24 million in 2025, a 40 percent decline from 2024 and a stark contrast to the US$533.6 million peak in 2021. All three rounds were early‑stage, with no late‑stage deals recorded, reflecting a more...
Josh Foulger, who led Zetwerk Electronics for two years, has left the company for personal reasons. Zetwerk is now scouting replacements from firms such as Siemens and Schneider Electric. The firm recently opened a 1,200‑person manufacturing hub in Bengaluru focused...
Chaayos reported FY25 revenue of Rs 310.6 crore, a 25% rise that pushed total revenue above the Rs 300 crore threshold. The tea‑café chain slashed its net loss by 53% to Rs 25.4 crore and saw EBITDA explode 6.5‑fold to Rs 37 crore. Cost of materials rose 26%...
Voice AI startups raised more than $650 million in January. The figure goes up if you count startups like Synthesia and Decagon. I am keeping a track of voice AI funding in a post on my newsletter. https://t.co/j5BU7tpGJx
Myntra, the Flipkart‑owned fashion e‑commerce platform, has hired former Instacart and Google executive Pramod Adiddam as chief technology officer. He will report to CEO Nandita Sinha and steer technology strategy, platform innovation, and scalability as the company expands into quick...
In 2020 a 25‑year‑old ex‑agency manager founded KPI Media on a bold promise: refund half of any retainer if key performance indicators aren’t met. The agency operates solely with month‑to‑month contracts and a performance‑based guarantee, remaining fully bootstrapped. Five years...
A Southeast Asian fintech founder reported navigating seventeen regulatory changes in three years, illustrating that Asian fintech rules now shift roughly every quarter. The article argues that treating regulatory environments as stable has led to billions in remediation costs and...
A low‑cost Chinese app called “Are You Dead?” alerts a preset emergency contact if a user fails to check in for two days, targeting single women aged 25‑35 in major cities. The app briefly topped Apple China’s paid‑download chart in...
Australian AI‑driven workflow documentation startup Fluency announced a $6 million seed round, led by Accel, Atlassian’s first external investor. The round, which also includes DST Global Partners and other venture firms, values the company at roughly $30 million. Proceeds will be used...
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned as a startup founder is the value of delegation. Letting go of control was uncomfortable, but it’s the only way the company could grow past me.
When someone copies your product/design/pricing/website/feature, it’s OK to be mad. Also remember: It means they have no ideas, no insight, and they don’t know how to get it. Which means you’ll always be ahead, just by doing what you’re already doing. So do...
Hikaru Teramoto, a former portfolio manager at Lighthouse Investment Partners' Penglai Peak, has founded Kizuna Investment in Singapore. The firm will employ a hybrid Japan‑centric long/short equity and ECM strategy, supplemented by non‑Japan research to capture global thematic trends such...
Anna Sui is revitalizing her iconic 1990s label by bringing her three nieces into senior roles, with Isabelle as vice president and Jeannie handling visual identity. The brand is leveraging 90s nostalgia, high‑profile collaborations like Old Navy, and Gen Z celebrity...
SaaS valuations have slumped from seven‑to‑eight times revenue to roughly three‑to‑four times as AI tools reshape the sector. AI‑driven coding lets companies replace legacy SaaS with custom apps, eroding lock‑in and pressuring per‑seat pricing. Long‑term revenue durability is questioned, entry...
Meshpoints has unveiled a challenge‑led funding model designed to accelerate Western Australia’s innovation ecosystem. The initiative arrives as the WA government has doubled its Innovation Booster and Commercialisation Bridge grants to $2 million, offering up to $300,000 per project, and 21...
Nigerian‑born entrepreneur Seyi Fabode left GTBank to launch Power2Switch, raising $3 million and later exiting after five years. He subsequently built an IoT water‑sensor startup that raised $4 million before shutting down, and now runs an AI‑driven energy‑infrastructure platform for investors in...
Josh Ogden, CEO of AVSS, warns that Canada’s drone sector has dwindled to fewer than 20 manufacturers that merely assemble foreign components rather than develop core technology. He points to historic successes like Aeryon Labs, many of which were acquired...
PayPal re‑enters Nigeria by routing all local receipts through a partnership with Paga, turning the home‑grown wallet into the official gateway for PayPal funds. The deal gives PayPal an asset‑light market entry while granting Paga access to a massive global...
Mexican fintech Clara has renewed a $150 million credit line with Goldman Sachs, boosting its total debt capacity to over $250 million. The financing will fund expansion of its corporate payment‑solutions suite, targeting mid‑market and large enterprises across Latin America. Clara’s shift from...
Fractal Analytics secured Rs 1,248 cr from anchor investors at the top of its IPO price band, valuing the Bengaluru‑based AI firm at roughly $1.6 bn. The company trimmed its offering size by 42% to Rs 2,834 cr, splitting the issue between a fresh issue...
Ever felt org lock-in? Ime it’s pretty common in tech even if we rarely name it. You spend years mastering one company’s hyper-niche systems and edge cases. Then one day you look up, scan the market, and nothing seems to fit. Everything...
AfriMillions debuted a ₦1 billion weekly progressive lottery, broadcasting the inaugural draw live on Wazobia Max TV and radio. The event was overseen by the Lagos State Lotteries and Gaming Authority, underscoring regulatory compliance and transparency. The mobile‑first platform also promises...
The author shares six months of hands‑on experience using Claude Code to build a full‑stack SaaS platform, emphasizing that the tool’s real power lies in its configuration rather than raw code output. By connecting Claude to a live browser session...
Singapore and Estonia, despite their size, have cultivated vibrant tech and startup ecosystems anchored by strong government backing and well‑connected investor networks. Recent initiatives such as the Estonian Business Hub in Singapore enable cross‑border trade missions, exemplified by startup ÄIO’s...
South East Technological University (SETU) will host its sixth annual Women in Technology event on 12 March at the SETU Arena in Waterford. The conference aims to inspire secondary and tertiary female students by showcasing industry role models, including a...
AI inference today is dominated by centralized cloud data centers, introducing 100 ms or more of network latency per request. As AI moves into real‑time applications—voice agents, gaming, robotics—such delays become product constraints, making latency a competitive differentiator. Traditional CDNs cannot...
Temasek Trust’s Catalytic Capital for Climate & Health (C3H) is emerging as a key early‑stage investor for climate and health tech startups across Asia. By providing patient capital to ventures such as Notpla, Dozee and Equatic, C3H aims to bridge...
Nigerian AI startup Decide ranked fourth globally on the SpreadsheetBench benchmark, achieving an 82.5% accuracy score by solving 330 of 400 real‑world spreadsheet tasks. The company, founded by ex‑Flutterwave developer Abiodun Adetona, operates with just three employees and no external...
A proposal outlined by David Stephen suggests launching a digital food‑security insurance product in Venezuela to raise capital for subsidizing agricultural inputs such as irrigation, fertilizer and machinery. By linking insurance payouts to the cost of key crops—maize, beans, rice...
Capillary Technologies reported Q3 FY26 revenue of Rs 184 crore, a 16% year‑on‑year increase, while profit slipped 20% to Rs 8 crore. Employee benefit expenses surged 22% to Rs 90 crore, accounting for half of total costs. The SaaS firm debuted on Indian exchanges at a...
Shuvi Shrivastava, a Lightspeed partner and advisor in India, leverages a decade‑long tech and consulting background to back internet‑first businesses, especially fintech. Raised across small‑town India and educated abroad, she embodies the post‑1991 liberalization generation that grew up online. Her...
Tome positions itself as a next‑generation storytelling platform that blends slide‑deck functionality with generative AI. Launched in 2020 by CEO Keith Peiris and CPO Henri Liriani, the company has evolved from a simple presentation tool into a collaborative workspace where...
Markato, founded in 2023, is a curated wholesale marketplace that links premium global brands with vetted retailers throughout Asia. The platform secured seed‑stage investments from LSVP and LSIP during its launch year. Lightspeed partners Rahul Taneja and Dat Han joined...
Resonance Group and its subsidiary BASE Educational Services have seen their expense accounts frozen after lenders obtained a court stay over unpaid debts. The freeze does not reflect a cash shortage; BASE reportedly has sufficient funds to cover a year...
CollegeDekho reported a flat top line of Rs 221.6 crore for FY25, barely up from the prior year, while its net loss widened 19% to Rs 151 crore. Advertising and promotional expenses surged 31% to Rs 126 crore, becoming the largest cost driver, even as employee‑benefit...
Substack has hired former Google Canada executive Mark Swierszcz as its first head of partnerships in Canada, reflecting the platform’s rapid organic growth north of the border. Canada is now Substack’s third‑largest market worldwide, with more than half a million...
Toronto‑based Elevate Farms announced the acquisition of Ottawa‑based Fieldless Farms, merging two leading Canadian indoor‑farming startups. The combined entity aims to create a “Canadian food powerhouse,” delivering year‑round leafy greens through controlled‑environment agriculture while strengthening domestic food security. Both companies...
At the Small Firms Association’s SFA Connect event, Vodafone Ireland highlighted that 94% of Irish SMEs feel unprepared for AI‑driven cyber attacks, yet adoption of basic safeguards remains low. Only 21% of SMEs use multifactor authentication and more than half...
The Spider Awards announced its 2026 shortlist, marking the 29th anniversary of Ireland’s longest‑running digital awards. Entries surged 30% over 2025, setting a new record and underscoring the sector’s growth. A new Digital Rising Star category was introduced to spotlight...
PhysicsWallah reported Q3 FY26 operating revenue of Rs 1,082 crore, a 34% year‑on‑year increase, and total revenue of Rs 1,147 crore after adding Rs 65 crore from financial assets. Net profit rose 33% to Rs 102 crore, while total expenses grew 33% to Rs 980 crore, with employee benefits accounting...
Earmark’s new productivity suite transforms live meetings into concrete deliverables such as product specs, tickets, and slide decks, eliminating the traditional post‑call cleanup. The platform runs several specialized AI agents in parallel, translating jargon, drafting documents, and even spawning prototypes...
Management mantras act as cultural shortcuts that embed core values and simplify decision‑making. Classic examples like “garbage in, garbage out” or Charlie Munger’s incentive warning help align teams around shared principles. However, when applied rigidly, mantras can suppress nuance, discourage...
Lightspeed Commerce reported fiscal Q3 revenue of $312.3 million, slightly beating its own and analysts’ forecasts, while posting a net loss of $33.6 million, wider than a year ago. The company upgraded its full‑year revenue outlook to $1.22 billion and expects higher gross...
Smart toothbrushes have evolved into data‑driven oral‑care devices featuring Bluetooth, AI guidance, pressure sensors and high‑frequency sonic vibrations. Premium models cost around €400, roughly the price of a basic smartphone, and promise to improve brushing technique and prevent enamel damage....
Vercel’s COO Jeanne De Witt Grosser, former Stripe leader, joins First Round’s Executive Function podcast to dissect what separates good executives from great ones. She details Vercel’s rigorous executive interview framework, the use of driver trees for metric ownership, and...
Rayhawk Technologies, founded by Tom Boehm, has turned a family‑rooted safety concern into an automated gantry system that opens and closes railcar lids at grain elevators. Leveraging machine‑learning and computer‑vision, the solution replaces hazardous manual work with precise, weather‑resilient robotics....
Bengaluru‑based data platform Tracxn reported flat Q3 FY26 revenue, slipping to Rs 21 crore, a 2% decline from the same quarter last year. Total expenses rose 8.6% to Rs 22.8 crore, driven largely by employee benefits, pushing the company into...
Calgary‑based AgTech startup Brilliant Harvest announced a $4 million USD seed round, led by returning investors Builders VC and AltaML and joined by FTW Ventures, Alpaca VC, Automotive Ventures, SVG Ventures and NYA Ventures. The AI‑driven platform, which parses technical manuals...
Nykaa reported Rs 2,873 crore revenue in Q3 FY26, a 27% year‑on‑year increase, while net profit surged 2.5‑fold to Rs 68 crore. The beauty segment continued to dominate, delivering 91% of total sales, and operating costs rose to Rs 2,753 crore. Sequentially, profit more than doubled...
