Author: Team CEO VINE

Bengaluru-based battery deeptech startup Flowatt Battery Science has raised ₹2.2 crore in a pre-seed funding round led by PedalStart.

The capital will be used to advance its battery technology, validate its proof of concept (POC), build partnerships with insurers, EV financiers, OEMs, and other ecosystem players, and expand its team across technology, operations, and business development.

The funding will accelerate Flowatt’s mission to transform electric vehicle (EV) fleet management through its Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) model.

The platform is designed to lower upfront battery costs for fleet operators while improving operational efficiency and ensuring revenue predictability, especially for last-mile delivery fleets.

Founded in 2023 by Siddhartha Srivastava, Bikesh Jha, and Vikash Singh, Flowatt integrates IoT-based monitoring, predictive maintenance, and data analytics to extend battery life, reduce operational costs, and optimize fleet performance.

Currently, the company has deployed around 1,500 batteries across multiple Indian cities under its BaaS model, catering primarily to e-commerce and quick-commerce logistics fleets. Flowatt aims to expand to over 15 Tier-1 and Tier-2 cities by FY 2026–27, targeting the rollout of 20,000 high-performance batteries and achieving monthly recurring revenue (MRR) of over ₹2.5 crore.

“By converting batteries into a flexible service rather than a high-cost purchase, Flowatt is addressing one of the biggest challenges in India’s EV adoption and fleet electrification,” said Manas Pal and Aditya Darolia, co-founders of PedalStart.

AI-driven data security startup Matters.AI has raised ₹55 crore ($6.2 million) in a seed funding round co-led by Kalaari Capital and Endiya Partners, with participation from Better Capital, Carya Venture Partners, and several cybersecurity-focused angel investors.

The funds will be used to advance R&D in predictive threat detection, expand go-to-market operations in India and the US, and strengthen engineering and customer success teams, particularly for enterprises navigating the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) framework, the company said in a statement.

Founded in 2024 by Keshava Murthy and Harsh Sahu, the Bengaluru-based Matters.AI is developing an AI-native data security platform that functions like an autonomous engineer, analyzing data behavior, identifying risks, and mitigating threats in real time.

The platform unifies DSPM, Insider Risk, DDR, Exfiltration Defense, and DLP under a single intelligent layer capable of understanding data semantics and user interactions across multiple environments.

At the core of its innovation is the AI Security Engineer, which uses semantic graphs and predictive modeling to anticipate potential data misuse and autonomously respond across cloud, SaaS, endpoint, and on-premises systems.

It offers full-stack visibility through real-time data tracing, lineage tracking, endpoint control, and GenAI governance across tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot. The system also integrates with enterprise platforms such as Zoho, Snowflake, Salesforce, AWS, Azure, GCP, and Databricks.

Matters.AI had previously raised ₹13 crore in pre-seed funding from Better Capital and Carya Venture Partners. With this latest round, the company joins the ranks of global cybersecurity innovators like Cyera, Orca Security, and Palo Alto Networks.

Chennai-based agritech startup Fragaria Fruits has raised $2 million in seed funding led by WEH Ventures. The round also saw participation from Rainmatter by Nikhil Kamath, Spiral Ventures, and angel investors including Sashi Kumar.

This funding follows the company’s earlier ₹1.5 crore pre-seed round, marking another milestone in its mission to transform India’s premium fruit segment.

The fresh capital will help Fragaria Fruits scale operations in Bengaluru, expand its product range to include high-value fruits like blueberries and raspberries, and maintain a year-round supply of sustainably grown, premium-quality produce for Indian consumers.

Founded in 2024 by Harish Varadharajan, Timothy Chad Van Niekerk, and Damian López-Salazar, Fragaria Fruits is closing the supply gap in India’s fresh, high-quality fruit market. The startup uses advanced vertical farming and Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) technologies to cultivate fruits that meet global standards of sweetness, freshness, and sustainability.

Under its flagship brand Oh! Fruits, Fragaria produces European-grade strawberries in Chennai using pesticide-free vertical farming systems. These berries are up to twice as sweet as traditional Indian varieties and have a three times longer shelf life, setting new benchmarks for quality and freshness in the domestic market.

Sustainability is central to Fragaria’s model, with solar-powered facilities, closed-loop water recycling, and resource-efficient farming designed to minimize environmental impact. Its upcoming Bengaluru expansion will boost daily fruit output from 2–3 kg to 120–150 kg, catering to the growing demand for premium, locally grown produce.

E-commerce and cloud giant Amazon is planning to reduce around 15% of its People eXperience and Technology (PXT) division, the company’s global HR and internal operations arm, as part of a large-scale cost optimization and structural overhaul, according to a report by Fortune.

The layoffs, affecting several thousand roles worldwide, will take place in phases over the coming weeks, primarily impacting teams in HR, recruitment, and employee experience functions.

The move is part of a broader multi-year initiative to eliminate role overlaps, improve efficiency, and align workforce structure with emerging business priorities.

Founded in 1994 by Jeff Bezos, Amazon has grown from an online bookstore into a global tech leader spanning e-commerce, cloud computing, logistics, and AI.

Its HR workforce alone currently exceeds 60,000 employees, supporting over 1.5 million workers across the company. Post-layoffs, the PXT division will undergo internal restructuring, consolidating regional operations and streamlining management layers to boost agility.

This step follows earlier cuts between late 2022 and 2023, when Amazon reduced 27,000 corporate roles across retail, devices, and AWS. The latest downsizing signals a continued focus on high-growth areas such as logistics, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and AI infrastructure, as the company recalibrates for long-term efficiency and competitiveness.

Global technology leader Google has announced a $15 billion (around ₹1.3 lakh crore) investment in Visakhapatnam to develop a large-scale AI data hub over the next five years. The move marks a major expansion of Google’s artificial intelligence infrastructure in Asia.

The investment will support the creation of a next-generation data centre ecosystem, combining AI infrastructure, advanced cloud capabilities, renewable energy, and an extended fiber-optic network. The facility is set to become it’s largest data centre outside the United States, anchoring its AI operations across twelve countries.

Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud, highlighted that the Visakhapatnam hub will strengthen it’s AI-driven products while supporting India’s growing digital economy. The centre will also serve as a 1 GW landing station for Google’s high-capacity Blue Raman submarine cable system, linking India with Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Djibouti, and Oman, and complementing existing landings in Mumbai and Chennai.

Developed in partnership with AdaniConneX and Airtel, the facility will run on sustainable energy and support key it’s services including Search, Workspace, and YouTube. It will also integrate innovations from it’s R&D centres in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Pune, ensuring high-performance AI operations.

The hub is expected to benefit Indian startups, enterprises, and government initiatives seeking scalable AI and cloud technologies, positioning India as a strategic node in the global AI and data ecosystem.

AI-powered English learning platform SpeakX has raised $16 million in a pre-Series B round led by WestBridge Capital, with participation from Elevation Capital, Goodwater Capital, and angel investors Ronnie Screwvala and Shyamal Anadkat.

The fresh capital will be used to accelerate product innovation, expand user acquisition, and scale international operations, strengthening SpeakX’s mission to make English fluency accessible through AI-driven learning experiences.

Founded in 2024 by Arpit Mittal, SpeakX, formerly known as Yellow Class has transitioned from a live learning platform to an AI- and voice-based English learning app focused on improving conversational fluency among children and young learners.

The platform operates on a subscription-based model, offering interactive, speech-recognition-powered lessons that adapt to individual learning levels.

Before this round, the startup had raised $7.3 million, including a $1.3 million seed round led by India Quotient and a $6 million Series A led by Elevation Capital in 2021, bringing its total funding to $23.3 million.

Currently available in India and select international markets, the company plans to expand further across Asia and the Middle East, targeting the growing demand for affordable, AI-driven language learning solutions.

SpeakX became profitable in April 2025 and aims to build a $300–400 million business in India within the next three years.

The funding comes amid a broader slowdown in the edtech sector, where startups have raised only $140 million across 24 deals in 2025, underscoring investor confidence in SpeakX’s sustainable growth model.

Bengaluru-based gaming studio Airoclip has raised $2.75 million in a seed funding round led by T-Accelerate Capital (TAC), with participation from Centre Court Capital and BITKRAFT Ventures.

The funding will be used to accelerate the development of Airoclip’s AI-based personalization technology, strengthen its game development capabilities, and expand teams across data, design, and marketing to support its growing global player base.

Founded in 2024 by Naga Rohith Anisetty and Pruthvi Sai Y, Airoclip is reimagining mobile gaming by combining adaptive storytelling, dynamic content generation, and AI-driven personalization.

The company’s current portfolio includes mobile puzzle titles like Tap Hexa and Hexa Dreams, which have collectively crossed 300,000 installs across the US and European markets.

Airoclip’s long-term vision is to create premium, story-driven puzzle experiences for a global audience while experimenting with innovative monetization models and scalable live operations.

By merging generative AI tools with traditional game design, the startup aims to deliver deeper player engagement and unlock new opportunities in the rapidly evolving mobile gaming landscape.

Real-time social networking app Currently has raised $1 million in a funding round led by Aarvi Family Office LLP, with participation from LJ Knowledge Foundation, Dhruv Patel, Pratik Patel, Neerav Dad, Arpit Patel, Priyank Parmar, and other investors and family offices.

The newly raised capital will be used to introduce new real-time features, enhance the platform’s technology, expand its engineering and design teams, and grow city-based communities and brand collaborations, the company said.

Founded in 2023 by Mitesh Shethwala, Currently is a real-time moment-sharing social app that lets users discover what others are doing right now — fostering authentic connections, conversations, and local interactions.

The platform emphasizes spontaneity and genuineness, aiming to reshape how people share their everyday lives online.

Currently features Live Map, Authentic Status Sharing, and Business Check-Ins, positioning itself as India’s first real-time people network.

With this funding, the startup plans to expand its footprint across major Indian cities, enhance user participation, and forge partnerships that bridge online connections with real-world experiences.

Premium Indian kidswear label Orange Sugar has raised ₹4 crore in a pre-seed funding round led by Consumer Collective by Atrium and Ramakant Sharma, with additional support from angel investors including Saurabh Jain, Srivatsan Chari, Kunal Mahipal, Meghana Agarwal, and Sunil Khaitan.

The newly raised capital will enable Orange Sugar to launch new product lines, expand its offerings in the premium kidswear segment, and strengthen distribution across online marketplaces, quick commerce platforms, and offline retail outlets.

Founded in 2022 by Tarun Agrawal, Payal Agarwal, and Bharath Gupta, Orange Sugar creates apparel for children up to 10 years old, focusing on comfort, durability, and modern design. Its 100% cotton basics cater to contemporary Indian parents seeking high-quality, practical clothing for everyday wear.

The brand’s collections are available on e-commerce platforms such as Myntra, FirstCry, and Nykaa Fashion, along with its direct-to-consumer platform.

The brand aims to become India’s go-to destination for premium baby and kids’ essentials, bridging the quality gap between expensive international brands and underdeveloped local options.

Indian drone startup Airbound has raised $8.65 million in a seed round led by Lachy Groom, co-founder of Physical Intelligence.

Other participants included Humba Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and senior executives from Tesla, SpaceX, and Anduril.

Previously, the startup raised $1.7 million in a seed round led by Lightspeed, bringing its total funding to over $10 million.

The fresh capital will be used to expand Airbound’s fleet of ultra-light, rocket-inspired drones, strengthen pilot delivery programs with private hospitals, and advance its vision of achieving near-zero-cost parcel deliveries, aiming to bring delivery costs down to just one cent per package.

Founded in 2020 by Naman Pushp, who was only 15 years old at the time, Airbound has developed a tail-sitter drone built with a carbon fiber frame and a blended-wing-body design. This unique structure allows vertical takeoff like a rocket and efficient forward flight using just two propellers — significantly reducing energy use and delivery expenses.

By removing the need for human drivers and minimizing total payload weight, Airbound claims to reduce energy costs by up to 20 times per kilometer compared to traditional quadcopters. The aerodynamic design further boosts lift efficiency and cuts thrust requirements, making drone-based deliveries far more practical and sustainable.

With this funding, Airbound plans to scale production, expand operations, and demonstrate the viability of ultra-low-cost drone logistics across both urban and suburban markets, setting the stage for a new era in last-mile delivery.