Twitter is now offering downvote button globally

Twitter has rolled out its downvote button globally. The feature, which was previously only available to a small group of users, is now available to everyone. According to the company, this experimental feature has received positive feedback and has assisted them in determining what content users want to see on this platform. Twitter began testing downvotes with web users in 2021, and the microblogging site is now planning to make the feature available to iOS and Android users as well. Initially, Twitter displayed various downvoting options. It included both upvote…

US-based GupShup acquires AI-powered Voice Leader Knowlarity for an undisclosed sum

GupShup, a startup that helps businesses interact with customers through various mediums, has acquired Knowlarity Communications. According to the company, the acquisition complements Gupshup’s industry-leading Conversational Messaging suite and establishes Gupshup as a leader in voice and video communications. In 2009, Ambarish Gupta and Pallav Pandey co-founded the company. Over 6,000 customers in 65 countries use Knowlarity’s cloud telephony, contact centre automation, AI-powered voice assistants, and speech analytics solutions. The business operates in the voice-based Conversational Engagement market, which is expected to transform contact centres, IVR systems, and smart voice…

Shiprocket’s scale soars 2.2X to Rs 358 Cr in FY21, posts Rs 12 Cr profit

Zomato, Temasek, and LightRock led a $185 million funding round for Shiprocket. While the company was valued at over $930 million and narrowly missed unicorn status, it scaled quickly in FY21, with a healthy increase in profits after taxes (PAT). According to its annual filings, Shiprocket’s operating revenue increased by 122 percent to Rs 358.01 crore in FY21 from Rs 161.19 crore the previous fiscal year. Its sole source of revenue has been the sale of logistic services. Providing essentially delivery management services to its core user base of SMEs…

Jar raises $32 Mn in Series A led by Tiger Global at over $200 Mn valuation

App for daily gold savings, Jar has raised $32 million in a Series A round led by Tiger Global, with Rocketship.vc, Third Prime, Stonks, Force Ventures, and existing investors Arkam Ventures and WEH also participating. Victor Jacobsson, the founder of Klarna, Suleman Ali of Ali Capital, Shamir Karkal, the founder of Sila Money, Byron Ling of Cannan Partners, Joel John of Ledger Prime, and Italic founder Jeremy Cai are among the angel investors who participated in the round. The Series A funding comes on the heels of a $4.5 million…

Norwest to lead $10 Mn round in edtech startup Udayy

Edtech startup Udayy is in advanced talks to close an investment round from new and existing investors. A year ago, the Gurugram-based startup received a $2.5 million seed round. “Norwest Venture Partners is leading a $10 million round in Udayy while existing backers are likely to participate,” said one of the sources. The person requested anonymity adding that the deal will be completed in a few weeks. Falcon Edge’s Alpha Wave, Info Edge, Better Capital, and CRED founder Kunal Shah are among Udayy’s current investors. Udayy, a two-year-old live learning…

Waterfield Advisors raises $6 million in Series-B funding

Waterfield Advisors, a multi-family office and wealth advisory firm, announced on Thursday that it had raised $6 million from single-family offices, ultra-high net worth individuals, and existing investors in a funding round. Waterfield will use the funds to expand its team across the organisation, invest in technology, strengthen its investment advisory platform across listed and unlisted investments, and expand its presence in Singapore, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Middle East to become the preferred wealth partner for global Indian clients. “Over the past 10 years, we have…

Pine Labs in talks to acquire API infrastructure startup Setu

Pine Labs, an IPO-bound digital payment and financial services provider, is in talks to buy Setu, an API-based infrastructure company, for $70- $100 million in cash and stock, according to three people familiar with the talks. According to one of the people cited above, if the acquisition goes through, Pine Labs will gain access to Setu’s Account Aggregator consent framework and technology, which will help it improve market time for its planned financial services launch. Financial service providers no longer need to make multiple integrations for a single feature thanks…

LegalPay raises fund from Hedonova as part of pre-Series A round

LegalPay, an alternative-investments platform specialising in insolvency, legal, and debt financing within insolvency, has raised an undisclosed amount from US-based Hedonova. In December, the company received pre-Series A funding from prominent investors Venture Catalysts and Amity Technology Incubator, as well as participation from existing investors such as Ashwini Kakkar’s family office, the former head of Thomas Cook and co-founder and chairman of via.com; venture capital fund 9unicorns; and other marquee angels such as LetsVenture. Hedonova is a hedge fund based in the United States that invests in a variety of…

Countdown begins for India First tech startup cocnclave & awards 2022, Delhi Chapter

The All India Council for Robotics and Automation will host the Delhi chapter of its prestigious India First Tech startup conclave and awards on 17th & 18th of February 2022. The event will feature several exhibitors,  interactive sessions on tech startup topics, as well as an award ceremony honouring and recognising innovative startup ecosystem enablers in various categories. The event is being hosted by AICRA with support from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. It will address the key aspects of the startup ecosystem through interactive sessions with the…

Gupshup acquires Knowlarity Communications for undisclosed amount

Gupshup, a conversational messaging platform, announced the acquisition of Knowlarity Communications for an undisclosed sum on Wednesday. Knowlarity is a cloud communications company that offers services such as cloud telephony, contact centre automation, AI-powered voice assistants, and speech analytics. The acquisition will help Gupshup establish itself as a strong player in the voice and video communications segment, as Knowlarity has over 6,000 customers in 65 countries. appinstlBnr “As business-to-consumer engagement becomes conversational, Gupshup is busy enabling more ways for businesses to deliver rich experiences. With the addition of Knowlarity’s products,…