Connect with us
हिंदी اردو
Tuesday,24-September-2024
Breaking News

Business

Ronnie Screwvala: No funding winter for startups with real business models

Published

2 years ago

on

There is no funding winter for startups and unicorns with great and real business models and for those building organisations to outlast all others, according to Ronnie Screwvala, Co-Founder and Chairperson of higher education platform upGrad.

In an interaction with Screwvala said that even today, there are investments being closed daily across multiple sectors, as the world faces a great deal of uncertainty over multiple macro-economic factors.

Here are the excerpts from the interview:

Q: How do you look at the current wave of ‘funding winter’ in India?

A: I am always amused to hear this phrase ‘funding winter’, heard it so often in the last 15 years. I always thought only God was responsible for the multiple seasons we enjoy each year but of late, the private equity (PE) investor community is taking that place with their own patent on seasons.

Summer is when you bask in your own self-made glory, excesses and intoxication of hyper valuations, where no one is accountable and everyone is told to make hay while the sun shines.

Monsoon (unique to India) is a realisation that when ‘it rains it pours’ — good or bad.

Then, of course, is Winter, the time to re-write the same 50-page presentation that in summer months said exactly the opposite — the time to reverse the same intoxication of fund raise, valuations and hyper so-called growth with ‘one time’ write downs and blame the whole world, war, inflation and more, that was lurking around the whole summer but no one wanted to put their glasses on.

Seriously though, there is no funding winter for companies with great and real business models and for those building organisations to outlast all others. Even today there are investments being closed daily across multiple sectors — maybe not with the maverick investors who may be.

Let’s face it, the markets have corrected 10-12 per cent, that’s it. Overall, it is still way higher than pre-Covid and if you look, many companies are at their all-time high. This is also the best time for real businesses and mature founders not inflated with valuations to go out there.

Every company worth its value has to go through multiple seasons, over and over again, and the right ones grow and mature from that.

Also in Winter, the most elegant of snow leopards come out to hunt and be predators, and so Winter is the time for those who want to build to outlast and who want to be predators.

Q: The edtech sector is witnessing layoffs. Is this because funding dried up or there is more to it?

A: There is absolutely no ‘dry spell’. Just because a few handful of start-ups got crazily funded, made them lose all focus, pushed to grow and diversify are now being forced by those same investors to wake up and smell the coffee, does not mean there is any dry spell.

They were misguided by themselves and their Board and now are correcting themselves, unfortunately at the cost of valued working colleagues, but they are the exception, not the trend at all.

Never in a 100 years of education and ‘LifeLongLearning’ has there been a more opportune time to disrupt scale and include millions of college learners and working professionals to re-invent, re-skill and get onto a new growth path in their careers. India is also placed brilliantly to open up the higher education market in Asia and around the world.

We, at upGrad, have stayed away from the hubris of distraction and focused on outcomes and impacting careers.

Let there be no mistake, there is no better time than now. K12 went through its Covid bump and it is now seeing much needed correction, but the majority of companies in edtech are just getting started.

Q: How do you look at the global macroeconomic conditions that have engulfed economies the world over?

There were some interesting themes across the three days at the World Economic Forum (WEF) at Davos. Here are some takeaways:

A) Those who were questioning the end of globalisation had not really spent enough time defining what that meant in the first place, before sounding the death knell on it. Globalisation is here to stay as the world consumer wants it that way. An 18-year-old Zayda in Bangladesh wants to own an Apple iPhone and the 22-year-old Amari in Zambia wants to graduate from a UK university.

While the world leaders have in their own way created barriers, through war or threats of war and more insular growth, the seven billion+ people on this planet will not let that happen and globalisation will prevail.

B) There is a reskilling revolution that is happening and will be a tsunami over the next decade across the world. Better education and lifelong learning — accessible and affordable to all — digitally can and will add a massive $8 trillion to the global GDP in this decade. Power shifts in countries will take place based on the workforce and their population being ready for the jobs of tomorrow and also be the learning capitals of the world.

C) India also has the place and the position to be the new voice of global leadership — largest democracy, fastest growing economy and a world leader with clarity, conviction and an agenda to put it at the centre-stage in the world.

D) There is no doubt that the world is going to pass through a very, very challenging time. With food being disproportionately available to countries around the world, the poor will get poorer even if the rich do not get richer. Covid is not leaving the planet in a hurry but has got us all hyper alert on health enough to take notice of even Monkeypox – something that was prevalent in Africa for years but ever since it hit the “western” world.

And the war is not going away in a hurry and it will be interesting to see how engaged the West stays as the war prolongs or will they lose interest if it does not serve their agendas.

The big question we also need to track is how polarised the world will get in the next two-three years. All of this will call for incredible world leaders and leadership in politics and in building business and organisations.

Related Tags:

Business

New TVS Apache RR 310 Hits Indian Market at Rs 2.75 Lakh: All You Need to Know

Published

7 days ago

on

September 17, 2024

By

TVS has introduced the 2024 edition of its flagship Apache RR 310 in India, starting at Rs 2.75 lakh (ex-showroom). The updated model brings several enhancements, including segment-first aerodynamic winglets integrated into the side fairing, aimed at improving stability and performance.

The latest version of the TVS Apache RR 310 comes with a starting price of Rs 2.75 lakh (ex-showroom) for the Racing Red model. However, this variant does not include the bi-directional quick-shifter. For those looking to add this feature, it will cost approximately Rs 17,000 extra. The 2024 lineup also introduces a new Bomber Grey color option, priced at Rs 2.97 lakh (ex-showroom), offering a stylish and performance-focused upgrade.

The 2024 TVS Apache RR 310 retains its 312cc single-cylinder, liquid-cooled engine with a 6-speed gearbox, but now offers improved performance. The updated model produces 37 bhp at 9,800 rpm and 29 Nm of torque at 7,900 rpm. TVS also claims that it accelerates faster than before, shaving 0.43 seconds off its 0-100 km/h time, making it a more exciting choice for riders looking for speed and agility.

The 2024 TVS Apache RR 310 keeps its familiar trellis frame, supported by upside-down front forks and a rear monoshock for improved handling. Braking is handled by disc brakes. It also comes with a 5-inch TFT display that offers Bluetooth connectivity and navigation.

The updated electronics package includes new features like tyre pressure monitoring, cornering ABS, traction control, and cruise control. While the overall design remains similar, it gets refreshed decals and is available in three colours: Bomber Grey, Racing Red, and Race Replica.

TVS has introduced two performance kits for the new Apache RR 310: the Dynamic kit, priced at Rs 18,000, and the Dynamic Pro kit at Rs 16,000. The Dynamic kit enhances the bike’s handling with fully adjustable suspension, a tyre pressure monitoring system, and a brass-coated drive chain. The Dynamic Pro kit, meanwhile, focuses on safety and stability, offering race-tuned dynamic stability control for better on-road performance. These upgrades allow riders to customize their experience for both performance and safety.

Continue Reading

Business

Jio network down: users are facing problems

Published

7 days ago

on

September 17, 2024

By

Some Jio users in Mumbai are experiencing network outages, causing the issue to trend on Twitter. According to reports on social media, the disruptions have affected specific areas in the city. One user claimed that the Reliance Jio IDC Data Centre caught fire, potentially causing service interruptions. The user tweeted, “Reliance Jio IDC Data Centre caught fire, some services down due to that.

The network of Reliance Jio, one of the leading telecom companies in India, has been down for the last 1 hour. So users are facing a lot of problems. Many have posted about this on social media and tagged Reliance Jio. Reliance Jio network is down since last 1 hour.

Due to this, many works of Jio users have been stopped. A user posted on X and informed that the Jio service has been shut down due to a fire in the IDC (data center). Repair work is going on here. The network will be restored soon. But Reliance Jio has not given any official information about this yet. Therefore, users are asking when the network will be restored.

Reliance Jio service has been discontinued. Most of the users have no signal in their mobiles. 20 percent reported internet connectivity disruption on Down detector. 14 percent people are facing problems in running Jio fiber. Reliance Jio’s website is also not working properly and users are unable to access the Jio app.

There are more than 10 thousand complaints on Downdetector around 12 noon. More outage issues have been reported from cities like Delhi, Lucknow and Mumbai. Users across the country are complaining about Jio service being down. Jio on X is also trending down. People are sharing memes for Jio.

Reliance Jio services have once again been suspended in many parts of the country. Today i.e. on 17th September it started from Mumbai, the financial capital of the country and now Jio is down in all the cities of the country. Earlier in May and June 2024 also, Jio services were suspended in Mumbai. Users are constantly complaining on social media about Jio being down but there is no concrete solution and assurance from the company yet.

Users on social media claim that Jio services have been suspended across Mumbai. There is a network problem for several hours. Many users have also complained about the broadband service. Outage tracker Downdetector has also confirmed Jio’s outage. According to Downdetector’s map, it has stopped in New Delhi, Lucknow, Nagpur, Cuttack, Hyderabad, Chennai, Patna, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Guwahati.

More than 10 thousand people have complained on Downdetector in just 1 hour. On this site, 67 percent people complained about lack of signal, 20 percent about mobile internet and 14 percent about Jio Fiber.

Continue Reading

Business

‘Take A Trip To Vietnam For Your iPhone 16’: X User Proposes Cost-Effective Way To Buy The Latest Apple Smartphone

Published

2 weeks ago

on

September 10, 2024

By

Apple recently launched its latest iPhone series, the iPhone 16 series. In addition, the company also launched the latest Apple Watch along with the latest version of Apple AirPods.

Trip To Vietnam For Apple

Apple products from time immemorial have been known for their exorbitant and sky-high pricing. Many have often made memes about having to sell their organs to be able to afford one of their iPhones.

Now, with the latest launch, and X user has found a way to cut corners by taking a trip.

According to the user, an aspiring iPhone buyer in India should take a trip to the East Asian nation of Vietnam to be able to get the new iPhone 16 at a cheaper rate.

However, the user also notes that these savings can only be made, if the buyer is intending to buy the advanced iPhone 16 Pro iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Savings Only iPhone 16 Pro

The user said, “Plan your #iPhone16 purchase with a trip to #Vietnam and spend the same amount you would be spending buying it here in India.”

In addition, the user also added, “But the savings work only if you are planning to buy the #iPhone16Pro or the #iPhone16ProMax”.

In addition, the user also surmised an instance of users travelling to the UAE an purchasing these phones.

According to the user, the Visa fees & fight rates don’t make Dubai that lucrative unless flying somewhere via UAE or planning for the #iPhone16ProMax only”.

As per the statistics produced by the user, the most expensive iPhone 16 Pro Max will cost an Indian buyer Rs 1,44,900 a piece. In Vietnam, however, it would cost a buyer Rs 1,18,992.

This marks a difference of Rs 25,908. Meanwhile, in the UAE, particularly in Dubai, the same phone would cost the buyer Rs 1,16,550, marking a difference of Rs 28,350.

The iPhone series will be available in India from September 20, with the pre-order for the phone starting on September 13.

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Advertisement

Trending