Posts

From Logistics to Orchestration: Why India Needs Business Network Orchestrators

On 2 July, Flipkart-backed agritech startup Ninjacart said it has raised $6 million from existing investors Accel, Fundamentum, and Tiger Global, marking the first tranche of a larger funding round, as it prepares for a public listing over the next two years. Founded in 2015, Ninjacart operates a full-stack fresh produce supply chain connecting farmers with retailers, quick commerce platforms, modern trade chains, hotels & restaurants, and exporters.  According to the company, its business has grown threefold over the past year. This may be read as just a another e-commerce development. But, I argue, it points to a shift underway across the Indian economy: some of the country's most strategically important businesses no longer sell to consumers. They help other businesses function. This shift deserves more attention than it gets. For over a decade, India's startup narrative has been dominated by consumer internet — food delivery, ride-hailing, payments, e-commerce — platfor...

Beyond Warehouses: Why Intelligent Logistics Can Become India's Next Productivity Revolution

India's e-commerce revolution is entering a new phase. During the past decade, the country's digital commerce ecosystem has expanded at remarkable speed. E-commerce platforms have steadily widened their geographical reach, quick-commerce companies have built dense neighbourhood networks of dark stores, and logistics providers have invested heavily in fulfilment centres, sorting hubs and transportation infrastructure. Consumers who once expected deliveries within a week now increasingly expect them within a day—or even within minutes. Yet the next chapter of this transformation may not be defined simply by how many warehouses are built or how many cities are served. It may instead be defined by how intelligently those warehouses and logistics networks operate. Recent developments provide an important indication of this shift. In an interview with PTI on 14 June, Amazon Robotics Chief Technologist Tye Brady said  that the company will continue to expand the use of automation tech...

Beyond Contract Manufacturing: Building India's National Electronics Capability

A Quiet Shift in India's Electronics Industry A subtle but significant shift is taking place in India's electronics industry. Over the past few months, Indian electronics manufacturers have increasingly forged partnerships with companies from Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and China. These collaborations are bringing advanced product designs, manufacturing technologies and, in some cases, established component supply chains into India, while Indian companies contribute manufacturing scale, local execution capabilities and integration into domestic and global markets. At the same time, India's leading electronics manufacturing services (EMS) companies are planning to expand beyond their traditional focus on consumer electronics - to industrial, medical, defence, railway, automotive, and enterprise electronics. These categories of eletronics are increasingly becoming part of their growth strategies. Perhaps the clearest illustration of this shift comes from Bhagwati Products Ltd...

From AI Deployment to AI Assurance: Why Cybersecurity Could Become the Next Growth Engine for Indian IT

Introduction: The Missing Layer in the AI Conversation The global AI conversation often revolves around a familiar stack: chips, data-centres, foundation models, and applications. Governments discuss sovereign compute. Technology firms race to build larger models. Enterprises experiment with AI copilots and autonomous agents. Investors track GPU deployments and data-centre capacity. Yet a set of recent developments points to a different reality. In recent months, OpenAI and Anthropic have introduced cybersecurity-focused AI models. In May, the World Economic Forum warned of an emerging "AI versus AI" cybersecurity landscape where both attackers and defenders deploy autonomous systems.  Around the same time, Airtel Business launched a unified Zero Trust security platform for enterprises.  This month, Wipro expanded its partnership with Palo Alto Networks to provide AI-powered cybersecurity services, while Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani emphasized, at the company's rece...

Beyond AI Champions: Building India's Industrial AI Ecosystem

On 15 June, leading AI startup Sarvam announced that it has raised $234 million in the first tranche of its Series B fundraise,  led by HCLTech with participation from Bessemer Venture Partners, Khosla Ventures, and Peak XV Partners. Sarvam is targeting a $300 million Series B round in total, and says that the proceeds will used to support R&D, expand compute capacity, and build full‑stack sovereign AI solutions. This funding round has reignited excitement, in news and social media alike, around India's artificial intelligence ambitions. As one of the country's most prominent AI startups, Sarvam is increasingly being viewed as a symbol of India's quest for sovereign AI capabilities. Similar enthusiasm accompanies every major AI funding announcement: India needs its own foundation models, its own AI champions, and its own technological alternatives to global platforms. This enthusiasm is understandable. Artificial intelligence is emerging as a foundational technology wit...