PhysicsWallah (PW) Signs MoU with Delhi Government to Provide Free Online NEET & CUET Coaching to Over 1.6 Lakh Students

Delhi: PhysicsWallah (PW), an education... https://www.startupsmeet.com/2025/04/physicswallah-pw-signs-mou-with-delhi-government-to-provide-free-online-neet-cuet-coaching-to-over-1-6-lakh-students/?feed_id=677&_unique_id=67ebeed42ae13

Villgro Helps 100+ Women Micro-Entrepreneurs Gain Access to Credit and Scale their Business

April 1, 2025: India’s Economic Su... https://www.startupsmeet.com/2025/04/villgro-helps-100-women-micro-entrepreneurs-gain-access-to-credit-and-scale-their-business/?feed_id=667&_unique_id=67ebed5b27933

Deepfake Detection Startup Neural Defend Secures Funding by Inflection Point Ventures, MIT SBXI, Techstars San Francisco

New Delhi, 13^th March 2025: Neural Defend, an AI-driven cybersecurity startup, has raised over $600K in a Pre-seed round led by Inflection Point Ventures (IPV). The round also saw participation from MIT SBXI (Boston-based), Techstars San Francisco, and Soonicorn Ventures. The capital will be used to enhance its agentic AI capabilities for real-time, multimodal deepfake detection, further advancing its R&D efforts and product development.

Founded in 2024, Neural Defend specializes in deepfake detection and cybersecurity innovation. With pilot projects already underway in New York and Singapore, the company is addressing the growing risks posed by AI-generated digital deception. The startup is poised to redefine identity protection and fraud prevention on a global scale. The company is led by Piyush Verma (CEO), Sivashankar Selvarajan (CTO), and Sumit Singh (Chief Data Officer). Piyush Verma, a two-time founder and former researcher at MIT, Harvard, IBM R&D has built impact-driven ventures with Fortune 500 Clients in the past. Sivashankar Selvarajan, an IIT, IIM graduate and seasoned AI and cybersecurity expert, holds two patents in Face Anti-Spoof Detection and has won the Intel Edge AI Award. Sumit Singh has managed data pipelines worth over $200 billion, while working with major clients like INVESCO through Publicis Sapient. Neural Defend has also been selected into the prestigious Techstars accelerator in San Francisco. 

Vikram Ramasubramanian, Partner & CIO, Inflection Point Ventures, says, “It is no news that cyber threats are evolving rapidly, risking businesses and individuals’ privacy and finances. Neural Defend’s AI-driven approach to real-time detection perfectly aligns with today’s urgent need for robust cybersecurity and digital identity protection. At IPV, we back companies that solve critical challenges with scalable business models. Their vision and traction so far make them a compelling investment.”

Currently at the pre-revenue stage, Neural Defend is scaling its operations by engaging with global enterprises, fintech companies and financial institutions for product validation and market expansion. With the rise of deepfake threats across industries, the company is well-positioned to drive widespread adoption of its solutions.

What sets Neural Defend apart is its AI agentic, multimodal, real-time deepfake detection technology. Unlike traditional methods, its proprietary AI models detect deepfakes across multiple data formats, including video/ image, audio, real-time streams, ensuring robust fraud prevention for businesses and governments.

"Our goal is to protect real identities against digital deception through innovative AI agentic technology," said Piyush Verma, CEO of Neural Defend.

With MIT (Boston), IIT, IIM alumni leadership, the startup is rapidly gaining traction among global enterprises and cybersecurity experts. Neural Defend is working with fintech companies and financial institutions focusing on Video verification and KYC use cases. They have already achieved State of the art benchmarks for their technology, demonstrating the effectiveness of their AI-driven fraud detection systems.

With trillions of dollars at risk due to deepfakes globally, the cybersecurity industry is witnessing exponential growth. The demand for real-time AI-driven fraud detection solutions is rising, making Neural Defend’s cutting-edge technology highly relevant in today’s digital landscape.

About Neural Defend

Founded in 2024 by Piyush Verma, Sivashankar Selvarajan, and Sumit Singh, Neural Defend operates in India and San Francisco, USA. The company focuses on deepfake detection and cybersecurity innovation, leveraging AI agentic technology to offer scalable and resilient solutions. Backed by Techstars SF, MIT SBXI and Inflection Point Ventures, Neural Defend is working with global enterprises to enhance identity protection.

About Inflection Point Ventures and Physis Capital

Inflection Point Ventures (IPV) is an angel investing platform with over 23,500+ CXOs, HNIs, and Professionals to together invest in startups. The firm supports new-age entrepreneurs by providing them with monetary & experiential capital and connecting them with a diverse group of investors. IPV has launched a $50 Mn CAT 2 VC fund, Physis Capital, to invest in Pre-Series A to Series B growth-stage start-ups. The fund has already deployed capital in two startups so far, with a few deals in advanced stages of pipeline.

https://www.startupsmeet.com/2025/03/deepfake-detection-startup-neural-defend-secures-funding-by-inflection-point-ventures-mit-sbxi-techstars-san-francisco/?feed_id=657&_unique_id=67d2c738450c7

PhysicsWallah Expands NEET/JEE Content in Regional Languages with AI Integration

India, March 4, 2025 – PhysicsWallah (PW), a leading ed-tech company, is revolutionizing access to quality education by introducing vernacular learning under its Project Bharat initiative. Announced during Vishwas Diwas, PW’s annual flagship event celebrating student achievements, this initiative aims to break language barriers and make high-quality educational resources accessible to students across India, particularly those from non-Hindi and non-English-speaking backgrounds.

As part of Project Bharat, PW’s Lakshya Program for NEET and JEE aspirants will now be available in Marathi, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, and English, with more regional languages to follow. To encourage early enrollment, all Bharat Batches are currently being offered at up to 20% discount until March 10.

AI-Powered Regional Learning Experience

To ensure an immersive and high-quality learning experience, Project Bharat will leverage artificial intelligence (AI) in content delivery. The study material will first be scripted in regional languages, then dubbed, and enhanced using AI to create a learning experience that closely resembles live lectures delivered by PW’s founder, Alakh Pandey, and other renowned faculty members. This approach maintains the essence of their teaching style, making complex concepts easier to grasp for students in their native language.

New AI-Powered Learning Tools

Alongside Project Bharat, PW also introduced several AI-driven tools to further enrich the student learning experience:

• Prep Meter: An advanced performance tracking system that monitors students' learning journeys. This tool evaluates a student’s strengths and weaknesses and provides personalized AI-driven video recommendations for improvement. It tracks various aspects of a student’s progress, including lecture viewing, Daily Practice Programs (DPPs), and test performances, offering real-time insights.
• PW Books: A smart digital version of NCERT books available as a standalone app on the Play Store. This app enables students to access relevant content by taking pictures, highlighting important terms, making notes, and getting instant AI-generated explanations, thus making learning more interactive and efficient.

Enhancing Student Engagement with Gamified Learning

PW also launched Level-Up, a gamified learning experience that turns academic progress into a competitive and rewarding journey. This feature enables students to track their progress and compete with peers on the PW platform, making learning more engaging and motivating. During its pilot phase, conducted among students of Classes 9 and 10, Level-Up increased student engagement by approximately 30%. The feature allows students to earn XP points for completing academic activities such as attending lectures, completing DPPs, and taking mock tests.

Exclusive Programs for Advanced Learning

PW unveiled Pegasus, a premium program designed for students preparing for JEE Advanced and NEET over 3 to 4 years. With a limited number of seats, this fast-paced curriculum provides students with an early edge in competitive exams. It also incorporates Olympiad preparation and an extensive eight-month practice and testing phase before board exams, helping students build a solid foundation for success.

Affordable Learning at PW Vidyapeeth Centers

In another major announcement, PW has made learning at its tech-enabled offline Vidyapeeth centers more accessible. Students from Classes 8 to 12 and Dropper Batches can now enroll for just ₹999 and avail up to 35% discounts on PW’s offline learning programs.

Additionally, registrations are open for the PhysicsWallah Scholarship cum Admission Test (PW SAT), which offers students the opportunity to secure scholarships of up to 90% on PW courses.

About PhysicsWallah (PW)

Founded in 2020 by Alakh Pandey and Prateek Maheshwari, PhysicsWallah (PW) has transformed from a YouTube channel into one of India’s most impactful ed-tech platforms. Headquartered in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, PW provides education through online, offline, and hybrid models, catering to students across multiple educational segments, including test preparation, skill development, higher education, and study abroad programs. With investments from Hornbill Capital, Lightspeed Ventures, Westbridge, and GSV Ventures, PW continues to innovate and expand its reach to make high-quality education accessible to all.

According to UNICEF, children learn best when taught in their mother tongue, and Project Bharat is a significant step toward making education more inclusive and effective for students across India.

https://www.startupsmeet.com/2025/03/physicswallah-expands-neet-jee-content-in-regional-languages-with-ai-integration/?feed_id=647&_unique_id=67c70c559f29c

Ola raises $50 Million, Sachin Bansal may acquire stake

Ola has raised $50 million from Sailing Capital (SC) and the China-Eurasian Economic Cooperation Fund (CEECF).

The Bangalore-based startup company latest investment has inched up its valuation to $4.3 billion, from $3.5-4 billion in last October.

The deal was in negotiation stage for past two months.

The new investment will give SC and CEECF a stake of approximately 1.17% in ANI.

Ola aggressive growth and business model has also been attracting new investors. Sachin Bansal, former CEO and co-founder of Flipkart, is reportedly exploring a way to buy secondary stakes in Ola.

Bansal had previously praised Ola’s co-founder and his platform for developing and making it large company. Bansal, after his go out from Flipkart, is making plans to elevate $1 billion startup-focused funds. until date, he has invested in seven ventures with a complete investment of $26 million.

except, current investors Steadview Capital is also trying to improve its stake. Softbank, Tencent, Tiger global and Matrix partners collectively keep extra than 60 Percentage of Ola’s shares.

aside from raising cash, Ola is breaking into new markets beyond India. After Australia and united kingdom launches, it now plans to go into the new Zealand marketplace.

It plans to start with cities like Auckland, Christchurch, and Wellington. In offshore markets, Ola has been giving out a low fee fee of 9 Percentage cent to lure extra drivers on its platform. it"s going to compete with Uber and Zoomy in New Zealand.

At present, the ride-hailing company has been doing approximately 2 million rides each day. It plans to obtain profitability by the quit of 2019.

decreasing fee and incentives for drivers in addition to lowering discounts for riders are elements driving Ola closer in the direction of the road of profitability.

The take-home pay for drivers dropped 33 Percentage inside the final 12 months, in accordance to research consultancy Redseer’s file.

Ola’s running loss has multiplied 32 Percentage cent to Rs 3,731 crore in FY17 even as working revenue extra than doubled to Rs 1,178 crore. besides, its other costs (now not defined) also rose as much as Rs 4,052 crore from Rs 2,422 crore. #Bangalore, #BangaloreStartups, #Flipkart, #Funding, #IndianStartup, #IndianStartups, #MatrixPartners, #NewZealand, #OLA, #SachinBansal, #SoftBank, #StartupInIndia, #StartupsInBangalore, #SteadviewCapital, #TechStartup, #Tencent, #TigerGlobal

Policybazaar invests $50 Million (about 362 crores) into healthtech venture DocPrime

After receiving $236 million series F round led through SoftBank, Policybazaar were given the coveted popularity of Unicorn and announced to foray into healthtech undertaking with the launch of cell app DocPrime, a marketplace for medical doctors connecting with patients.

Now the internet coverage aggregator enterprise has infused $50 million into the healthcare challenge. The preliminary capital may be utilized by DocPrime to enhance UI/UX of the app with the deployment of the modern-day day generation like AI, records technological know-how and deep analytics.

In an earlier interaction with media, Yashish Dahiya, co-founder and chief govt at Policybazaar had discovered that the organization would invest $100 million within the new undertaking over the following years.

DocPrime, which currently connects patients with docs in real time, had appointed earlier CTO of Policybazaar Ashish Gupta as the chief executive Officer(CEO) and roped in Richit Ummat because the chief working Officer (COO) of the brand new challenge.

The platform has tied up with 14,000 docs and 50,000 diagnostic labs. It further objectives to increase its network to 100 and 50,000 medical doctors and 20,000 labs during over 100 towns.

except presenting loose consultation on chat and get in touch with, it additionally enables the reserving of health practitioner appointments and lab exams.

As a ways as monetising the platform, DocPrime plans to offer paid offerings in the form of OPD subscription applications that lets in you to supply sufferers endless consultations and tests.

looking forward to a decent growth in future, DocPrime is focused on 1 million free medical consultations via March 2019 and as a whole lot as five million with the resource of March 2020.

DocPrime want to be eyeing the success of each other Softbank-funded enterprise enterprise Ping An good doctor, an online-to-offline (O2O) healthcare servicing platform primarily based out of Shenzhen, China. Like Ping An, PolicyBazaar targets for a bigger opportunity within the fitness-insuring segment.

In India, DocPrime will compete with Practo, Netmeds, 1mg, and others.

The improvement changed through TOI. #DocPrime, #Funding, #Gurgaon, #GurgaonStartup, #HealthStartup, #HealthcareStartup, #Healthtech, #IndianStartup, #IndianStartups, #Policybazaar, #SeriesFRound, #SoftBank, #StartupIndia, #StartupsInIndia

JazzMyRide: The journey from a capital of Rs. 10000 to a revenue of Rs. 20 Crores

Sunil Dhingra, Co-founder, JazzMyRide

Sunil Dhingra, a 32 year old chap has studied MBA from Symbiosis, Pune. He has worked for Tata Communications, Infosys and Mahindra Comviva for around 6 years but the comfort of a 9 to 5 job did not sound very appealing to him. He wanted to chase the dream of being an entrepreneur and that sowed the seed of JazzMyRide, an eCommerce portal based in Delhi for car and bike accessories in the year 2012.

Before going for the entrepreneurship venture, he studied the annual report of global players in the industry by approaching 200 stores and 30 recently opened car showrooms in Delhi, NCR and Chandigarh. He proceeded to start JazzMyRide at a basic capital of Rs. 10000 that included designing the website and setting up a few products. There has been no looking back for Sunil ever since.

JazzMyRide has a team of 50 employees and provides more than 1 lakh products in 150 categories with more than 52 brands. The product categories are interior, styling, utility, spare parts, protection, cleaning, bike accessories, riding gears, bike spares, fashion and car audio.

The business model of JazzMyRide includes purchasing inventory from companies and delivering it to customers with the help of third-party logistics. An important milestone for the company has been its tie-up with 10 third party logistic players like Bluedart, Ecom Express, DTDC and Go Javas.

The company also partnered with TVS ASL for online-to-offline (O2O) retailing approach. TVS has invested a total of Rs. 75 Crores in 3 startups and JazzMyRide is one of them.

JazzMyRide did have some challenges at the outset, like product discovery and supply chain. Nonetheless they had a robust technical system with the help of which they developed a great stocking model.

The vision of the company by mid-July is to accomplish the O2O commerce with the help of a franchisee model first in Delhi and Chennai. Later, it would expand to other cities also. By 2018, the company expects to get twice the products, product categories and brands with branches in Chennai, Bengaluru, Pune, Mumbai and Hyderabad, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

JazzMyRide: The journey from a capital of Rs. 10000 to a revenue of Rs. 20 Crores