Blog

Lateral Sparks, the weekly quiz from YourStory, tests your domain knowledge, business acumen, and lateral thinking skills (see the previous edition here). In this 148th edition of the quiz, we present issues tackled by real-life entrepreneurs in their startup journeys.

What would you do if you were in their shoes? At the end of the quiz, you will find out what the entrepreneurs and innovators themselves actually did. Would you do things differently?

Check out YourStory’s Book Review section as well, with takeaways from over 355 titles on creativity and entrepreneurship, and our weekend PhotoSparks section on creativity in the arts.

Q1: Beauty products

There is a wide range of beauty products in the market, but many buyers find it hard to assess their claims, choose the right product, and share their experiences and recommendations with others. How can technology help here?

Q2: Corporate governance

Many organisations in the early stages of growth are unaware of the importance of proper corporate governance, or how to get started in this journey. Where is the entrepreneurial opportunity here?

Q3: Business workflow

Many business processes require extensive document analysis, with a large amount of manual intervention. What’s a solution to help remove some of the drudgery while also increasing accuracy?

Q4: Habitat and livelihood

In many rural areas, the local landscape is undergoing distinct changes, while agriculture, health and livelihood practices are deteriorating. How can such conditions be monitored and the challenges be alleviated?

Q5: Healthcare

In many countries, there is less emphasis on preventive care and routine wellness check-ups, and more on reactive interventions. What are some ways of increasing awareness and adoption of preventive healthcare?

Answers!

Congratulations on having come this far! But there’s more to come—answers to these five questions (below), as well as links to articles with more details on the entrepreneurs’ solutions. Happy reading, happy learning—and happy creating!

A1: Beauty products

Founded by Karishma Rathaur, Honestly is an AI-powered beauty platform to help women buy the right beauty products and share experiences with each other. It is supported by peer-reviewed scientific studies and users’ purchase history.

The app helps analyse over 600 attributes of various beauty products, such as skin types and efficacy. Read more here about how it uses AI to fact-check recommendations and claims, thus counteracting misinformation and tackling misleading beauty hacks.

A2: Corporate governance

Divya Momaya and Neha Shah launched MentorMyBoard in 2018 to provide knowledge, networks, and resources enhancing board leadership and corporate governance. It educates founders and promoters about good governance practices.

“Not just new hires and mid-level managers require mentorship but directors and senior members also need guidance,” Momaya observes. Read more here about its advisory services in strategy, diversity, and finance, and its special conclaves for Women on Management & Boards (WOMB).

A3: Business workflow

Founded in 2017 by Sarthak Jain and Prathamesh Juvatkar, Nanonets is an AI data extraction software for businesses to automate document workflows and eliminate manual tasks. It is used by professionals such as finance, legal and procurement teams.

Using AI and ML, tasks like invoice processing, accounts reconciliation, and expense management can be automated. Read more here about how Nanonets can extract data from PDFs, images and emails with high precision; it has also raised $40 million in funding.

A4: Habitat and livelihood

Artist Nobina Gupta founded Disappearing Dialogues in 2014 to help document the culture and livelihood of people from sensitive ecologies. It also helps empower them through dialogue and collaboration in areas like health, handicrafts and cultural activities.

In areas like Ladakh, the growth and usage of medicinal plants were documented. Read more here about its international partners, cultural exhibitions, and Young Curators Lab with workshops and mentoring.

A5: Healthcare

Tanya Khubchandani Vatsa founded Elixir Wellness in 2022 to offer preventive care, skin care, recovery, and anti-ageing solutions. Its wellness services include physiotherapy, pain management, lymphatic drainage, and chiropractic adjustments.

The startup has 27 centres in Delhi, Bengaluru, and Mumbai. Read more here about how it is changing mindsets about health, with a range of treatment prices from Rs 1,000 to Rs 35,000.

YourStory has also published the pocketbook ‘Proverbs and Quotes for Entrepreneurs: A World of Inspiration for Startups’ as a creative and motivational guide for innovators (downloadable as apps here: Apple, Android).