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It’s a wrap!

The curtains came down on three enriching days of conversations, collaborations, product launches, networking and more, as TechSparks 2023—YourStory’s flagship startup-tech event—ended on a high!

On the third and final day of the startup-tech summit, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar and Karnataka IT Minister Priyank Kharge talked about how their respective governments are making India a fertile ground for the startup ecosystem to bloom further.

The day also saw PhonePe launching the Indus App Store in the presence of the union minister. CEO Sameer Nigam said that the made-in-India platform for developers seeks to challenge the duopoly of Google and Apple app stores, with its homegrown alternative, and zero commissions for a year.

The day was also packed with fireside chats as innovators, entrepreneurs, and key stakeholders of the Indian startup ecosystem gave insights into the ongoing funding winter and why spring isn’t far away.

While Vimal Kumar, Founder of the open mobility app Namma Yatri, talked about redefining the rules of the ride-hailing business and public transportation, Vamsi Gaddam, Founder of Atum and Atumobile, shared how he was using solar energy to power EVs.

Then there was the tale of two edtechs.

Infinity Learn CEO Ujjwal Singh believes it is the best time to be in the sector, despite the industry facing global headwinds. PhysicsWallah Founder and CEO Alakh Pandey, meanwhile, discussed what’s in store for edtech after the current patch of turbulence.

Also, Tech30 startups made their one-minute pitches to investors on the last day of the Pitch Fest.

Closing the three-day congregation was much-loved entrepreneur and Zerodha Founder- CEO Nithin Kamath, who spoke about businesses that take a lot of time to build.

“You can use artificial means to grow a tree but a forest takes time, it takes persistence,” he said.

Check out the entire TechSparks 2023 coverage here. See you in Delhi in November!

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Rajeev Chandrasekhar on India’s techade
• Karnataka’s plans for startups, MSMEs
• The journey to building an edtech unicorn

Here’s your trivia for today: What was the world’s first postage stamp, issued in the United Kingdom in 1840, called?

TechSparks

Rajeev Chandrasekhar on India’s techade

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Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Union MoS for Electronics and IT

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The last few days have been surreal for India, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology of India, said at TechSparks 2023. 

Among several first-time achievements, Chandrasekhar spoke about the passing of the Women’s Reservation Bill 2023, Micron’s semiconductor plans in Gujarat, India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, the upcoming Digital India Fund, as well as the growing global demand for India Stack.

Into the future:

• The MoS also announced a proposal by the government to launch a Digital India Fund to encourage domestic capital investment into Indian startups during funding winters. 
• The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 was introduced with two main intentions: one, to bridge the gap between businesses and other stakeholders; two, to trigger behavioural change and the attitude towards data protection, he said.
• After nine countries signed Memoranda of Understanding for India Stack and digital public infrastructure (DPI), 20 more nations have shown interest in leveraging India’s homegrown technology.

TechSparks

Karnataka’s plans for startups, MSMEs

Karnataka is working on five key areas to drive progress within the startup ecosystem, Priyank M. Kharge, Minister, IT, BT and Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, Govt of Karnataka, said.

The minister also outlined the government’s plans for small and medium businesses (SMEs). “If Karnataka progresses, the nation progresses. We need to ensure the state is more resilient and that it is ready for the future,” Kharge said during his keynote address at the 14th edition of TechSparks.

Marching ahead:

• The government of Karnataka has formed a skill advisory committee for emerging technologies, the first such attempt by any state in the country, the minister said.
• The state will create centres of excellence (CoE), which will act as incubators of innovation. The Government of Karnataka currently runs CoE in the fields of deeptech, Internet of Things, cybersecurity, agri-innovation, data sciences, semiconductors, and robotics, among others.
• Karnataka also intends to be the largest buyer of micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) products and services, Kharge added.

TechSparks

The journey to building an edtech unicorn

Alakh Pandey, Founder and CEO of online edtech platform Physics Wallah (PW), has donned many hats while building the company. Among other things, he has been a part of the batch operations team that puts up video and PDF links for online classes and SST, or the student success team. 

“Today we have another role called YTM—a pretty fancy term—for YouTube Managers. I tell them I’m the grandfather of you all as I started with that,” Pandey said during a fireside chat with YourStory’s Shradha Sharma.

The classroom:

• PW, which began its journey as a YouTube channel started by Pandey, provides a comprehensive online learning experience to students of classes 6-12, and for those preparing for JEE and NEET exams.
• The startup has more than one crore subscribers on YouTube. 
• In April, PhysicsWallah Co-founder Prateek Maheshwari told YourStory that he expects the company to register a “sizeable profit” riding a three-fold increase in revenue to about Rs 780 crore for FY23.

News & updates

• Departure: Samiran Gupta, the head of policy for India and South Asia at social media platform X (formerly Twitter), has reportedly resigned. Gupta was responsible for key content-related policy issues and “defending Twitter’s position with new policy developments and support in-country sales organisation”, according to his LinkedIn profile.
• Driverless trucks: California Governor Gavin Newsom late on Friday vetoed a bill to prevent heavy-duty driverless trucks from operating in the state, in a relief for companies developing autonomous technology to haul goods across the US
• New entry: Saudi Arabia’s GDP has exceeded the ceiling of SAR 4.155 trillion ($1 trillion) for the first time, with the Kingdom joining the trillion-dollar club and achieving the national goal well ahead of the target date of 2025, according to a new report.

What was the world’s first postage stamp, issued in the United Kingdom in 1840, called?

Answer: Penny Black. Issued on May 6, 1840, Penny Black was the brainchild of Rowland Hill. 

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