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Hello,

What a year!

You may wanna call 2022 a year of uncertainty, opportunity, or change, but the past year has been a revelation—about the strengths of India’s economy and startup ecosystem, and the fault lines that lie within.

The year began on a happy hangover from last year’s unicorn party when 44 startups entered the coveted billion-dollar club. But the spring lasted only momentary as the Russia-Ukraine war, rising inflation, and supply chain disruptions played spoilsport. As a result, only 23 new unicorns emerged from India in 2022.

The gloom was visible at the bourses as the queue for IPOs was pretty thin, which came as a surprise as unicorns such as Zomato, CarDekho, PolicyBazaar, Nykaa, and Paytm went public last year. But none of them could hold their stocks above the issue price.

If there was one person who ruled the headlines for most of the year, it was billionaire-entrepreneur Elon Musk. From his half-year-long “will-won’t” saga with Twitter to finally running the social network and troubles in his home turf Tesla, 2022 has been Musk’s dollhouse.

Climate change was a bigger monster, drowning one-third of Pakistan, bringing a global heatwave, a drought to Europe, and making the weather even more unpredictable. In fact, 2022 was the eighth-warmest year on record.

But setting aside the never-ending challenges, 2022 has also been a year of human triumph.

For the first time, more energy was produced through nuclear fission than consumed—opening the potential for limitless energy. The James Webb Space Telescope surpassed all expectations and gave the clearest images of deep space yet. 

Ethereum moved from a Proof of Work to a Proof of Stake model, reducing the world’s energy consumption by 0.2%. 

We also became a global family of 8 billion, y’all!

A lot happened at YourStory too. We launched YS Gulf and YS Life, and after two years of hosting TechSparks online due to the pandemic, we finally went back offline, and it was great.

And as we close 2022, here’s wishing you and your loved ones a very happy new year!

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Offbeat new year resolutions
• Apps we loved in 2022
• Look back at 2022

Here’s your trivia for today: At one minute before midnight in Spain, twelve of what is eaten on New Year’s Eve?

New Year

Offbeat new year resolutions

For many of us, making resolutions is essential to welcoming the New Year. But some take it to the extreme, like eating insects or trekking to Everest Base Camp, while others tick things off their checklists by globetrotting. YS Life spoke with celebrities, entrepreneurs, and others to share a bit of inspiration.

Offbeat resolutions:

• Chef Ranveer Brar plans to travel across South America and eat all possible insect and cricket-based dishes.
• Enfield Rifles CEO Baljeet Gujral wants to drive continuously for 52 hours on Route 66 in the US.
• Actress Adah Sharma’s zany resolutions include having bushy, overgrown eyebrows, and farting in a movie!

Rewind

Apps we loved in 2022

In 2022, people stepped away from their devices to devote time to themselves and their families. This reflected in the apps that went viral this year as some wanted users to be mindful of social media usage while others tracked productivity.

Top apps of 2022:

• To inject social media feeds with a dose of reality, BeReal app prompts users to post a picture while going about their daily lives.
• CARROT weather app is designed to vibe with your personality. It uses AI to bond with you and gamification makes it above par with other weather apps.
• Habitica helps you build habits by making you settle into the task, setting up a routine, and dishing out rewards.

Rewind

Look back at 2022

It has been an action-packed year. From the downfall of the edtech sector to the emergence of the D2C economy, the past year has seen it all. Here is a look at the top stories of the year, covering key trends and outcomes faced by the Indian startup ecosystem in 2022.

Top stories of 2022:

• 2022 was a year of layoffs. Amid the uncertainty, many resorted to moonlighting or working multiple jobs—something that didn’t sit well with startups initially.
• From the high of e-learning in 2021, many edtech startups had to pivot to hybrid learning, including acquiring brick-and-mortar companies.
• The software-as-a-service (SaaS) sector benefited from the rush to digitalise during the pandemic. Now, companies look to conserve cash to tide over a looming recession.

News & updates

• Worst of times: Global hedge funds are set to register their worst returns in 14 years in 2022 after aggressive US interest rate rises hit asset prices hard, however, their declines are overall smaller than the slump seen in equity and bond markets this year.
• Plunging badly: It was a brutal year for mega-cap tech stocks across the board but 2022 was especially rough for Amazon. Shares of the e-retailer are wrapping up their worst year since the dot-com crash, tumbling 51% in 2022. 
• Business as usual: Huawei posted its third straight quarter of growth, declaring a return to normalcy after overcoming a plethora of US restrictions this year. The company’s sales rose 7.2% to 191 billion yuan ($27.4 billion) in the December quarter.

At one minute before midnight in Spain, twelve of what is eaten on New Year’s Eve?

Answer: Grapes. They are supposed to bring good luck, prosperity, and happiness.

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