Honor in India 🤝, Mastercard Appoints 💼, TRAI Regulations 📃

Catch up on the latest in 🇮🇳 Indian 🇮🇳 startups and tech landscape - all in 5 minutes. [Newsletter Banner] Daily 🇮🇳 IndiaTech 🇮🇳 Roundup Welcome to today's edition of the NextBigWhat Daily IndiaTech News! Today's top stories include Honor returning to India, Mastercard appointing Rajnish Kumar, and TRAI regulations on OTTs. 📰 Help us reach your your friends and colleagues! Share the NextBigWhat newsletter. [Tweet it]( [Whatsapp]( Honor reintroduces smartphones in India after three-year hiatus 🇮🇳 IndiaTech - Honor, a top five Chinese smartphone maker, reenters India with Honor 90, its first new device in over three years. - Local firm HTech, under a licensing deal with Honor, will commence smartphone sales, aiming to reach a 5% market share by December 2024 and start local manufacturing in 2023. - After facing tough competition from brands like Xiaomi, Oppo, and Samsung, Honor and HTech will be implementing a new strategy to gain a foothold in India’s smartphone market. Mastercard India Appoints Ex-SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar as Chairman 📈 India Business - Banking veteran Rajnish Kumar is set to become the non-executive advisory Chairman of Mastercard India. - Kumar, who has previous experience overseeing operations in India, the UK, and Canada, will guide Mastercard’s South Asia executive leadership team overseeing digital payments adoption. - Ari Sarker, President, Asia Pacific, Mastercard lauds Kumar’s appointment, looking to boost Mastercard’s domestic footprint and strategic partnerships. ChatGPT is most likely to replace these 10 jobs [NBW Newsletter Ad]( TAKE A LOOK AT INSIGHTFUL VISUAL STORIES ON NEXTBIGWHAT OpenAI's ChatGPT and similar generative AI tools have raised concerns about their potential to replace human jobs. [Check out]( Indian Startups Appeal to TRAI Against Excessive OTT Regulations 🇮🇳 IndiaTech - SaveTheInternet campaign releases open letter from Indian startups to TRAI regarding regulation of OTT services. - The letter expresses concerns over ‘overregulation’ and potential ‘discriminatory consequences’. - It disputes claims that OTT services are ‘direct substitutes’ of traditional services and hence eating into their revenues. Increase in iPhone 15 Pro price in India due to taxes and duties 🇮🇳 IndiaTech - The Indian pricing of iPhone 15 Pro model has increased due to a weak rupee and significant taxes and duties levied. - GST, import duties, and other taxes account for approximately Rs 41,193.42 of the Rs 1,34,900 sticker price. - Apple begins iPhone 15 production in India, but components and Pro models still face import duties up to 22%. Get NBW News: The short news app for busy professionals. [App Store]( [Google Play]( The Exploration Company partners with Axiom, ISRO for cargo missions 🇮🇳 IndiaTech - The Europe-based Exploration Company has signed preliminary cargo delivery agreements with Axiom Space and plans to use Indian Space Research Organisation’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle. - Startup’s main business is to service space stations and plans to conduct first demonstration mission with a prototype called Bikini in January 2024. - In spite of facing headwinds, the startup has closed a record $44 million European space tech Series A funding and is actively bidding for contracts from European Space Agency. India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor revives ancient trade route, counters China’s BRI: Historian Dalrymple 📈 India Business - The new India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC) is seen as an alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), rejuvenating an ancient trade route criticized for its modern concept as Silk Road. - This major historical route, centered around trade between East and West via the Red Sea, was more significant than the Silk Road, hails renowned historian William Dalrymple. - Dalrymple substantiates it using Roman records with evidences of high Indian exports superseding its imports from Rome, leading to enormous outflow of Roman gold to India. Global Student Housing Startup Amber in Late-Stage Discussions to Raise $15-20M in Venture Round 🇮🇳 IndiaTech - Amber Student is negotiating terms of a $15-20 million investment deal with a venture capital firm, possibly concluding in three to four weeks. - Amber operates in seven countries, assists in discovery, comparison and booking of student housing, and may be valued at around $100 million after the deal. - The company’s successful metrics include a gross bookings value of $600 million in 2022, accommodations near 800 universities, and claims of 1 million beds. IIT-Bombay mandates AI and Data Science for undergraduate students 🇮🇳 IndiaTech - From this academic year, BTech and Bachelor of Science (BS) undergraduate students at IIT-B will be required to take Artificial Intelligence and Data Science (AI-DS) as a course. - In the first semester of the second year, AI-DS will be offered as a common subject with a requirement for credit, although interested students will have the choice to enrol in more advanced courses in the field later. IBM Expands Operations and Skilling Programs in Emerging Cities of India 🇮🇳 IndiaTech - IBM extends its presence beyond metropolitan cities in India, opening software labs and delivery centers while partnering with universities. - IBM emphasizes skilling initiatives in remote areas including Nagaland and Andhra Pradesh, fostering talent via various projects like designing drones and coding. - IBM focuses on STEM education, developing AI curriculum for schools, and offering over 1000 courses in AI, Cloud, Data Science, and Security through its SkillsBuild programme. Matrimony startup Betterhalf initiates second ESOP buyback 🇮🇳 IndiaTech - Betterhalf’s second ESOP program to benefit 29 current and former employees. - Start-up boasting $500,000 monthly revenue and having aided 100 weddings since 2016 launch. - Raised $8.5 million in a Series A round in March from various investors. © 2023 Zakti Techmedia Pvt. Ltd. All rights reserved. | [Unsubscribe](