Top tech and startup stories this week

Welcome to a new edition of ETtech Unwrapped – our weekend newsletter packed with the most important stories this week. Let’s take a look.

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K Krithivasan, CEO, TCS

TCS layoffs: IT major to mass fire 12,000 senior, mid-level staffers: India’s largest IT exporter, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), decided to lay off around 2% of its workforce, or roughly over 12,000 employees, over the year as macro uncertainties and AI-led technology disruptions continue to hit business demand.


The company will freeze hiring of experienced personnel and pause annual salary increases globally. The IT Ministry is keeping a close watch on the developments, sources said.

Also Read: HR firms log an uptick in TCS staffers hunting for job

Reliance in advanced talks to lead $50 million raise in spacetech startup Digantara: Reliance Industries is in advanced discussions to lead a $50 million (around Rs 430 crore) funding round in spacetech startup Digantara Research & Technologies, which is focused on space situational awareness and surveillance.

Ather Energy narrows gap with Ola Electric: Ola Electric’s shift from chasing growth to focusing on profitability has come at a cost. Its market share in the electric two-wheeler segment slipped to 17.2% as of July 27, down from 19.9% in June, as per Vahan data. Ather Energy, its listed rival, is now within striking distance, clocking 13,187 units this month for a 16.5% share.


Lenskart IPO: Eyewear firm files draft papers with Sebi for Rs 8,000 crore listing | Omnichannel eyewear retailer Lenskart filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) for an initial public offering (IPO) to raise Rs 2,150 crore in fresh capital. Including secondary sales, the total IPO size is expected to be Rs 7,500-8,000 crore ($850-900 million).


Also Read: Lenskart IPO: Founder Peyush Bansal buys back company shares at steep discount ahead of going public

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Sriharsha Majety, CEO, Swiggy

Swiggy Q1 revenue surges 54% but loss nearly doubles to Rs 1,197 crore: Food and grocery delivery company Swiggy on Thursday reported another steep quarterly loss and the second consecutive three-month period of cash burn of over Rs 1,000 crore. The loss comes amid heightened competition in the quick commerce arena, even as the company slowed down dark store expansion.


Also Read: Swiggy could offload Rapido stake over conflict concerns

Delhivery Q1 profit jumps 68.5% ahead of festive season: New-age third-party logistics (3PL) firm Delhivery reported a 68.5% year-on-year (YoY) jump in its April-June net profit at Rs 91 crore, driven by tighter operations and stable revenue, as it gears up for the ecommerce festive season.

PB Fintech reports 33% surge in Q1 revenue: PB Fintech, the parent entity of insurance marketplace Policybazaar and credit marketplace Paisabazaar, has reported a 33% jump in operating income at Rs 1,348 crore, compared to Rs 1,010 crore a year back.

Also Read: Go Digit Q1 profit jumps 37% to Rs 138 crore, premium collection improves

Freshworks Q2 revenue rises 18%: Software-as-a-service (SaaS) company Freshworks reported an 18% year-on-year increase in June-quarter revenue to $204.7 million, helped by lower expenses and increased adoption of its AI-powered solutions.

Cognizant posts 14% increase in Q2 profit: US-headquartered Cognizant Technology Solutions reported a nearly 14% increase in net profit for the second quarter ended June 30, helped by lower restructuring expenses compared with a year earlier, currency gains and other income.

Big Tech earnings: Big Tech companies delivered strong earnings this week, with Apple, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft all beating analysts’ expectations for the second quarter. Apple reported $94 billion in revenue, citing growth in iPhones, Macs, and its services business.

Amazon outperformed projections with robust growth in AWS and double-digit increases in overall sales. Meta and Microsoft similarly posted better-than-expected results, reflecting strong digital advertising and cloud businesses, respectively.

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Subsidy on small-value UPI payments cut, banks look for ways to offset cost: A cut in the government incentive on small-value Unified Payments Interface-based transactions is pushing banks towards levying charges on certain UPI transactions.


BharatPe firmly on profitability track, eyes $100 million round: The New Delhi-headquartered startup is raking in Rs 8-10 crore per month in profit before tax, according to two people in the know. It is also expected to report a profit before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation when it announces the fiscal 2025 results.

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Aadit PalichaKaivalya Vohra, founders, Zepto

Elcid Investments invests Rs 7.5 crore in Zepto at $5.9 billion valuation: In its regulatory filing on Tuesday, Elcid Investments said it will take a 0.0146% stake in Zepto for its investment—translating to a valuation of Rs 51,369 crore (or around $5.9 billion).

Zetwerk founders raise personal debt to infuse Rs 600 crore in company: Zetwerk founders Amrit Acharya and Srinath Ramakkrushnan have personally raised debt for the investment, which will increase their combined stake in the company by 2 percentage points.

Cybersecurity startup Safe Security raises $70 million: Cybersecurity intelligence startup Safe Security has raised $70 million in a funding round led by Avataar Ventures, with participation from Susquehanna Asia Venture Capital, NextEquity Partners and Prosperity7 Ventures.

Also Read: Neo Asset Management makes first close of Rs 2,000 crore secondaries fund

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IT firms pivot from mass fresher hires to specialised talent signups: Mass hiring of freshers at the entry level is slowing in the tech industry as companies move from volume-led hiring to a value-driven, skill-first approach, recruiting freshers based on specialised capabilities amid rapid automation and AI-driven digital transformation.

Infosys to hire 20,000 freshers amid IT job loss fears: Infosys CEO Salil Parekh has confirmed the company’s plan to hire around 20,000 graduates this year, according to a report in The Times of India. “We recruited over 17,000 people (gross hiring) in the first quarter and plan to bring in about 20,000 college graduates this year,” he told TOI.

Also Read: Mid-sized GCCs out-hire larger peers with double-digit growth in first half

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Wistron is eyeing Rs 1,000 crore IT hardware plant in Telangana: Wistron, the Taiwanese contract manufacturer that sold its iPhone assembly plant in Karnataka's Kolar to Tata Electronics in 2023, is firming up plans for an electronics production facility in Telangana with an investment of around Rs 1,000 crore.

US will change visa interview policy from September 2: Renewal of US work and student visas is facing yet another roadblock, as the Trump administration is set to eliminate the interview waiver provision effective September 2.

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AI-led ad frauds skim billions from brands one click at a time: Want to boost your Instagram reel views? You can now buy 1,000 views for a dollar. From China to Egypt, the booming black market of fake clicks or ‘click farms’ are gaming the system to artificially inflate website traffic metrics and mislead advertisers.


Krutrim cuts more than 100 jobs in second round of layoffs: Krutrim, the AI company launched by Ola founder Bhavish Aggarwal, has laid off a large portion of its linguistics team in less than six months after hiring them as part of strategy to keep leaner teams.

Also Read: The AI startup dilemma: To pivot or perish