Western Digital Announces the Winners of Data Innovation Bazaar 2020 to Empower Indian Startups to Drive Data-Led Solutions

 

Summary

* Western Digital, along with partners Startup India, Invest India, and Ecosystem partners MeitY, DST and TiE Delhi-NCR, felicitated the winners with awards totalling to INR 27 lakhs

In its continued endeavour to enable startups to achieve more, Western Digital concluded its flagship startup challenge - Data Innovation BazaarTM 2020. Data Innovation Bazaar 2020 was hosted in partnership with Startup India and Invest India, and Ecosystem partners - Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), Department of Science & Technology - Ministry of Science & Technology (DST) and The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE Delhi-NCR). The annual startup challenge delivered a platform to promote data-driven solutions for industries including healthcare, education, agriculture, energy & environment, smart transportation and smart cities.

India has the world's third largest startup ecosystem. Today, startups are gaining more momentum and entrepreneurs are increasingly looking to collaborate with partners, get more exposure and expand their business. The corporate sector has been engaging with startups to get a fresh perspective in addition to making corporations more agile. Western Digital’s initiative - Data Innovation Bazaar has been architected in India under the leadership of Supria Dhanda, and has helped in enabling entrepreneurs showcase their data-led ideas and also build a network with key stakeholders.

Winners of Data Innovation Bazaar 2020 were announced in a virtual event led by the office of the India Country Manager and Vice President - Supria Dhanda and in the presence of Chief Guest - Mr. Deepak Bagla, MD & CEO of Invest India, members from Western Digital’s executive leadership, the government and leading academia.

The top five startups who were awarded a total grand prize of INR 25 lakhs are -

The first place was awarded to AarogyaAI Innovations Private Limited and earned a prize of INR 10 lakhs for their genomics and artificial intelligence-driven rapid diagnostic solution for drug-resistant tuberculosis

Anukai Solutions Private Limited was awarded the second-place prize of INR 6 lakhs, for their innovative traffic management solutions with the help of AI.

Agua Wireless Systems Private Limited was awarded the third-place prize of INR 4 lakhs for their IoT-based solutions that enable smart water management by automating water distribution, billing and leakage detection in buildings, layouts and cities. 

The fourth-place prize of INR 3 lakhs was awarded to Paraclete Image Labs Private Limited for their assistive device for the visually impaired which acts as a reader as well as exam writer. 

ShilpMIS Technologies was awarded the fifth-place prize of INR 2 lakhs for their platform that simplifies Virtual Reality/Augmented Reality content creation and discovery for immersive & interactive learning.

Additionally, Aarogya AI was awarded a special women entrepreneur prize of INR 2 lakhs.

“Invest India has long been at the forefront to enable startups to achieve more, and with the help of corporate partners we are able to build a strong startup network and make them enterprise ready. Frugal innovations, which form the core of the Indian startup ecosystem, provide a plethora of solutions to combat the socio-economic issues in the country and across the globe. As one of the largest forums promoting entrepreneurship in India, our wide community of stakeholders has helped talented entrepreneurs succeed and take their innovations from labs to land.”, said Deepak Bagla, MD & CEO, Invest India.

“To define the success of a startup, one needs to build blocks of vision and strategy, leverage the ecosystem along with new-age innovation; and these are few of the traits which we saw in our finalists. Technology has played an elevated role during challenging times by transforming our lives and creating a greater positive impact on business. With data growing at an exponential rate and the rise in startup innovation, we are hoping to foster more breakthrough solutions with Data Innovation Bazaar by bringing together the entrepreneurial ecosystem, investors, corporates, academia and the government.”, said Siva Sivaram, President, Technology & Strategy, Western Digital.

“Western Digital believes in strengthening its relationship with the Indian startup ecosystem to empower the local talent. The zeal to solve the challenges India faces was seen across all the solutions. Nearly 50% of the applications were ideas for the healthcare and education sector, and about one-third of the short-listed applications are directly relevant to the areas of smart cities, smart video, connected homes and transportation. Data Innovation Bazaar has received an overwhelming response this year and we saw an 85% rise in the number of applicants. We are invested to play a role in igniting engineering minds and catalysing the startup ecosystem of India.”, said Supria Dhanda, Vice President and India Country Manager, Western Digital.

The top 40 shortlisted teams of Data Innovation Bazaar 2020 will be given TiE membership and will also be invited for a three-day innovation bootcamp offered by Western Digital. All the women-led entrepreneurs in the top 40 will get an exclusive three-month accelerator opportunity offered by WE Hub, a government of Telangana initiative. The 40 finalists will also get to participate in Khoj Incubator program offered by Atal Incubation Centre-BIMTECH with 15 of them getting an opportunity to be a part of the Incubation Program.

The 2020 edition of Data Innovation Bazaar received a total of 963 applications and saw entries across various industries. Western Digital along with its partners have curated an exclusive platform which offers an opportunity for students and budding entrepreneurs to have direct access to key stakeholders across the startup ecosystem. Data Innovation Bazaar is a platform to harness technology to inspire paradigm shift in data-driven innovation.

Learn more about Data Innovation Bazaar here.

About Western Digital

Western Digital creates environments for data to thrive. As a leader in data infrastructure, the company is driving the innovation needed to help customers capture, preserve, access and transform an ever-increasing diversity of data. Everywhere data lives, from advanced data centers to mobile sensors to personal devices, our industry-leading solutions deliver the possibilities of data. Our data-centric solutions are comprised of the Western Digital®, G-Technology™, SanDisk®, and WD® brands.

© 2020 Western Digital Corporation or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Western Digital, the Western Digital logo, G-Technology, SanDisk, and WD are registered trademarks or trademarks of Western Digital Corporation or its affiliates in the US and/or other countries. All other marks are the property of their respective owners.

Philips Introduces Hair Clippers for Men, Designed for an Easy and Even #HaircutAtHome Priced at INR 1,495

Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA), a global leader in health technology, today unveiled its brand new Hair Clipper 3000 series under male grooming category. Designed with advanced Dual Cut and Trim & Flow Technology the latest Philips Hair Clipper delivers maximum precision making it easy to get a salon like haircut at home.

With increasing numbers of consumers taking their grooming regime into their own hands, #HaircutAtHome has become the biggest grooming trend recently. The new clipper offers confidence of an even haircut with 13 length settings up to 23 mm that enables you to cut your hair and get the style and length that suits you, with results similar to what you get at a salon. It comes with a unique Trim & Flow technology that gives you an uninterrupted haircut from start to end, without the hassle of hair getting stuck. It also offers Dual cut technology, with 2X the number of blades, to give you desired results in much lesser time. Designed for an expert trim or cut, Hair Clipper 3000 is handy to be used by you or by your partner to easily trim your hair offering ultimate precision.

“The launch of Philips Hair Clipper series 3000 underscores our commitment to delivering innovation based on the needs of the consumers. Our consumers today are more concerned about convenience and hygiene than ever before. Keeping that at the core, we have launched a hair cutting solution that offers convenience through superior technology. As the trend of hair-cutting at home continues to rise, we are confident that the new Philips Hair Clipper will prove to be a solution that makes their lives easier, while keeping them safe”, said Gulbahar Taurani, Vice- President, Personal Health, Philips Indian Subcontinent.

Today, consumers are looking at grooming solutions at home to avoid the risk of stepping out, thus driving the “self-reliant” movement. In haircare specifically, they are looking for solutions that cater to their haircut at home and deliver exceptional results. Philips bets big on personalized care with this product, which is a perfect answer to the concern of getting salon like results with ease, in the comfort of your home.

Philips Hair Clipper 3000 series

The Hair Clipper comes with a Trim & Flow technology, with new, innovative comb is designed to prevent hair from getting stuck. It also offers advanced Dual Cut technology with self-sharpening blades for a faster, sharper cut. It enables easy to select and lock in 13 length settings as well an Ergonomic handle for more comfort and control. It has a detachable head to quickly release blades for easy cleaning and easy maintenance to save time.

The product is available at your nearest retail store and will soon be available at online retailers as well.

About Royal Philips

Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA) is a leading health technology company focused on improving people's health and enabling better outcomes across the health continuum from healthy living and prevention, to diagnosis, treatment and home care. Philips leverages advanced technology and deep clinical and consumer insights to deliver integrated solutions. Headquartered in the Netherlands, the company is a leader in diagnostic imaging, image-guided therapy, patient monitoring and health informatics, as well as in consumer health and home care. Philips generated 2019 sales of EUR 19.5 billion and employs approximately 81,000 employees with sales and services in more than 100 countries.

Bajaj Allianz Life Ropes in Ayushmann Khurrana As Its Indian Brand Ambassador

Bajaj Allianz Life, one of India’s leading private life insurer, today announced the appointment of youth icon and thought-leader Ayushmann Khurrana, one of most talented and versatile Bollywood artists, as its brand ambassador to promote its products and digital services across offline and online mediums. Ayushmann will feature in the life insurer’s next campaign “Smart Living” that encompasses its Term Plan – Smart Protect Goal and the new digital service – Smart Assist.

Commenting on the new campaign and signing up Ayushmann Khurrana, a first for the life insurer, Chandramohan Mehra, Chief Marketing Officer, Bajaj Allianz Life, said, “The refreshed brand narrative, relevant to new customer risk-mitigation mindset, is anchored on Ayushmann, who embodies our brand ethos of trustworthiness, innovativeness, authenticity and responsibility.  The pandemic has infused smartness in our lives, and it is reflected in how we are embracing remote ways of living or acquiring new skills. Our smart products and secured digital services are aimed at securing and enabling our customer’s Life Goals, in these uncertain times.

Ayushmann Khurrana, Actor and Brand Ambassador for Bajaj Allianz Life, said, “I am delighted to partner with Bajaj Allianz Life in its journey towards enabling Life Goals of India.  A trusted and Smart Life Insurance plan is a reliable back up to your family’s Life Goals. Amongst several innovative offerings, its differentiated Term Insurance Plan and the innovative digital service – Smart Assist, precisely answers the needs of protection and contactless yet assisted transactions.”

In addition to the campaign on Smart Protect Goal, Ayushmann Khurrana will also feature in an ad film on Smart Assist, the revolutionary tech-enabled service the company has launched to ensure customers who are purchasing the company’s product are guided in a smart, transparent and a secure manner by a Bajaj Allianz Life expert, keeping all the social distancing norms in mind, and being with the customer at the same time. Bajaj Allianz Life’s Smart Protect Goal, one of the most comprehensive term insurance plans offers return of premium at maturity, 55 critical illness coverage and cover till 99 years of age for limited premium paying term as less as 5 years.

The latest Bajaj Allianz Life latest campaign will run on major TV channels and will be rolled out on all major digital platforms.

YouTube Link - https://youtu.be/s1GQuXY9pIc

About Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance

Bajaj Allianz Life is one of the leading private life insurance companies in India. The Company is a partnership between two powerful and successful entities in their own right – Bajaj Finserv Limited, one of India’s most diversified non-banking financial institution and Allianz SE, one of world’s leading asset manager and insurer.

Commencing its operations in 2001, Bajaj Allianz Life has in less than two decades expanded its presence across the country. It serves millions of customers through its 556 branches, 80,000+ agents (as on 31 March 2020), comprehensive set of trusted partners and via its online sales channel. The Company’s brand promise of Life Goals.Done. drives it to launch innovative insurance solutions, including the revolutionary RoMC (Return of Mortality Charges), a feature in some of its new-age ULIPs, and thereby becoming the first company to do so. Bajaj Allianz Life has constantly transformed to offer tech-enabled state-of-the-art services to enhance customer delight. The Company continues to engage with customers through several unique platforms, and has secured a place in the Guinness Book of World Records with the Bajaj Allianz Life Plankathon 2020.

Mosambee Receives India’s First Certification for Contact and Contactless Card Payment Transactions on Smartphones and Tablets

UL, a global safety science company, announced that Mosambee, a payment solution company, is the first company in India to have their software-based personal identification number (PIN) entry product, commonly known as PIN on Glass, certified for compliance with the Payment Card Industry (PCI) standard. PCI allows for contact and contactless card transactions with PIN entry on merchants’ mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, using a secure PIN entry application. In earlier point of sale (PoS) solutions, the PIN was entered on the payment terminals only. Mosambee’s solution supports all payment schemes including RuPay, Visa and Mastercard. This ‘Made in India’ solution will be a plug-and-play option for many of the banks and acquirers already connected to Mosambee. Ensuring product compliance following certification may help to fuel opportunities for businesses and institutions to expand and accept payments. It also helps enable small businesses to compete more effectively while enhancing overall customer service.

Commenting on the certification of the new solution, Mr. Sameer Chugh, Co-Founder of Mosambee, said, “The certification strengthens security and builds trust in digital payments acceptance on smartphones and tablets. The PIN on Glass solution allows a merchant to now download an acquirer application from the Android or iOS app stores instead of focusing on hardware terminals. With its rich experience in the payments industry, UL was an instrumental advisor in our commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) device from a concept to product launch.”

A wide network of subject matter experts from various geographies at UL’s PCI SSC recognized laboratories performed the PCI Security Standards Council’s (SSC) Software-Based PIN Entry on COTS (SPoC) testing requirements for the Mosambee solution.

Mr. Suresh Sugavanam, Vice President and Managing Director of South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa at UL, said, “We are proud that this certification enables India’s vision of a cash-lite society through expansion of payment acceptance infrastructure in India. The PCI certification helps local companies to develop innovative and smart payment devices and build trust in the security of payments. At UL, we continue to focus on building best-in-class testing platforms and compliance solutions to help bring more secure digital payment products to the market.”

About UL

UL helps create a better world by applying science to solve safety, security and sustainability challenges. We empower trust by enabling the safe adoption of innovative new products and technologies. Everyone at UL shares a passion to make the world a safer place. All of our work, from independent research and standards development, to testing and certification, to providing analytical and digital solutions, helps improve global well-being. Businesses, industries, governments, regulatory authorities and the public put their trust in us so they can make smarter decisions. To learn more, visit UL.com. 

Hero Motocorp Volumes Now Surpass Pre-Covid Levels with Robust Sales of 584,456 Units in August ‘20

* CLOCKS DOUBLE-DIGIT GROWTH OF 13% OVER JULY 2020

* REGISTERS GROWTH OF 7.55% OVER AUGUST 2019

Sprinting ahead with the fourth consecutive month of growth in volume sales, Hero MotoCorp, the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles and scooters, has continued to lead the revival of the automotive sector.

Signaling a positive turn-around for the two-wheeler industry, which is a strong driver of the domestic economy, the Company sold 584,456 units of motorcycles and scooters in the month of August 2020, a growth of 7.55% over the corresponding month of the previous year (August 2019) when it sold 543,406 units.

Sequentially, this translates into a growth of 13% over the month of July 2020, when the Company had sold 514,509 units.

Hero MotoCorp’s latest addition to its range of premium motorcycles – the Xtreme 160R – has received very positive feedback from the market and has led to an increase in the company’s premium segment market share.

The Company is also witnessing strong retail off-take and is currently operating in pull-market with rural and semi-urban centers driving demand.

With August marking another step forward in the market's recovery, the Company cautiously anticipates sales to continue their upward trajectory with favorable factors such as the upcoming festive season, increasing consumer confidence and continued government policy support.

Now operating at nearly 100% production capacity with almost all customer touchpoints open, the Company remains committed to the health and safety of everyone in its ecosystem, including its customers.

Highlights of August’20

* Reiterating to its commitment towards society, Hero MotoCorp donated 10 unique First Responder Vehicles (FRVs) to the government and health authorities in Gurugram, Rewari and Dharuhera in Haryana and Halol in Gujarat. These special and versatile vehicles will help to reach out to patients in rural and remote areas and transfer them easily to closest hospitals. First Responder has been custom-built as an upgrade on Hero MotoCorp's powerful Xtreme 200R motorcycles.

* Hero MotoCorp announced the return of the Twenty20 cricket format in the ‘New Normal’ with the commencement of Hero Caribbean Premier League 2020. In a first for a cricket premier league, the matches are being played in stadiums without any spectators, with the objective of maintain social distancing.

670 Professionals Got Hired; 2,399 Shortlisted Through TimesJobs & Mirchi’s ‘Baat Baat Pe Jobs’ Campaign in Just 27 Days

Hiring is back

* ‘Mirchi Par Baat Baat Pe Jobs with TimesJobs’ campaign uplifted the careers of more than 3,069 job seekers whose job search was hit due to COVID-19 

* 670 professionals found a suitable job in 21 companies through this campaign in 27 days straight 

* 2,399 candidates were shortlisted at various companies and were on the anvil of being hired 

* TimesJobs had roped in 164+ companies and recruiting partners to help job seekers get hired quickly 

IT professional Anurag Jana’s dream tech career crashed when his company let him go a few weeks ago. Like most other employees, he was working from home amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but the company lost its business and Anurag lost his job! Just then, Anurag applied at the ‘Mirchi Par Baat Baat Pe Jobs with TimesJobs’, a CSR initiative to help those professionals whose job has been hit by COVID-19. 

This was the second season of a hugely popular CSR initiative hosted jointly by Mirchi and TimesJobs in 2019 called ‘ReadySteadyJobs’, where 1,065+ professionals were hired in 21 days. 

“I got hired as a PHP developer in a Delhi-based company recently. I have joined a few days ago,” said Anurag beaming with joy. His only advice for jobseekers is that one should be optimistic and very thorough with the basics. Like Anurag, 669 more professionals got hired and 2,399 were shortlisted through this massive CSR campaign facilitated jointly by TimesJobs and Mirchi.  

Sandeep Grover’s Placewell Careers was one of the prominent recruitment agencies participating in this campaign. He helped more than 40+ candidates get jobs in various companies. “This is a fantastic initiative for both jobseekers and companies alike. The COVID-19 induced lockdown has caused a panic among companies and jobseekers. People are facing job loss or an abrupt salary cut. In such a situation, the ‘BaatBaatPeJobs’ campaign brought hope to many. I placed 40+ candidates in health and life insurance companies, and I feel happy that I was able to help so many people in the pandemic time”.  

Kaushik Sen, owner of Three Dots recruitment agency from Kolkata described this campaign as ‘the best thing to happen in the present time’. “I got very good candidates - from freshers to middle management level – through this campaign. ‘BaatBaatPeJobs’ is bringing in hope in a time when everyone is concerned about their jobs,” he said.  

‘Mirchi Par Baat Baat Pe Jobs..with TimesJobs!’ was launched on July 16, 2020. TimesJobs had roped in 164+ companies and recruiting agencies to facilitate recruitment via this campaign. Participating companies include Capgemini, Mastercard, LTI, Icertis, VOIS, HPE, Salesforce, DBS Bank, UiPath among others. The recruiting partners include seasoned recruitment consultancies such as G Gheewala, Global Talent Pool, The Real Placements and others.

Mirchi Delhi’s popular RJ Naved, RJ Sayema, RJ Vidit, RJ Rochie and RJ Leen anchored the campaign on radio and urged people to apply for relevant jobs. Alongside, they were interviewing recruiters, recruitment agencies and jobseekers to understand the skill requirement in the present employment scenario. 

Sanjay Goyal, Business Head, TimesJobs and TechGig described this campaign as ‘remarkably successful’. “The metrics of any campaign being successful aren’t always a handful of numbers and stats. More than fulfilling its desired targets, this campaign transformed the lives of 3,069+ jobseekers amid pandemic - which to me, is the biggest mark of it being successful,” he added. 

Shivangini Jajoria, Regional Director-North & East, ENIL (Mirchi), said, “Mirchi has always been very close to its listeners, we as a brand align ourselves to them and as the current pandemic resulted in a huge number of jobs, we decided to come back with season 2 of our Jobs’ campaign. We aim to put forward ideas and campaigns that directly address social concerns. Seeing the success of this campaign gives the team immense pleasure not because we have millions of views and reach but because we could reach to the hearts of our listeners, helping them when they were in need and emerging not just as a Radio brand but as a friend also.”

About TimesJobs:

TimesJobs is India’s leading career portal, with a sharp focus on helping companies and businesses connect with competent professionals. With over 25 million registered jobseekers across the board and more than 60 million page views every month, it is the most preferred career portal among the ambitious professionals who want to make smarter career decisions and accelerate their career progression. 

About Mirchi: 

 Entertainment Network India Limited (ENIL), popularly known as Mirchi, owns 73 frequencies and is advertising partner for another 3, across 63 cities in India, making it India’s largest private FM radio broadcaster. Launched in 2001, Mirchi now operates across the country with 4 distinct brands - Mirchi, Mirchi Love, Kool & Ishq (for which it is the advertising partner of TV today network). With the highest radio listenership in India (approximately 40 million people- all 4 brands included) and a track record of developing innovative content, Mirchi has been expanding and retaining its audiences and advertisers through the years. Mirchi also has the digital strength of having the biggest radio website, throbbing social media handles & 170 powerful RJs across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and the biggest YouTube channel called Filmy Mirchi in the independent Bollywood space.

Toyota Kirloskar Motor Sells 5555 Units in the Month of August 2020

* Announces ‘opening of bookings’ of the much awaited Urban Cruiser, Toyota’s all-new youngest urban SUV in India

Toyota Kirloskar Motor today announced that the company sold a total of 5555 units in the month of August 2020, thereby exceeding sales volumes as sold in July 2020(the company had clocked 5386 units in the month of July 2020). For reference, the company had sold a total of 10,701 units in the domestic market in August 2019 and had exported 843 units of the Etios as well.

Commenting on the month’s performance, Mr. Naveen Soni, Sr. Vice President, Sales & Service- TKM said, “We began August with a lot of apprehensions due to the skewed rise in Covid positive cases in Karnataka state and throughout the country. It had a resultant impact on both the demand & supply scenarios. Fortunately, August witnessed an increase in demand for most of our models akin to pre-Covid times, including customer enquiries and orders. However, supplying vehicles from our end (to dealers) posed as a challenge due to the rising number of Covid cases in Bangalore and its surrounding areas, where most of our workforces reside. This even lead us to ramp down production to a single shift so as to be able to ensure that we are taking all measures to safeguard the health and safety of our employees first, and of the community at large. Thankfully, more than half the Covid infected workers at TKM have recovered completely and are reporting back at work, after having completed all necessary protocols as laid down by the state health authorities. This has helped us immensely in inching up supplies so as to be able to cater to the increasing demands of our customers.

August had also witnessed a steady rise in retails (sales from dealer to customers) and thanks to ‘Toyota pull system’ of operations, we are happy that we could squeeze the system inventory to sell much higher to customers despite the production constraints. Thereby helping us clock 25% higher retails when compared to the wholesales (sale from TKM to dealers) this month and also resulting in better inventory management at dealerships.

We also announced the opening of bookings for the much awaited Urban Cruiser in August. The upcoming launch model has generated a lot of interest, from our customers and the market alike. We are grateful towards our loyal customers who have pre-booked the Urban Cruiser as this reiterates their trust and faith on brand Toyota. We are humbled to receive such loyalty from our customers and would like to thank them by offering them some early movers benefit,” he concluded.