TE Connectivity Launches Its First Start-Up Accelerator Program In Indian Market

-       The program, in association with BCIC Start-up Hub, is designed to promote and accelerate start-ups in energy, electrification, smart cities, IoT

TE Connectivity (TE), a world leader in connectivity and sensors, has collaborated with the Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce (BCIC) Start-up Hub to launch its first accelerator program in India. The program is designed to promote and accelerate start-ups initially in the energy and electrification, smart cities and IoT domains, by providing them with mentorship support, access to resources and a global network.

The program was launched at a recent event conducted by TE and BCIC with the support of TiE Bangalore (Indus Ventures) on "Future of Mobility and Emerging Opportunities.” Attendees were addressed by Ralf Klädtke, vice president and chief technology officer at TE and Dr. S. Devarajan, Senior Vice President, BCIC, and Senior Vice President, TVS Motor Company Limited, and Ravikiran Annaswamy, CEO & co-founder of Numocity, who shared their insights on the future of mobility and best manufacturing practices.

Rahul Mathur, director at TE, said, “We look at India as an opportunity to not just innovate in India for India but also for the globe. We are excited to continue building our capabilities at our innovation hubs in Bangalore and Pune, where we currently have more than 1,200 product engineers, co-located at state-of-the-art labs and working on some of the most exciting technologies. We believe launching an accelerator in Bangalore’s entrepreneurial ecosystem will help develop capabilities and drive innovation. In collaboration with BCIC Start-up Hub, the program includes specific models to provide guidance and mentorship support for the start-ups and will also help them to discover possible support for global exposure through our network. We aim to share our experience and success with the start-ups, helping to fuel the next stage of their entrepreneur journey.”

“The future of mobility will create a completely new ecosystem of electrified mobility with autonomous shuttles/trucks, software-defined vehicles, autonomous safety, seamless vehicle to everything, V2X communication, mobility pods, electrified air taxis, micro-mobility and many others,” Klädtke said. “The speed of technological change is very high and electric vehicles were just the first of many technological disruptions. For one to thrive in this new normal, innovation and speed are essential. As a result, growing our collaboration with start-ups and developing win-win partnerships is a top focus for us at TE.”

“Mobility is life,” Devarajan said. “India is taking a multi-focus approach on net zero through the Panchamrit principle. A combined co-opted approach toward net zero by manufacturers, suppliers and start-ups that involves improving product and process technologies like light weighting will enable our next steps. We must draw out strategies and action plans for the coming years to ensure a better environment for our next generation.”

TE Connectivity India will offer innovative solutions to help start-ups to optimize designs, reduce costs, improve performance, and enhance the user experience. TE’s technical mentors will provide guidance to design new components to meet customer needs. BCIC Start-up Hub will foster collaboration between start-ups, subject-matter experts, technology firms and research institutions to overcome market challenges faced by entrepreneurs. They will be facilitating collaboration with research institutions to leverage innovative research in creating market-ready products.

If you are interested to participate in the accelerator program, connect with Rahul Mathur  at rkmathur@te.com or Ravi Challu at ravi@bulletproofyourstartup.com

ABOUT TE CONNECTIVITY  

TE Connectivity is a global industrial technology leader creating a safer, sustainable, productive, and connected future. Our broad range of connectivity and sensor solutions, proven in the harshest environments, enable advancements in transportation, industrial applications, medical technology, energy, data communications, and the home. With more than 85,000 employees, including over 8,000 engineers, working alongside customers in approximately 140 countries, TE ensures that EVERY CONNECTION COUNTS.

Learn more at www.te.com and on LinkedIn, Facebook, WeChat, and Twitter.

About BCIC – The Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce (BCIC) is the apex Chamber of Industry and Commerce representing large and medium industry in the State of Karnataka. BCIC plays an active and important role in promoting trade and investment in the State and has an excellent domestic and international network with MoUs with the leading Chambers of Commerce across the globe. The Chamber represents all segments of industry which includes Manufacturing, Aerospace and Aviation, IT, Bio-tech, Pharma, Engineering, Hospitality, Travel and Tourism, Garments, Food Processing, Steel and Services (www.bcic.in).

Photo Caption: ( L to R ) Mr. Ralf Klädtke - Vice President and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) for TE Transportation Solutions, Mr. Rahul Mathur - General Manager, TE Connectivity, Dr. Devarajan - SVP, BCIC and SVP, TVS Motor Company Limited, Mr. Ravi Challu - Chairman, Start-Up Hub Expert Committee, BCIC and Founder & CEO, Bulletproof Your Startup, Mr. Sunil Telkar - Co-Chairman, Industry-Institute Interface and Edutech Expert Committee, BCIC and Managing Partner, Aspiro Consulting LLP and Mr. Vinod Keni -Co-Chairman, Start-Up Hub Expert Committee, BCIC and Lead - Venture Capital Investments, RoundGlass during the Lamp Lighting ceremony on the occasion of the Launch of the TE Connectivity Accelerator on May 12th, 2023.

OnMobile Launches Gamize, Its First-Ever SaaS-Based Gamification Platform For Brands Across Industries!

OnMobile Global, a leader in cutting-edge mobile gaming and entertainment, has launched its first-ever SaaS-based gamification platform for brands across industries, called Gamize, as a critical step in the transformation journey for its global business in this new fiscal, with Banglalink as its first partner.

Gamize, a SaaS-based Gamification platform, will provide completely customizable, industry-agnostic solutions for acquiring, engaging and retaining users for a brand’s website or app. Where sustaining customer loyalty in today’s highly competitive markets is a challenge, and decreasing customer acquisition costs and reducing churn are obstacles in every business; Gamize intends to leverage the natural tendencies of people for competition, achievement, and getting rewarded by modifying user behaviour with gamification techniques helping customers nudge the user to complete or perform activities which are meaningful to them while rewarding such behaviours.

The platform also uses methods via gamification to help customers increase users through referrals which helps keep customer acquisition costs lower. Gamize is built on a strong product platform which enables customers to deploy in a couple of days with out-of-the-box integrations and develop and launch campaigns in a few minutes rather than weeks. Gamize will bring a robust partner ecosystem to OnMobile with not just Enterprise customers but even SMBs, which allows them to leverage digital transformation modules and OnMobile’s Global presence to help grow their business across the globe.

Sanjay Baweja, MD and Global CEO of OnMobile Global said, “With over 20 years of experience and credibility in working with Telcos, we are now diversifying our portfolio with Gamize and aim to extend our gamification platform to over 500 enterprises and top brands across industries by 2025. With Gamize, we intend to help enterprises drive acquisition, engagement and user retention with a customized strategy. We thank Banglalink for their trust in Gamize, which was used in the revamp project of their MyBL app.”

Mohit Kapoor, Digital Business Director of Banglalink, said, “Banglalink and OnMobile revolutionize app engagement with MyBL SuperApp, featuring gamification through the Gamize Module. It's fun, rewarding, and sets a new industry standard, captivating users and boosting engagement. Customizable UI/UX ensures a seamless and user-friendly experience.”

About OnMobile

OnMobile Global [NSE India: ONMOBILE] [BSE Ltd: 532944], the leader in cutting-edge mobile gaming and entertainment, is headquartered in Bangalore, India, with its presence in over 50 countries across the globe. OnMobile is focused on building customer-first Mobile Gaming products while offering a wide array of digital products such as Videos, Tones, & Contests. Based on current deployments, OnMobile has over 83 million monthly users globally. For further information, visit www.onmobile.com.

Happiest Minds Technologies Honored With STPI Exports & Excellence Awards 2021-22

Happiest Minds Technologies Limited (NSE: HAPPSTMNDS), a ‘Born Digital . Born Agile’, Mindful IT Company, today announced that it has been conferred with the Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) Exports & Excellence Special Jury Award Promising Debutant Indian Category. The award is presented in recognition of contributions made by the STP/IT units in exports, employment generation, innovation, and boosting the overall economy and prosperity of the State of Odisha. The award ceremony was organized by STPI, part of Transforming Odisha Conclave 2023, the Economic Times & co-hosted by the E & IT Department, Government of Odisha, on May 11, 2023, at Hotel Taj Vivanta, Bhubaneswar.

STPI, an autonomous society under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Govt. of India, has been set up with a distinct focus on boosting Software export from the country. STPI-Bhubaneswar has played a seminal role in promoting IT/ITeS exports from the region by boosting tech entrepreneurship and creating employment opportunities for the local youth. STPI-Bhubaneswar was set up in 1990 and has operational centers at Berhampur, Rourkela, Patna, Ranchi, and Deoghar.

Mr. Venkatraman Narayanan, MD & CFO, Happiest Minds Technologies, said, “We are excited to receive the STPI Exports & Excellence Awards within the first year of starting operations in the State.  Odisha is a regional tech hub with a large talent pool, supported by a business-friendly Government, making it a preferred location for us.”

In 2022, Happiest Minds announced its expansion plans in Odisha with a new software Development Centre at Fortune Towers in Bhubaneswar, taking forward its long-term investment plans for further expansion in the state in alignment with the Make in Odisha focus of the state government. 

Designed for perpetuity, Happiest Minds is recognized among India’s Top 10 ‘India’s Best Workplaces™ in Health and Wellness 2022, and Top 50 India’s Best Workplaces for Building a Culture of Innovation by All™ 2023 by the Great Place to Work® Institute. The company has also won the prestigious Golden Peacock Award for Excellence in Corporate Governance 2022.

About Happiest Minds Technologies:

Happiest Minds’ Technologies Limited (NSE: HAPPSTMNDS), a Mindful IT Company, enables digital transformation for enterprises and technology providers by delivering seamless customer experiences, business efficiency and actionable insights. We do this by leveraging a spectrum of disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud, digital process automation, internet of things, robotics/drones, security, virtual/augmented reality, and more. Positioned as ‘Born Digital. Born Agile’, our capabilities span digital solutions, infrastructure, product engineering and security. We deliver these services across industry sectors such as automotive, BFSI, consumer packaged goods, e-commerce, edutech, engineering R&D, hi-tech, manufacturing, retail, and travel/transportation/hospitality. 

A Great Place to Work-Certified™ company, Happiest Minds is headquartered in Bangalore, India, with operations in the U.S., UK, Canada, Australia, and the Middle East.

Aurionpro Delivers Another Year Of Strong Growth, Driven By Market Expansion And Accelerating Adoption Of Next Gen Platforms

* Q4 FY23 Revenue grows 39% YoY & Ebitda expands 33% YoY

* Full Year FY23 Revenue grows 31% & Ebitda expands 30%

* Q4 & FY23 Financial Results & Business Updates

Aurionpro Solutions Limited (BSE: 532668) (NSE: AURIONPRO), announced its unaudited financial results for the quarter and year ending 31st March, 2023.The Company has posted strong YoY performance and these results demonstrate the strong growth momentum in the business.

Consolidated Financial Performance for Q4FY23 v/s Q4FY22 (Corresponding Year)

·         Revenue of Rs. 191 crore v/s. Rs. 137 crore [á 39%]

·         EBITDA of Rs. 40 crore v/s. Rs. 30 crore [á 33%]

·         PAT of Rs. 27 crore v/s. Rs. 22 crore [á 23%]

Consolidated Financial Performance for Q4FY23 v/s Q3FY23 (Corresponding Quarter)

·         Revenue of Rs. 191 crore v/s. Rs. 168 crore [á 13%]

·         EBITDA of Rs. 40 crore v/s. Rs. 37 crore [á 9%]

·         PAT of Rs. 27 crore v/s. Rs. 26 crore [á 2%]

Consolidated Financial Performance for FY23 v/s FY22

·         Revenue of Rs. 659 crore v/s. Rs. 505 crore [á 31%]

·         EBITDA of Rs. 145 crore v/s. Rs. 112 crore [á 30%]

·         PAT of Rs. 102 crore v/s. Rs. 76 crore [á 35%]

*All numbers have been rounded off

Results Highlights:

·         Revenue for the quarter stood at INR 191 Cr, a significant growth of 39% on a YoY basis and 13% on a QoQ basis.

·         EBITDA for Q4FY23 stood at INR 40 Cr as compared to INR 30 Cr in Q4FY22, a growth of 33% on a YoY basis and 9% on a QoQ basis. EBITDA margins for the quarter stood at 21%

·         PAT for Q4FY23 stood at INR 27 Cr, which is a growth of 23% on a YoY basis and 2% on a QoQ basis

·         In FY23, the company achieved it’s revenue target of INR 659 Cr with a growth of 31% YoY

·         EBITDA & PAT for FY23 was higher by 30% & 35% respectively on a YoY basis

·         EPS for Q4FY23 stood at INR 11 and for FY23 it stood at INR 42.69, which was an increase of 38% on a YoY basis

Operational Highlights:

Banking & Fintech

Aurionpro’s subsidiary Integro signs partnership with Finastra, a global provider of financial software applications and marketplaces, to offer Integro’s SmartLender Trade Limits solution alongside its own Trade Innovation solution.

A leading bank in the Middle-East selects Auro-Digi, our latest product offering, becoming first customer for this newly launched product.

Aurionpro Payment Solutions Pvt. Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary received an in-principle approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to set up Payment Aggregator business.

Technology Innovation Group

Aurionpro partners with Webwerks to successfully operartionalise Tier 3 data centres (DC) in Navi Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore. Aurionpro is supporting Webwerks with DC Design, Consultancy, Master Planning and also DC turnkey build, in these projects.

Successful go-live of “IoT based Integrated Bus ticketing System” for the Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC)

SME Chamber of India recognizes Aurionpro with BEST ENTERPRISE OF THE YEAR AWARD IN IT SECTOR, for Aurobees, its innovative platform focused on SMEs.

Management Commentary

Mr. Ashish Rai, Vice-Chairman & Director said

“We are delighted to announce these results which underline continuing strong growth momentum across all our key businesses. Q4 growth meaningfully exceeded our guidance of 25 to 30% yoy growth and we delivered full-year results at the high end of our guided range. Our strategy to build highly differentiated global products and platforms continues to gain traction and FY23 was a landmark year in demonstrating the ability of our chosen playbook to drive industry leading growth and margins. Both of our core divisions exceeded their operational targets for the year, which points to an exceptional execution from Aurionpro teams across the world.

What makes this performance truly special is that the businesses have delivered this performance while also meeting our long-term objectives of accelerating R&D to create next generation platforms as well as creating a best-in-class global sales channel to fuel our next leg of expansion. We have also made great progress in adding capacity across the enterprise. Taken together, these achievements allow us to be ready for a phase of rapid, sustained growth powered by increasing market share in our home markets as well as expansion in identified growth markets.

Our execution focus for the next year will be to step up our R&D investments to capitalize on the immense growth opportunities for our products that come with planned market expansion as well as offering expansions. Many of our key offerings and platforms are fast approaching inflection point where they go from being regional leaders in Asia to credible global leaders in their chosen segments. This reinforces our strong conviction that the best way to expand long term intrinsic value of Aurionpro is by creating highly valuable, market leading IP that drives long term value for our clients as well as drives sticky, high margin revenue streams for us.

We enter the current year with a strong combination of favorable factors that should allow us to accelerate further and continue to lead the industry in terms of both growth and margins. We have started FY24 with a growing pipeline, a strong order book, a slate of market leading products and an execution machine that has now delivered two consecutive years of high growth since we revamped our strategic framework. We believe we are in a great position to continue our strong growth trajectory and we expect FY 24 growth to be in the range of 30 to 35%. As we navigate the tremendous growth opportunities in front of us, our capital allocation strategy will continue to get more stringent, setting a high bar for expected ROI on all reinvested capital. This will ensure we stay focused on initiatives that capitalize on the most rewarding growth opportunities and continue to create enduring, long term value for all our stakeholders.”

About Aurionpro Solutions Limited

Aurionpro Solutions Limited (NSE: AURIONPRO) (BSE: 532668) is an advanced technology solutions company catering to the needs of Banking, Mobility, Payments and Government sectors. We converge multiple technology solutions under our umbrella, acting as one platform for Advanced and Accelerated Platform-led Transformation, guiding businesses to ADAPT to a new paradigm in Digital. Headquartered in Mumbai, India, we are bringing this to reality across global locations, pillared on the expertise and commitment of 1800+ passionate people supporting the Aurionpro journey. For more information, visit https://www.aurionpro.com/

Rapido Captain's Courageous Act And Timely Action Saves 6-year Old Girl, Sets An Example

A Rapido Captain demonstrated exceptional bravery when he rescued a 6-year-old girl from a potential perpetrator near Irrum Manzil metro station in Hyderabad. Kalyan Karamthot, a 24-year-old engineering graduate, was waiting for a ride when he witnessed the distressing scene and promptly called the police. Thanks to his quick thinking and on-time action, the culprit was arrested, and the girl was saved.

At 10:30 pm, while waiting for a ride near the metro station, Kalyan witnessed a distressing scene in which a fruit vendor exposed himself to the young girl, putting her in a discomfited position. Sensing something amiss, Kalyan questioned the vendor's claim that the girl was his daughter. Recognising the urgency of the situation, he promptly called the police, leading to the arrest of the perpetrator, Afroz Khan.

Kalyan's quick thinking and heroic actions have been lauded and recognized by Additional Director General of Police, Shikha Goel. Born and raised in Nandyal, Andhra Pradesh, Kalyan completed his Mechanical Engineering degree from JNTUA College of Engineering, Pulivendula in 2020 and is currently pursuing a UI/UX course alongside his work as a Rapido Captain.

Speaking about the incident, Kalyan humbly expressed during his felicitation, "My parents always taught me to do the right thing, regardless of the consequences. They encouraged me to file an FIR and assured me of their support. I couldn't have lived with myself if I had done nothing and something had happened to that girl."

Pavan Guntupalli, Founder of Rapido, commended Kalyan's act, stating “It gives me immense pride to have such a member in the Rapido family. Kalyan’s selfless act serves as a powerful inspiration both within the organisation and society at large. His actions epitomise Rapido's vision to create an enduring impact on society, ensuring safety and empowering individuals.”

Among C-suite Leaders, AI Is Top Digital Priority In The Path To Operational Resilience, Finds Accenture Study

Nearly three-fourths (73%) of companies are prioritizing AI over all other digital investments and with the immediate focus on improving operational resilience in an unprecedented environment, according to a study by Accenture (NYSE:ACN) that surveys 1,700 executives across 15 industries and 12 countries including India.

The report, Reinventing Enterprise Operations, found 90% of business leaders are applying AI to tackle aspects of operational resilience, which spans data-driven capabilities, such as finance (89%) and supply chain (88%), to experimentation with generative AI.

The findings assessed organizations across six measures of operational maturity: AI, data, processes, talent, collaboration and stakeholder experiences. While only a few (9%) companies achieved maturity on all fronts, those that did averaged 1.4X higher operating margins over peers, while driving 42% faster innovation, 34% better sustainability and 30% higher satisfaction scores.

“All CEOs are under pressure to digitize faster, put more resilience in the business, and find new pathways to growth,” said Yusuf Tayob, group chief executive of Accenture Operations. “The right investments in technology while advancing talent, data and processes is what drives a new performance frontier.”

With a talent strategy that mirrors data and digital maturity, enterprises averaged nearly three-times higher productivity when prioritizing training and specialized skills to address talent needs. This was further echoed by investments being made in new ways of working (cited by 94%) and the 90% of (COO, CIO, CHRO) respondents who plan to increase specialized and technical talent over the next three years.

To fully capture the opportunity, leaders should take these five actions to evolve operations and achieve a new performance frontier:

Humanize AI experiences: explore new use cases to enhance experience-related outcomes and simplify relationships with employees and customers.

Data decisiveness: define a clear strategy that governs how data is created, collected and enriched, encouraging debate and removing biases to capture the most effective insights to guide decision-making.

Innovate processes: visualize “as-is” processes, apply AI-driven insights to discover new efficiencies, while simulating scenario changes to optimize business process improvements.

Agile workforce: create agility within workforce strategy; empower employees with a choice of technology tools to meet needs.

Take a 360° approach: drive value creation holistically, building it from the ground up and across all functions by using data-driven insights, from customers, employees and other ecosystem partners.

About the Research

For the report, “Reinventing Enterprise Operations,” Accenture surveyed 1,700 executives, 72% of whom were C-suite, across 12 countries including India and 15 industries. The latest research assessed the progression of business operations maturity —each level underpinned by more advanced ways of working with AI, data and cloud —and (where relevant) compared with 2021 findings. The study then combines survey responses with externally validated data across multiple dimensions of value—from financial to experience, sustainability to talent and inclusion and diversity to innovation and agility.

This research can also be explored in Accenture Foresight, Accenture’s new thought leadership app, which provides a personalized feed of all our latest reports, case studies, blogs, interactive data charts, podcasts and more. Visit http://www.accenture.com/foresight.

About Accenture

Accenture is a leading global professional services company that helps the world’s leading businesses, governments and other organizations build their digital core, optimize their operations, accelerate revenue growth and enhance citizen services—creating tangible value at speed and scale. We are a talent and innovation led company with 738,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries. Technology is at the core of change today, and we are one of the world’s leaders in helping drive that change, with strong ecosystem relationships. We combine our strength in technology with unmatched industry experience, functional expertise and global delivery capability. We are uniquely able to deliver tangible outcomes because of our broad range of services, solutions and assets across Strategy & Consulting, Technology, Operations, Industry X and Accenture Song. These capabilities, together with our culture of shared success and commitment to creating 360° value, enable us to help our clients succeed and build trusted, lasting relationships. We measure our success by the 360° value we create for our clients, each other, our shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us at www.accenture.com.

Worldline Partners With Zone Startups India To Build An Accelerator Programme To Foster Innovation And Entrepreneurship In The Paytech

Worldline, a global leader in payment services, today announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to run an Accelerator Programme for payment technology start-ups with Zone Startups India - a part of BRTSIF (BIL-Ryerson Technology Startup Incubator Foundation- part of BSE). Worldline will also provide technology, business and knowledge platform to help grow these young start-ups being incubated by Zone Startups India.

For the paytech accelerator programme, Worldline will work closely with the Zone Startups team to nurture innovation and entrepreneurship in the payment technologies space. The partnership is under the Buland Bharat initiative of Worldline and will support in creating greater awareness of digital payments adoption across India. Zone Startups India provides an interdisciplinary coworking platform for selected start-ups with infrastructure, access to industry partners, business development support, mentoring and client relations.

Worldline in India has over 20 years of payment experience and one of the most preferred payments partner of choice for all leading banks, retail brands, e-commerce companies, NBFCs, Insurance, start-ups, and SMBs in India. Worldline will bring a wealth of expertise in payment technologies for selected start-ups to provide a platform to learn, brainstorm, and guide them from the early state to jumpstart their growth and achieve scalability.  

Vishal Maru, Executive Vice President, Financial Institutions, Worldline India, commented: 

"The BSE Zone Start-ups India is one of the sort after start-up accelerator in India. It is fantastic to see the work they are doing to support innovation and entrepreneurship. We could not have asked for a better partner to carry forward Worldline's values of innovation and growth in building a sustainable start-up ecosystem for payments technology. We look forward to closely working with their team to make this a success."

Hemant Gupta, Managing Director, Zone Startups India commented, “It is wonderful to have Worldline as our business solution partner. With their network spanned around the globe, our start-ups are going to have the opportunity of interacting with the wide range of Worldline merchants. The cohort will get unique opportunities for pilots from Worldline and mentorship of Worldline’s senior management. Looking forward to take this accelerator program to new heights through this partnership.”

Worldline in India offers one-stop shop for all payment needs – In-store payments, Online payments, and Omnichannel Payments. Worldline covers the whole payment value chain and end-to-end processes that facilitate services to over 1.5 million merchants across 5000 towns and cities in India.