E-waste management platform Karo Sambhav and sanitary-waste recycler Padcare Labs are among the nominees for the Economic Times Startup Awards' Social Enterprise category, spotlighting a growing cohort of Indian startups pairing environmental impact with commercial viability.
Seed and early-stage funding into Indian startups surpassed $609 million across July and August 2026, according to Tracxn data, as investors continued to back new ventures even amid a more selective overall funding environment.
Seed and early-stage funding crossed $609 million between July and August, with investors increasingly backing India's smallest, newest companies even as overall deal counts stay selective.
The global lifestyle retailer is now available across Indian metros through Instamart, as Swiggy's quick-commerce arm widens its catalogue well beyond daily essentials.
Hyderabad-based innovation hub T-Hub has partnered with Japan's OKI Electric Industry to select eight Indian deeptech startups for a programme aimed at helping them validate technology and explore commercial opportunities in the Japanese market.
Hindustan Unilever has moved the Delhi High Court against sustainable household brand Beco over a comparative advertising campaign, in a dispute that highlights growing legal friction between legacy FMCG giants and India's sustainability-focused challenger brands.
Bengaluru-based babycare quick-commerce platform Peeko has closed a Rs 67.4 crore ($7 million-plus) Series A round led by Chiratae Ventures and Inflection Point Ventures, as competition intensifies in India's fast-delivery parenting category.
The European Union's Women TechEU programme offers up to €75,000 in equity-free grants plus mentoring for women-led deep-tech startups, part of a broader set of EU funding routes aimed at closing the gender gap in hard-science entrepreneurship.
Indian startups building in 'physical AI' — robotics and real-world-data systems that extend artificial intelligence beyond software into physical environments — have attracted $155 million in funding in 2026.
A round-up of the funding transactions closed by Indian startups on 19 August 2026, spanning data centres, fintech, edtech, deep tech and enterprise AI.