PAPERTECH

DAILY DOSE OF TECH UPDATES!

Builder.ai Files for Bankruptcy Amidst "AI Washing" Allegations

Once a celebrated AI unicorn valued at over $1.3 billion and backed by investors like Microsoft and Qatar's sovereign wealth fund, Builder.ai collapsed into insolvency in May 2025 after its senior lender, Vistra Credit, demanded $47 million, leaving the company unable to meet obligations.

Despite marketing itself as an AI-powered no-code platform for easy app development, investigations revealed much of the work was done manually by engineers in India, leading to accusations of "AI washing" and inflated sales. Founded in 2016 by Sachin Dev Duggal, Builder.ai raised over $450 million but overstated revenues and faced mounting debts. Leadership changes and rising costs worsened the crisis, leading to layoffs and bankruptcy filings, raising concerns about transparency in AI startups.

Supreme Court Stays ₹5,712 Cr GST Notice Against Paytm's First Games

The Supreme Court has stayed a Rs. 5,712 crore GST notice issued to Paytm-owned First Games by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence. The notice was related to tax liabilities on real-money gaming operations.

Foxconn's $1.5B Investment

Apple supplier Foxconn invested $1.5 billion to expand iPhone production in India, including a 300-acre plant in Karnataka, as part of its strategy to diversify manufacturing beyond China.

Zepto Cafe Achieves 1 Lakh Orders Per Day

Zepto Cafe, the coffee commerce food delivery service, has crossed the milestone of 1 lakh orders per day, highlighting growing demand for rapid food delivery services.

BYJU'S App Removed from Play Store Amid Service Disruptions

BYJU'S Android app has been taken down from the Google Play Store, and its website is reduced to a basic landing page. This follows widespread service disruptions linked to unpaid AWS bills and ongoing insolvency proceedings.

Cleantech Startups Surge Ahead: Euler Motors Leads with ₹638 Cr Funding Boost

India's cleantech sector witnessed a significant upswing this week, with electric vehicle manufacturer Euler Motors securing ₹638 crore (approximately $75 million) in a Series C funding round. This investment, led by Tie New Ventures, underscores the growing investor confidence in sustainable transportation solutions. Euler Motors plans to utilize the fresh capital to expand its pan-India presence, aiming to establish operations in over 40 cities by the end of FY25. The funds will also support product development, enhance technological capabilities, and accelerate R&D efforts.

The cleantech momentum didn't stop there. Alt Carbon, a startup specializing in carbon removal through enhanced rock weathering, attracted $12 million in funding. Additionally, Prometheus Energy, focusing on clean jet fuel technology that mimics photosynthesis, secured $2 million in investment.

MapMyCrop Raises $1.8M for Precision Farming

AgriTech startup MapMyCrop secured $1.8 million in pre-Series A funding to scale AI-powered satellite imagery solutions for agriculture.

Qure.AI Eyes IPO

Healthcare AI startup Qure.AI plans to go public within two years, aiming for profitability by next fiscal. The company, valued at $264 million, serves around 15 million patients annually and is expanding its presence in the U.S. and emerging markets.

AI Coding Assistants Go Head-to-Head: OpenAI Codex and Claude Code

Recently, both OpenAI and Anthropic have unveiled major updates to their AI-powered coding assistants, setting new benchmarks for developer productivity and collaboration.

OpenAI's Codex is now available to ChatGPT Pro, Enterprise, and Team users globally, with expanded access to Plus and Edu users coming soon. For the initial rollout, users receive generous access at no additional cost, allowing them to explore Codex's capabilities. After this introductory period, OpenAI will implement rate-limited access and flexible pricing, enabling users to purchase additional usage on-demand. Notably, the ChatGPT Pro subscription costs $200 per month, which includes Codex access for Pro users. For developers building with codex-mini-latest via the API, the pricing is $1.50 per 1 million input tokens and $6 per 1 million output tokens, with a 75% prompt caching discount available.

Anthropic's Claude Code, while also offering robust coding assistance, has not publicly disclosed specific pricing for its coding agent as of the latest updates. Claude Code is generally available and supports integrations with popular IDEs and local workflows, prioritizing privacy and flexibility. Pricing for Claude's broader model offerings is typically subscription-based or usage-based, but details for Claude Code specifically have not been clarified.

OpenAI acquires Jony Ive's AI device startup

OpenAI has acquired Jony Ive's AI device startup, in a $6.5 billion deal. Ive, known for his Apple designs, will join OpenAI to lead new hardware projects. Their first AI-powered device is expected in 2026.

Sarvam AI debuts flagship open-source LLM with 24 billion parameters

Sarvam AI, recently chosen by the Indian government under the ₹10,370 crore IndiaAI Mission, (along with Soket AI Labs, Gnani.ai, and Gan.ai) has launched Sarvam-M, an open-source, 24-billion-parameter language model built on Mistral Small and tuned for Indian languages, math, and programming. Backed by both significant government support including access to thousands of high-end GPUs and equity-based funding and $41 million in private investment, Sarvam is tasked with building sovereign AI models for India, in collaboration with top research centers like IIT Madras.

While Sarvam-M's early adoption has been modest, with only 24 downloads reported soon after release, experts say this initiative is a positive move for India's AI ecosystem. By focusing on local languages and open access, Sarvam is laying the groundwork for AI independence and innovation in the country.

Origamis AI Raises $500K for GenAI Platform

Bengaluru-based GenAI startup Origamis AI raised $500,000 in seed funding to develop an orchestration platform for secure and compliant AI solutions.

Former 100X.VC Partners Launch 247VC with $30M Debut Fund

Shashanth Kotla and Yagnesh Sanghrajka, both former partners at 100X.VC, have established their new venture capital firm 247VC with $30 million for their inaugural fund, which will focus on investing in early-stage startups operating in the consumption, deep technology, and emerging industry 5.0 sectors.

Naveen Tahilyani Steps Down as Tata Digital CEO

Naveen Tahilyani has resigned as CEO and MD from Tata Digital after a year in the role. He is expected to join Prudential Plc, with Hardeep Gujral (CFO Tata Digital) likely to succeed him.

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