The Indian startup ecosystem witnessed a mixed week of activity during 18–23 August 2025, with 16 startups raising a total of $283.83 million. According to funding data compiled by TheKredible and Entrackr. While the deal count and overall funding fell 16.6% compared to last week’s $340.55 million, the period was marked by significant growth-stage funding, early-stage innovation, fresh fund launches, and landmark policy developments that could reshape the startup landscape.
Growth-Stage Deals Dominate
Growth and late-stage investments contributed $271.7 million of the weekly total.
Key highlights:
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Weaver Services (tech-first housing finance platform) → $170 Mn, led by Lightspeed and Premji Invest
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Amnex Technologies (AI solutions) → $52 Mn
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R for Rabbit (D2C baby products brand) → $27 Mn Series B, led by Filter Capital
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Goldi Solar (solar PV module maker) → undisclosed round
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Stanza Living (managed accommodation provider) → growth funding
These deals show strong investor confidence in fintech, AI, consumer brands, and clean energy.
Early-Stage Activity
Nine startups raised a total of $12.13 million this week.
Notable early-stage deals:
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Smart Kitchen Appliances Startup → $4 Mn Series A (led by Fireside Ventures)
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House of Biryan (MS Dhoni-backed QSR chain)
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Mitra (FMCG brand)
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PeelOn (biotech venture)
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Edgehax (AI platform)
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Aether MindTech (wearables startup)
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CoRover (conversational AI, undisclosed)
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Ace Blend (nutrition brand, undisclosed)
City & Segment-Wise Breakdown
City-wise distribution:
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Bengaluru → 6 deals
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Mumbai → 3 deals
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Ahmedabad, Delhi-NCR, Surat, Others → remaining
Segment-wise distribution:
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AI → 3 deals
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Foodtech → 3 deals
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E-commerce → 2 deals
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Fintech, Solar-tech, Hospitality, Others → multiple
Series-Wise Deals
Funding rounds by stage:
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Seed funding → 7 deals
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Series A → 4 deals
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Pre-Series A, Series B, Debt → remaining
New Fund Launches
Six new funds were announced this week, reflecting continued investor appetite:
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Boundless Ventures → ₹200 Cr AI-focused fund (by Natasha Malpani, ex-Kae Capital)
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PixelSky Capital → ₹150 Cr first close, targeting ₹400 Cr corpus
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Marwari Catalysts (MCats) → $500 Mn impact-focused portfolio by 2027, expanding into Dubai & Singapore
Key Hirings & Leadership Moves
Major leadership updates this week:
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Neha Markanda (ex-Google) → CBO, ShareChat & Moj
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Deepak Khetan → CFO, Astrotalk (IPO plans in 2 years)
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Chintan Thakkar → Group CEO, IAN Group
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Rajesh C & Himanshu Nazkani → senior leadership at BharatPe
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Col. Suresh Babu (Retd.) → Director of Operations, Cityflo
Industry Partnerships & Launches
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CRED x IndusInd Bank → Co-branded credit card
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Apna → AI-powered calling agent to reduce hiring time by 50%
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Recur Club x Enrission India Capital → Partnership to boost capital access
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Swiggy x Bounce → EV adoption initiative for delivery partners
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Shiprocket → Launched RevProtect to help MSMEs curb RTO losses
Financial Results
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Kissht → ₹1,337 Cr revenue, ₹161 Cr profit (FY25)
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Garuda Aerospace → ₹118 Cr revenue, ₹17.5 Cr profit
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Biryani Blues → Losses reduced by 30% in 11 months of FY25
Policy Shock: Online Gaming Ban
A major development this week was the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, which bans all real-money games (RMG), including fantasy sports, rummy, poker, and opinion trading.
Impact on startups:
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Dream11, MPL, Zupee, Probo, My11Circle → shut down RMG operations
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Dream11 → pivoting to non-RMG businesses (Fancode, Cricbuzz, Willow TV)
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MPL → focusing on international markets (50% of revenue)
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Zupee → shifting to free-to-play models
Conclusion
While overall startup funding fell week-on-week, the ecosystem demonstrated:
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Resilience in growth-stage capital flows
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Strong early-stage innovation in AI, foodtech, and e-commerce
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Healthy investor appetite with new fund launches
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Regulatory disruption reshaping the online gaming sector
📌 Stay tuned with Innovent Blog for weekly startup funding updates, policy insights, and ecosystem trends. Data sourced from TheKredible and Entrackr.