On 19 August, Punjab National Bank said that it has chosen the domain name bank.in and that, instead of using the current www.pnb.co.in, its website will now be www.pnb.bank.in.
PNB Strengthens Digital Security
“In accordance with the RBI circular on ‘Migration to ‘.bank.in’ Domain’ dated April 22, 2025, and with the assistance of the Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT), which is the sole registrar for this domain, the bank has successfully moved its corporate website to the ‘.bank.in’ domain (https://pnb.bank.in),” the bank said in a statement. It further stated that this is a major turning point in the digital transformation of the Indian banking industry.
PNB Becomes First Public Sector Bank to Move to ‘.bank.in’
With the recent change, PNB has reaffirmed its dedication to providing its clients with safe and secure digital banking by being the first public sector bank in India to move its corporate website to the secure “.bank.in” domain. Only banks are allowed to use the “.bank.in” domain, which offers better protections against fraud, fortifies the cyber security architecture, and boosts public trust in online banking.
Why RBI Introduced the ‘.bank.in’ Domain?
PNB took this action in response to the RBI’s statement that rising rates of digital payment fraud are a serious concern in its development and regulatory policies following the monetary policy committee meeting on February 7 of this year. The RBI is launching the “bank.in” special domain for Indian banks in an effort to counteract this.
Benefits of the ‘.bank.in’ Domain for Customers
By streamlining safe financial services and lowering cybersecurity risks and criminal activities like phishing, this programme seeks to increase public confidence in online banking and payment systems.
Role of IDRBT as the Exclusive Registrar
The sole registrar will be the Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT). The real registration process will start in April 2025. Bank-specific instructions will be released separately. According to the RBI, other non-bank organisations in the financial industry will eventually have their own domain, “fin.in”.
Quick
Shots
•Move in line with RBI’s April 22,
2025 circular on migration to “.bank.in” domains.
•PNB becomes the first public sector
bank in India to adopt the “.bank.in” domain.
•Exclusive to banks, preventing misuse
by fraudulent sites.
•Rising cases of digital payment
frauds flagged in RBI’s Feb 7 MPC meeting prompted the move.
In a consultation paper published on August 18, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) suggested expanding the flexibility of minimum public shareholding (MPS) and minimum public offer (MPO) for businesses looking to list with the goal of “simplifying fundraising by issuers in India”.
Key Highlights from SEBI’s Consultation Paper
In the paper, SEBI suggested raising the MPO for businesses that are getting close to listing, increasing the MPS after listing, and extending the timeframes to accomplish the latter.
Post-issue market capitalisation (m-cap) threshold buckets should be changed to INR 4,000 crore to INR 50,000 crore, INR 50,000 crore to INR 1 lakh crore, INR 100,000 crore to INR 5 lakh crore, and above INR 5 lakh crore, according to the document. It is currently at INR 1 lakh crore, INR 4,000 crore, and much beyond INR 1 lakh crore. Additionally, SEBI has extended the deadline for MPS compliance.
Proposed Changes in Minimum Public Shareholding (MPS) Rules
According to SEBI, it is suggested that the current three-year period for meeting the MPS threshold of 25% be extended to five years from the date of listing for issuers having a post-issue market capitalisation of more than INR 50,000 crore but less than or equal to INR 100,000 crore.
Five years was suggested as the time frame to reach 15% ownership, while ten years was suggested as the time frame to reach 25% post-listing MPS. The capital market regulators also asked for public input on lowering the MPO for buckets from INR 50,000 crore to INR 1 lakh crore.
According to the Securities Contract Regulations Rules (SCRR), SEBI also stated in the paper that issuers with a post-issue market capitalisation of more than INR 100,000 crore are required to guarantee MPO of INR 5,000 crore and at least 5% of the post-issue share capital. They are also required to increase their public shareholding to at least 10% within two years of the date of listing and then to a minimum of 25% within five years.
Impact on Large-Cap IPOs in India
According to SEBI, it might be challenging for big issuers to dilute a sizable shareholding through an IPO since the market might not buy back the shares sold and might deter subsequent listings.
Additionally, it stated that “requiring a significant dilution of equity to satisfy the MPS requirements right after the IPO may result in an excess of shares in the market, impacting share prices irrespective of the firm’s financial stability.”
Industry experts feel that this is a welcome proposal for very large market cap companies, as it will reduce requirements to seek ad hoc or one-time SEBI relaxations.
Quick
Shots
•Large-cap issuers (INR 50,000 Cr – IN
1 Lakh Cr) to get 5 years to reach 25% MPS.
•15% in 5 years, 25% in 10 years (for
mega-cap issuers).
We have been hearing the heartwrenching stories (real-time) about employees being laid off daily. We all said, ‘how evil’ to fire someone through surprise emails, phone calls, or loudspeaker announcements during lunch time. But not today. Here we bring you a story of a CEO who invested 20% of the company’s payroll into AI training, guided the team, and was present on Mondays. However, the twist ends sadly. Eventually, the good CEO turns cold and fires 80% of the employees. The plot is definitely not what you think. The CEO tried his best until…
What Happened?
The story dates back to 2023, but it remains relevant because we live in an age of corporate blowing hot and cold during layoffs. However, now we meet someone who didn’t want to lay off anyone. The CEO is none other than Eric Vaughan, the leader of IgniteTech.
He truly believed AI was an “existential threat” to businesses and wanted the team to adapt. To push the team towards a change, he created what he called “AI Mondays.” Those Mondays are solely dedicated to AI projects and little else. He didn’t hesitate to invest 20% of the company’s payroll into AI training, initiated reimbursements for AI tools, and Prompt Engineering classes. After all, his efforts fell flat, and hundreds of employees protested against the change.
Who Resisted Eric Vaughan’s Mandate of AI the Most?
To everyone’s surprise, the technical employees (engineers and IT teams in particular) resisted the change the most. They criticized the AI’s limitations rather than using it to its full potential. Conversely, marketing and sales teams have shown interest in learning about and implementing AI in their tasks.
Talking to Fortune, Eric Vaughan said, “You can’t compel people to change, especially if they don’t believe.”
Vaughan Decided to Lay Off…
Not just one or two, but the company took over 12 months to reshuffle, fire 80% of staff, and replace those who wouldn’t adapt to AI. The company became much leaner yet stronger by 2024 with AI and the right people on board. Soon, they came up with two new AI products (Eloquens AI and MyPersonas), which subsequently drove the company toward profits.
IgniteTech registered a staggering 75% profit margin (EBITDA) that year. During this critical period in 2023, the company also acquired Jive Software. Later in 2024, the company secured a significant acquisition, Khoros, all thanks to AI and AI-led talent. According to him, he would do it again if needed and has no regrets.
India’s startup and business ecosystem witnessed several notable developments on 19 August 2025, spanning fintech, AI, consumer brands, real estate, and technology services. The day’s highlights included early-stage seed funding, major growth capital rounds, strategic investments, and significant corporate announcements. Here’s your quick roundup of the top funding deals and key business news in India today.
Daily Indian Funding Roundup – 19 August 2025
Date
Company
Amount
Round / Type
Lead Investor(s)
Sector
19 Aug 2025
Weaver Services
$170M
Growth
Lightspeed, Premji Invest; Gaja Capital (participated)
Housing finance / Fintech
19 Aug 2025
Polestar Analytics
$12.5M
Growth capital
US family offices & institutional investors
AI / Data analytics
19 Aug 2025
R for Rabbit
$27M
Series B (primary & secondary)
Filter Capital, 3one4 Capital
D2C baby products
19 Aug 2025
House of Biryan
₹32 Cr
Growth
MS Dhoni, Bestvantage Investments, other angels
Food‑tech / Cloud kitchen
19 Aug 2025
Beyond Appliances
$4M
Series A
Fireside Ventures; Dharana Capital
Smart kitchen appliances
19 Aug 2025
Famyo
₹4 Cr
Seed
IAN Angel Fund; The Chennai Angels & individuals
Kids’ lifestyle / D2C
19 Aug 2025
CoRover (BharatGPT)
Undisclosed
Strategic investment
HDFC Bank
Conversational AI / LLM
Weaver Services Raises $170 Million in Growth Round
Weaver Services, a housing finance platform, has secured $170 million in a funding round led by Lightspeed and Premji Invest, with participation from Gaja Capital. The funds will support the company’s expansion into Tier-II and Tier-III markets, aiming to increase its reach in the affordable housing sector.
Polestar Analytics Secures $12.5 Million for AI Development
Polestar Analytics, specialising in AI-driven data analytics and planning, has raised $12.5 million from U.S.-based family offices and institutional investors. The investment will enhance the company’s AI capabilities and further develop its proprietary 1Platform, a leading solution for enterprise-scale data convergence.
R for Rabbit Closes $27 Million in Series B Round
R for Rabbit, a direct-to-consumer baby products brand, has raised $27 million in a funding round led by Filter Capital and 3one4 Capital. The deal includes both primary and secondary transactions, indicating an infusion of new capital into the company as well as share purchases from existing stakeholders.
House of Biryan Secures INR 32 Crore in Growth Funding
House of Biryan (HoB), a cloud kitchen brand, has raised INR 32 crore in a funding round led by MS Dhoni and Bestvantage Investments. The funds will be used to expand operations from 22 kitchens to between 120 and 150 outlets over the next three years, targeting revenues of INR 450–550 crore.
Beyond Appliances Raises $4 Million in Series A
Beyond Appliances, a kitchen appliances startup, has secured $4 million in a Series A funding round led by Fireside Ventures, with participation from Dharana Capital. The investment will support the company’s expansion into smart kitchen products and enhance its manufacturing capabilities.
Famyo Secures INR 4 Crore in Seed Funding
Famyo, a Bengaluru-based children’s lifestyle brand, has raised INR 4 crore in a seed round led by IAN Angel Fund, with contributions from The Chennai Angels and other strategic investors. The funds will be used to develop proprietary IP, expand character design, and strengthen talent across product, growth, and supply chains.
CoRover Receives Strategic Investment from HDFC Bank
CoRover, the maker of BharatGPT, has received an undisclosed strategic investment from HDFC Bank. The bank’s Group Head of Treasury, Arup Rakshit, highlighted the importance of BharatGPT’s ability to facilitate information exchange in multiple Indian languages, catering to the country’s diverse linguistic landscape.
Key Business News for 19 August 2025
Captain Fresh Files Confidential Papers for $400 Million IPO
Bengaluru-based B2B seafood supply chain platform, Captain Fresh has confidentially filed its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for an initial public offering (IPO) aiming to raise between $350 million and $400 million. The company reported a net profit of INR 40 crore on revenues of INR 3,200 crore in FY25, marking a significant turnaround from a loss of INR 229 crore in FY24. The IPO proceeds are intended for acquisitions in the U.S. and Europe, where Captain Fresh already operates.
OpenAI Launches ChatGPT Go Premium Plan in India
OpenAI has introduced a new subscription tier, ChatGPT Go, in India at a monthly fee of INR 399. This plan is designed to offer greater accessibility to users seeking enhanced features without the higher costs associated with the Plus or Pro plans. ChatGPT Go supports UPI payments and is available through the ChatGPT mobile apps and WhatsApp via 1-800-ChatGPT. It provides core functionalities suitable for everyday users, while the Plus plan at INR 1,999 per month offers advanced capabilities like GPT-4o and deep research tools.
Apple Leases INR 1,010 Crore Office Space in Bengaluru
Apple has leased approximately 2.7 lakh square feet of office space at Embassy Zenith in Bengaluru for a period of 10 years, amounting to a total cost of INR 1,010 crore. A (INR 235 per square foot), with a 4.5% annual escalation. This move underscores Bengaluru’s role as a global R&D hub for Apple, with teams focusing on hardware design, testing, machine learning, software, and operations. Additionally, Apple plans to open its third retail store in India at Phoenix Mall of Asia in North Bengaluru, following its stores in Delhi and Mumbai.
PixelSky Capital Achieves INR 150 Crore First Close
PixelSky Capital, a secondaries-focused investment fund, has secured INR 150 crore in its first funding close. The fund is targeting a total corpus of INR 400 crore and is backed by boutique investment bank IndigoEdge and Hitesh Ahuja, the founder of Yumlane. The capital raised will be channelled into acquiring stakes in growth-stage companies by purchasing shares from existing investors and early employees.
Cedar–IBSi Capital Launches Maiden INR 100 Crore Fintech Fund
Cedar–IBSi Capital has announced the launch of its maiden fund, targeting INR 100 crore in commitments, with an additional INR 10-15 crore expected in soft commitments. The fund will focus on fintech investments, aiming to support the growth of innovative financial technology startups.
Vikram Solar, a leading Indian company (if you have never heard, it makes solar panels – PV modules), is now a public company via an IPO. You can buy its shares starting today, August 19, 2025, and the offering will close on August 21, 2025. The IPO is valued at ₹2,079 crore. The company is issuing both fresh and equity shares. Notably, the stock is enjoying a premium of 16% in the grey market. In simple words, the investors are showing great interest in the share. Well, does that mean it’s a good investment for you? So, here’s everything you need to know before you become a shareholder of the company.
Size of the IPO
The total size of the IPO is ₹2,079 crore. About ₹1,500 crore consists of new shares, which means the money will go directly to the company.
The remaining ₹579 crore is for sale, meaning the existing shareholders of the company are selling their shares and will take away the proceeds (money).
Additionally, promoters are also selling in an offer for sale (OFS), including:
Gyanesh Chaudhary
Vikram Capital Management
Anil Chaudhary
The price band stands at: ₹315 to ₹332 per share. Let’s say the company sold all its shares at 332 (upper end price), it will comfortably reach the targeted ₹2,079 crore.
The lot size offered: Minimum is 45 shares.
Important Dates: Opened Today (August 19, 2025) → Closes Thursday (August 21, 2025).
What’s the Grey Market Talking About, Vikram Solar?
So, before officially listing the shares, companies (usually) trade their shares in a place called the “grey market.” Here, Vikram Solar’s stock is seemingly receiving a good response. Notably, its stock is trading at 16% higher than the issue price, which indicates that investors are very interested.
Breakdown of Allocation of Shares (Who Can Buy)
Now, this piece of information is important for the general public so they can plan their investments in advance. Take a look:
About 50% are secured for large organizations (more specifically, like Qualified Institutional Buyers, such as banks).
35% is set aside for retail investors (meaning the general public).
And the remaining 15% for the rich people (High Net Worth Individuals). Note that the shares are listed on both BSE and NSE.
Company’s Background
Vikram Solar is certainly one of the biggest solar panel manufacturers in the country. The company serves big companies like Adani Green, JSW Energy, Azure Power, ACME, and more. In FY25, the company made a revenue of ₹3,423 crore (operating profit of ₹492 crore and net profit of ₹140 crore).
What Is the Company Aiming at With These Funds?
It has plans to expand its electricity capacity → 15.5 GW by FY26 and 20.5 GW by FY27.
Not only does it want to sell solar panels, but it also wants to manufacture solar cells.
Aims to invest in battery energy storage systems (BESS).
Seemingly, the profits will go up once the company starts manufacturing solar cells because they are the future of clean, renewable, and CO2-free energy.
The Indian government strongly supports solar project schemes like PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, PM Kusum, and solar for industries.
Mumbai, August 19, 2025: HDFC Bank, India’s leading private sector bank, today announced that it has invested in CoRover, a leading conversational AI company. CoRover has created BharatGPT — a pioneering, sovereign, and enterprise-grade Large Language Model (LLM).
CoRover, which has a user base of 1 billion and is trusted by over 25,000 enterprises and developers, develops conversational AI agents, AI Assistants (VideoBot, VoiceBot, ChatBot), and Telephony AI solutions. These solutions are powered by BharatGPT, a multilingual, multimodal, and domain-adaptable LLM built entirely in India, for India.
Arup Rakshit, Group Head Treasury, HDFC Bank said, “Development of BharatGPT, which enables exchange of information in multiple Indian languages for a diverse country like India, set apart CoRover for us. We value the expertise of CoRover, catering to the unique vernacular requirements. We are privileged to play a meaningful role in the IndiaAI Startups Global Accelerator Programme through CoRover.”
Ankush Sabharwal, Founder & CEO of CoRover said, “We are honoured to have the trust and support of HDFC Bank, along with other investors, as we expand the reach and impact of BharatGPT. This partnership signals a shared commitment to building AI that is sovereign, secure, inclusive, and capable of scaling across India’s most critical sectors.”
CoRover acknowledges the pivotal role of the Government policy push and initiatives like IndiaAI Mission, for presenting opportunities like the IndiaAI Startups Global, a prestigious international acceleration programme in partnership with Station F, Paris and HEC Paris.
CoRover’s proprietary platform enables enterprises to rapidly deploy intelligent conversational AI agents across voice, video, and chat integrated with BharatGPT’s deep language understanding, dialectal diversity, and contextual accuracy. The company’s recent launch of BharatGPT Mini allows AI to function on low-end devices and without internet connectivity (Telephony AI), dramatically expanding accessibility in infrastructure-limited environments.
According to various media reports, Captain Fresh, a B2B seafood firm, has pre-filed its DRHP for a $400 million (about INR 3,400 crore) IPO through the secret route. As per reports, the IPO will include an offer for sale of $150 million to $200 million (about INR 1,300 crore to INR 1,700 crore) and a new issue of $200 million.
CNBC TV18 was the first to report the news. Captain Fresh made money in FY25 before submitting the private IPO documents. According to the sources, the firm made INR 40 Cr in net profit throughout the year on INR 3,200 Cr in revenue.
FY25 Financial Performance
In FY25, EBITDA was INR 120 Cr. In FY24, it reported INR 1,395 Cr in revenue and INR 229 Cr in loss. Captain Fresh is a tech-led fish supply chain platform that was founded in 2020 by Utham Gowda. In addition to foreign markets like the US, the Middle East, and Europe, it offers its products in India.
Pre-IPO Funding and Investors
Gowda stated earlier this year that the business planned to go public by the end of 2025. In June of this year, Captain Fresh became a public company as part of its preparations for a public offering.
Earlier this year, Captain Fresh raised INR 250 Cr in a pre-IPO investment round from investors including India Equity Partners chairman Sid Khanna, Swiggy founder Sriharsha Majety, and Prosus Ventures, Accel, and Tiger Global Management.
Global Expansion and Risks
Gowda told a media outlet in January that the US accounts for about 60% of Captain Fresh’s demand, with Europe coming in second. Just 2-3% of its products are supplied to India, while fewer than 5% are supplied to the Middle East. Given that Washington has placed a 25% tariff on Indian exports and plans to slap an extra 25% duty later this month, this strong reliance on the US may provide difficulties in the near future. In the US, the startup provides services to between 500 and 1,000 distributors.
IPO Utilization Plans
The IPO would support inorganic expansion through acquisitions in the US and Europe, where Captain Fresh has already acquired seafood brands, Gowda told a media outlet.
Although it is primarily B2B at the moment, he also alluded to potential B2C growth in affluent Western markets if supply chain efficiencies are solidified.
In contrast, the firm recorded operating revenue of INR 1,395 Cr in FY24, which was 71% higher than the INR 817 Cr the year before. In the meantime, its net loss decreased from INR 294 Cr in FY23 to INR 229 Cr.
Quick
Shots
•Captain Fresh, B2B seafood startup,
has confidentially pre-filed DRHP for a $400 million.
•Primarily B2B, but exploring B2C
opportunities in Western markets.
•US contributes around 60% of demand,
followed by Europe.
Mumbai, August 19, 2025: Leading institutional equities brokerage Equirus Securities has released its annual India Equity Strategy report, where its bullish on large caps and eight sectors, while it’s sanguine on five others sectors. As per the note, the Indian equity markets are benefiting from long-term growth tailwinds but are witnessing short-term valuation risks.
“Indian equity markets are entering FY26 with cyclical headwinds but strong structural drivers. We are Overweight on auto, Capital market, Cement, FMCG, Infra, Internet platforms, NBFC, Oil & Gas sectors while we are underweight on Building materials, Industrials & Defense, Real estate, Textile, Logistics sectors,” says Maulik Patel, Head of research, Equirus Securities in the report.
The brokerag,e which counts leading insurers, mutual funds and FIIs as its clients, has a neutral stance on Banks, Chemicals, Consumer Durables, EMS, IT Services, Metals and Mining, Healthcare and retail sectors.
Small-cap valuation premium at a historical high
Equirus paints a note of caution on small caps, pointing out thatthe small-cap forward P/E ratio stands at 1.25x vs the long-term average of 0.88x (just below the 1.3x peak), with Nifty 50 trading above its 10-year average. Mid-caps remain elevated but offer stronger earnings visibility than small caps, where multiple expansion dominates
“In an environment where CY25 EPS forecasts have fallen -13.8%, the steepest cut since the pandemic,” investing wisely backed by adequate research is key to outperformance says Patel.
“Large caps provide the best margin of safety, mid-caps should be approached selectively in structural growth areas, and small caps warrant caution until earnings catch up,” adds Patel in the report.
Large-cap to outperform, prefer domestic sectors
Near term, leadership is likely to shift toward large caps and quality mid-caps as valuations and earnings expectations re-align.
Overweight sectors expected to benefit from rural income revival include Auto, Cement, NBFC, and FMCG, while sectors with stretched valuations and slowing earnings – building materials, Industrial, and Defense – remain underweight.
Domestic demand momentum shifting to rural
Recent trends indicate a clear turnaround in rural consumption. Rural wages, after years of stagnation or contraction, have been rising steadily since late 2024 — with Feb–May 2025 showing the strongest Y-o-Y gains since 2018 (overall rural wages +3.5% in May 2025). This wage growth directly boosts rural disposable income.
Sentiment data reinforces this: both the Equirus Rural Index and CMIE’s Index of consumer sentiments have been climbing through 2024–25, pointing to improved purchasing power and optimism. On top of that, monsoon performance has been better than normal, with cumulative rainfall consistently exceeding the seasonal average since mid-June — a strong signal for robust kharif output and farm incomes.
Together, higher rural wages + stronger monsoon + improving sentiment create a supportive backdrop for rural demand across FMCG, agri-inputs, two wheelers, tractors, and rural-focused financial services. Listed companies with large rural sales exposure are likely to see stronger volume growth and margin tailwinds in the coming quarters.
Supporting monetary policy to drive returns
CPI inflation has fallen below 4%, liquidity has moved into surplus, and the RBI has begun a gradual rate-cut cycle. Historically, such easing delivers muted short-term returns but stronger 12-month gains when macro conditions are supportive, favoring a barbell approach between cyclicals (financials, industrials) and defensives (consumer staples, healthcare).
Capex cycle taking pause
Public capex remains above pre-COVID levels, led by power and production linked investment scheme investments, with growth mainly from states & PSUs, while the private sector is steady but not exuberant.
Govt. infra spending is at record highs, and subsidies have returned to pre pandemic norms, channelling fiscal space into productive assets. FY26 is set to see a pause amid tariff wars and global trade uncertainty, though the multi-year capex story stays intact, aided by states/PSUs, supply-chain shifts, PLI schemes, and stronger corporate balance sheets.
Domestic investors in the driver’s seat
Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) now surpass FIIs in equity ownership, supported by strong SIP inflows (+27% CAGR FY17-FY25), creating a stable domestic demand base. Higher domestic participation absorbs FII selling and reduces market sensitivity to global risk-off events, a secular positive for valuation resilience.
Top picks
Equirus Securities has identified 8 large cap picks offering a potential upside of between 12-31% and 20 mid and small picks with an upside between 13-76% (see table below).
Source: Equirus Securities
About Equirus
Equirus Group is a leading full-service financial services firm specializing in investment banking, institutional securities, wealth management, portfolio management, HNI broking, and insurance solutions. With a “client always first” approach and a proven track record of delivering value creation, Equirus has built impeccable credentials across domains and sectors. Equirus has completed more than 295+ transactions across M&A, PE, IPOs, QIPs, Rights Issues, and Structured Finance, raising USD 13 billion in the process across sectors over the last 17 years, and has created a differentiation for itself through its ability to structure and deliver transactions in line with the client’s requirements.
Your favorite Grammarly has an exciting update. Known worldwide for fixing grammar, spelling, tone, and more, it is now evolving into something beyond just Grammarly. It has become a comprehensive AI-powered productivity suite, meaning a smart helper for all your writing and communication needs. According to Grammarly’s website, their tool is trusted by 40 million people, 50,000 organizations, and users at 96% of the Fortune 500, to date. With such a large customer base and the world advancing towards AI, Grammarly had to make this key move. So, what is the big deal with this new update? Let’s find out.
What’s Happening?
Grammarly, on August 18, 2025, launched eight specialized AI features in the tool. The news came out after Shishir Mehrotra, CEO of Grammarly, announced it on his LinkedIn. He explained that these features are added with students in mind, who are about to enter the job market. Their goal is to help students feel more confident in their writing and communication.
He wrote, “We created many of these agents with students in mind because they’re the first generation entering a job market where employers expect both subject expertise AND AI fluency…”
And Grammarly’s VP of Product Management, Luke Behnke, talking about the launch, said, “The launch of our new agents and AI writing surface marks a turning point in how we build products that anticipate user needs. We’re moving beyond simple suggestions to intelligent agents that understand context and actively help users achieve their communication goals. This is just the beginning as we develop Grammarly’s new platform that will soon offer agents working seamlessly across all the places students and professionals write and collaborate.”
What Are These 8 AI Agents?
All eight intelligent assistants help with specific tasks on their own. Here they are:
AI Grader – This feature gives you the score for your writing and also helps you improve it overall.
Citation Finder – This feature checks if the claims in your writing are valid, cites credible sources, and provides legitimate references.
Expert Review – This feature offers professional-level (detailed and factual) feedback to make your writing sound more precise, confident, and authoritative.
Reader Reactions – This feature is designed to respond as typical readers would (you’ll need to select the audience type first for more accurate predictions).
Proofreader – This feature consistently improves your writing by fixing grammar and suggesting clarity improvements while you write.
Paraphraser – This feature is capable of rewriting the text in several tones and styles for different audiences.
AI Detector – This feature scans the text to identify AI writing patterns (Pro-only feature at the moment, requiring a subscription upgrade).
Plagiarism Checker – This scans multiple online sources to see if any text matches other published material, which helps avoid any embarrassment or copyright issues. It’s also a Pro-only feature.
Additionally…
Additionally, a new document editor called Docs is launching, powered by Coda (which Grammarly acquired in early 2025). It resembles the previous version but now includes:
AI Chat: This feature allows you to talk while writing on the go.
Plus, it integrates with these eight new AI agents.
Who Can Access the New Features?
Docs and eight new AI agents are available for both free (with some features limited) and Pro Grammarly users.
AI Detector + Plagiarism Checker is exclusive to Pro users.
For consumers in India only, OpenAI has launched a new subscription package called ChatGPT Go. This package, which costs INR 399 a month, is one of the most economical options offered by the company and is intended to give more people access to the well-liked ChatGPT services at a lower starting price.
What is ChatGPT Go Plan?
The Go plan offers extended access to OpenAI’s flagship model, GPT-5, in addition to all the capabilities found in the free tier. Higher message limitations, more daily image generation, more file uploads, and greater access to sophisticated data analysis tools like Python are all benefits that subscribers will receive.
Additionally, compared to free accounts, the plan doubles the amount of memory available, enabling longer conversational context preservation.
Features of ChatGPT Go vs Free & Plus Plans
According to OpenAI, the plan is intended for consumers who desire greater flexibility without having to pay the extra fees associated with Plus or Pro.
The Go tier maintains the emphasis on core usage and affordability, whereas Plus, which costs INR 1,999 per month, enables legacy models like GPT-4o and capabilities like deep research, connections, and Sora movie creation. In India, ChatGPT Go is being rolled out gradually.
How to Buy ChatGPT Go Subscription in India?
By signing into their ChatGPT account, choosing the profile symbol, and going to “Upgrade Plan”, users can verify their eligibility.
When the plan is available, they can select “Try Go” to sign up. Go features will be available to subscribers on several platforms, such as the ChatGPT mobile apps and via 1-800-ChatGPT on WhatsApp. API usage, however, is still beyond the scope of this subscription and will incur additional fees.
Payment Options: UPI & Credit Card
For the Go tier, OpenAI has authorised local payment methods. Following the company’s previous switch to INR-based pricing for subscriptions in the nation, users can now pay using credit cards or UPI in Indian rupees.
Users can unsubscribe at any time, and subscriptions are invoiced on a monthly basis. The announcement follows OpenAI’s recent price changes to its current plans in India, where Plus now costs INR 1,999 and Pro costs INR 19,900 per month. The Go plan, on the other hand, is marketed as a reasonably priced starting point for people who wish to increase their access to AI technologies without committing to more expensive levels.
According to OpenAI, Go will not support legacy models, connectors, or Sora. Rather, it emphasises cost-effective multimodal features and increased access to GPT-5. Prior to expanding into other markets, the organisation intends to analyse the comments received from India.
Quick
Shots
•OpenAI introduces ChatGPT Go
subscription exclusively for India.
•INR 399/month – most affordable
ChatGPT plan so far.
•Powered by GPT-5, unlike Free
(limited access) and Plus (GPT-4o, legacy models).
