Tag: unicorn startup

Molbio Diagnostics: Shaping the Future of Healthcare

Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations.

Imagine having cutting-edge PCR technology right where it’s needed most—whether in a bustling clinic, a remote village, or even out in the field. Molbio Diagnostics’ Truelab Real-Time Quantitative Micro PCR system makes that possible. It’s not just a lab tool anymore; it’s molecular diagnostics brought directly to the frontline of healthcare. What makes it even more revolutionary? The system works independently of traditional infrastructure, offering a complete solution for disease diagnosis. With its wireless data transfer capabilities, it’s perfect for locations with minimal resources, bringing top-tier diagnostics to places that need it most. This is a game-changer in the global fight against infectious diseases.

Here’s learning about Molbio Diagnostics, its Founders, Startup Story, Business Model, Revenue Model, Funding, Acquisitions, Growth Competitors, and more.

Molbio Diagnostics – Company Highlights

Company Name	Molbio Diagnostics
Headquarters	Verna, Goa
Sector	Medical Equipment Manufacturer
Founder	Sriram Natarajan
Founded	2000
Website	Molbiodiagnostics.com

Molbio Diagnostics – About

Molecular diagnostics is at the forefront of infectious disease detection, offering unparalleled accuracy by detecting pathogens at the DNA level. Its ability to amplify DNA means it can identify diseases in their earliest stages, thanks to its outstanding sensitivity and specificity. However, until now, this advanced technique has been confined to centralized labs that rely on expensive infrastructure, skilled technicians, and controlled environments. This has created long wait times and logistical hurdles like sample degradation and contamination.

But Molbio has changed the game. Introducing the Truelab Real-Time Quantitative Micro PCR System—a groundbreaking, portable molecular diagnostics platform designed to work directly at the point of care. This compact, battery-operated system delivers results in under an hour from sample to diagnosis, making same-day reporting and treatment a reality. For emergencies, the system offers real-time data transfer via SMS, email, or data push for instant reporting.

For doctors and patients, this means a quicker path to a definitive diagnosis, often at the first point of contact, allowing for timely, evidence-based treatment. Early detection not only improves outcomes but also plays a critical role in preventing the spread of disease.

After rigorous validation, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) found the Truenat test to be more sensitive and specific than traditional smear microscopy. As a result, it’s now recommended as a frontline diagnostic tool for tuberculosis (TB) and Rifampicin resistance under the RNTCP algorithm. The Ministry of Health has already begun rolling it out across India, with Andhra Pradesh leading the charge by implementing Truenat at the Primary Health Centre level. This innovative approach has significantly boosted TB case detection rates in the state.

Molbio Diagnostics – Industry

Diagnostics is poised to play an even more crucial role in patient care in the coming years, especially as molecular diagnostics continues to evolve at a rapid pace, contributing to around 4–5% of the total healthcare expenditure.

Over the past decade, we’ve seen incredible advancements with the introduction of high-complexity tests and cutting-edge technologies, not just in India, but worldwide where 41% of healthcare spending is on diagnostics.

Molecular diagnostics has transformed disease detection, offering remarkable accuracy and speed. Today, rapid multiplex PCR assays can identify up to 18 or more viruses simultaneously, significantly boosting diagnostic efficiency and precision.

Among the many players in India’s molecular diagnostics market, Molbio Diagnostics stands out. This Goa-based company, known for its Truelab Real-Time Quantitative Micro PCR system, has made history by becoming India’s first molecular diagnostics company to surpass a $1 billion valuation. Their innovation is reshaping healthcare, bringing advanced diagnostic capabilities to the forefront of patient care.

In 2023, the Indian diagnostics market stood at around 13 billion U.S. dollars, with expectations to double by 2028.

Molbio Diagnostics – Founders and Team

Sriram Natarajan

Sriram Natarajan is the Founder, Director, and CEO of Molbio Diagnostics Pvt. Ltd. With over three decades of expertise, Mr. Natarajan is the visionary behind Molbio Diagnostics Pvt. Ltd. and the founder of the Tulip Group, India’s largest IVD reagent company. His experience in the diagnostics space spans the development, manufacturing, and marketing of innovative diagnostic devices. With an M.Sc. and M.Phil., he has over four years of academic research experience and an impressive 34 years of expertise in diagnostics. Mr. Natarajan’s career has spanned the development, manufacturing, and marketing of diagnostic devices and kits worldwide, across both private and public sectors. In 1989, he founded the Tulip Group, growing it into India’s largest IVD reagent company and a key player on the global stage, before successfully exiting the company in January 2017.

Natarajan’s vision for Molbio is to make it a globally impactful company, more closely aligned with societal needs. He also has ambitions to raise capital and transform Molbio into a public limited company, aiming to elevate the company’s credibility and global perception.

Molbio Diagnostics – Startup Story

Molbio Diagnostics, founded in 2014, became Goa’s first startup to reach unicorn status, surpassing a turnover of one billion.

The company has spent over two decades in R&D, led by Sriram Natarajan, collaborating with global healthcare organizations such as CSIR, ICMR, BIRAC, Grand Challenges Canada, BMGF, and FIND.

Their work has focused on miniaturizing PCR technology, with patents filed or approved in over 100 countries. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Molbio supplied more than 8.2 million testing kits and installed over 4,000 machines in the past year alone, reinforcing their pivotal role in diagnostics.

While COVID-19 disrupted most industries in FY21, healthcare diagnostics companies found a unique opportunity for growth. Molbio Diagnostics, which played a leading role in India’s COVID-19 screening efforts. Their portable, battery-operated real-time RT PCR point-of-care (PoC) testing system was instrumental in expanding testing capacity across the country. This surge in demand led to a remarkable 25X increase in revenue during FY21.

Moreover, in March 2022, the Indian government deployed Truenat as a key tool in its door-to-door tuberculosis (TB) screening initiative. Today, over 4,000 Truenat machines are in use across public and private sectors, supporting widespread testing across the country.

Molbio Diagnostics – Mission and Vision

Molbio Diagnostics is driven by the mission to improve healthcare by offering precise, fast, and affordable diagnostic solutions. Their goal is to reduce patient suffering, prevent fatalities, and minimize economic loss, ensuring access to top-quality healthcare for all.

Their vision is to revolutionize healthcare by providing portable, near-care diagnostic tools that make advanced testing accessible anywhere. Known for their WHO-endorsed Truenat real-time PCR platform, Molbio brings critical diagnostic services directly to the patient’s doorstep, enabling rapid, point-of-care testing with their innovative portable devices and kits.

Molbio Diagnostics – Name, Tagline and Logo

Molbio Diagnostics Logo

Molbio Diagnostics’ logo cleverly incorporates molecular and scientific imagery, highlighting their expertise in molecular diagnostics, especially with their flagship product, Truenat. Elements like DNA helixes or molecular patterns point to the company’s commitment to innovative healthcare technology.

The choice of red in the logo isn’t just for aesthetics—it adds a layer of urgency, perfect for a field like diagnostics where speed and accuracy matter.

But it’s not all about urgency. Red also taps into emotions, creating a sense of trust, care, and empathy, which are so important in patient care.

This mix of modern science and thoughtful color choice reflects Molbio’s dedication to delivering cutting-edge and compassionate healthcare solutions.

Molbio Diagnostics – Business Model

Molbio Diagnostics operates in the B2B space within the Life Sciences, Infectious Diseases, Sustainability Tech, and Genomics market segments, focusing on providing cutting-edge diagnostic solutions that cater to both public health and sustainability initiatives.

Molbio Diagnostics – Revenue Model

Molbio Diagnostics’ flagship product, Truenat, is a real-time IoT-enabled testing kit capable of detecting over 30 diseases. The company also generates substantial revenue from micro PCR workstations, reagent kits, and cartridges. In February 2023, Molbio acquired a majority stake in Prognosys Medical Systems, expanding its portfolio to include digital X-ray machines. Moreover, Molbio is actively developing point-of-care technologies in areas like hematology, cancer, antimicrobial resistance, next-generation sequencing, and syndromic testing.

Molbio Diagnostics – Challenges Faced

Overcoming Supply Chain Gaps

Molbio Diagnostics faces some significant challenges in addressing the global demand for diagnostic supplies, especially when infectious diseases spread rapidly. One of their key priorities is ensuring that their micro PCR analyzers can be manufactured locally, helping them stay ahead of supply shortages. This approach not only speeds up production but also allows them to keep costs down without compromising on the performance of the devices.

Ensuring Longevity

Another challenge in the medical device industry is the need for long-term availability of parts, ensuring that products don’t become obsolete too quickly. To tackle this, Molbio has partnered with SMART Wireless Computing, using their Snapdragon-based solutions, which offer extended-life support. This ensures that Molbio’s devices remain functional and supported for years to come, addressing a crucial issue faced by medical product manufacturers globally.

In FY23, Molbio reported a loss of Rs 3.4 crore, a stark contrast to the profit of Rs 215 crore seen in FY22. The company experienced a significant 57% decline in scale and rising fixed costs have added pressure.

Despite these challenges, Molbio Diagnostics remains a beacon of innovation and resilience in the healthcare industry. With strategic planning and a commitment to public health, they’re poised to navigate whatever comes next on their journey.

Molbio Diagnostics – Funding and Investors

Molbio received its first funding through the ATC Grant as a government initiative to aid in the effort to tackle COVID in 2022.

Date of Funding	Funding Amount	Round Name	Post Money Valuation	Investors
September 23, 2022	$85 million	Series C	$1.6 billion	Temasek, Motilal Oswal
May 28, 2021	$19.2 million	Series B	$225 million	Motilal Oswal
January 22, 2020	$19.7 million	Unattributed	$1.21 billion	Motilal Oswal, Shankar Gopalakrishnan

Molbio Diagnostics has raised a total funding of $124 million over 4 rounds to date. The company’s annual revenue as of Mar 31, 2023 is INR 337 crore ($42 million).

Molbio Diagnostics – Mergers and Acquisitions

In February 2023, Molbio Diagnostics acquired a 70% stake in Prognosys Medical Systems, aiming to enhance its presence in digital radiography. This acquisition aligns with their “Universal Access” portfolio, combining the strengths of Molbio’s Truenat systems with Prognosys’ Prorad systems to screen and confirm contagious diseases like tuberculosis, COVID-19, and chest anomalies across large populations.

Molbio Diagnostics – Growth

In September 2022, Molbio Diagnostics made headlines as Goa’s first startup to reach unicorn status. This remarkable achievement came after raising around INR 680 crore from notable investors, including Temasek and Motilal Oswal Private Equity (MOPE). What a way to kick off a journey in the healthcare sector!

But the success didn’t stop there. IN FY21 Molbio’s revenue took a giant leap, skyrocketing to INR 1,272 crore from just INR 51.53 crore in FY20.

In FY21, the company posted a profit of INR 472.7 crore, a dramatic change from the previous year’s loss of INR 16.27 crore. Molbio is not just surviving but thriving. In August 2023, Molbio Diagnostics teamed up with CrisprBits in a strategic collaboration aimed at integrating CRISPR technology into point-of-care (POC) testing.

This partnership marks a significant step toward enhancing diagnostic capabilities. In the fiscal year 2023-24, Molbio reported a turnover of approximately INR 800 crore, reflecting its continued growth and innovation in the healthcare sector. In FY23, Molbio Diagnostics faced significant challenges, reporting a loss of INR 3.4 crore compared to a profit of INR 215 crore in FY22. The company experienced a dramatic 57% decline in scale, and rising fixed costs added further pressure to its operations.

At the heart of this success is Truenat, Molbio’s flagship product. This real-time IoT-enabled testing kit is a game-changer, capable of detecting over 30 diseases. The Indian government even deployed it as a frontline tool in its door-to-door TB screening initiative—showcasing its crucial role in public health efforts.

Molbio Diagnostics – Financials

Molbio Financials	FY22	FY23
Operating Revenue	INR 776 crore	INR 332 crore
Total Expenses	INR 486 crore	INR 328 crore
Profit/Loss	INR 215 crore	INR -3.4 crore

In FY22, Molbio earned an operating revenue of INR 776 crore and spent INR 486 crore, leading to a profit of INR 215 crore. In FY23, their revenue dropped by 57%, falling to INR 332 crore. At the same time, their expenses decreased slightly by 32%, down to INR 328 crore. However, this resulted in a loss of INR 3.4 crore for FY23.

Molbio Diagnostics – Awards and Achievements

Molbio Diagnostics is awarded with the following awards:

BW Healthcare World Excellence Award 2022
Changemaker Award 2024 – Digital Transformation
BioSpectrum Product of the Year Award 2020The TrueNat TB test won the BioSpectrum Product of the Year Award
Ranking on the Burgundy Private Huron India 500 ListThe company proudly secured the 275th position on the Burgundy Private Huron India 500 list.

With a robust portfolio of awards and recognitions, this innovative company in the healthcare sector’s future looks bright.

Molbio Diagnostics – Competitors

Molbio Diagnostics operates in a competitive landscape in India, with various players vying for market share.

One notable competitor is Bigtec Labs, which functions as the research and development (R&D) wing of Molbio Diagnostics. Bigtec Labs has made significant strides in the medical device sector, developing and commercializing innovative products like a portable micro-PCR system, further highlighting the dynamic nature of the diagnostics industry.

Other competitors of the company are as below:

Thalys Medical Technology
Demka Sakti
Grupo SIM
Spectrum Medical

Molbio Diagnostics – Future Plans

The company has set its sights on launching an initial public offering (IPO) in FY25, aiming for a target valuation between INR 22,000 crore and INR 24,000 crore. Exciting times ahead!

Molbio isn’t resting on its laurels. The company is committed to strengthening its diagnostic testing capabilities, developing innovative point-of-care technologies, and expanding its reach in the global market.

FAQs

What does Molbio Diagnostics do?

Molbio Diagnostics’ Truelab Real-Time Quantitative Micro PCR System—a groundbreaking, portable molecular diagnostics platform designed to work directly at the point of care. This compact, battery-operated system delivers results in under an hour from sample to diagnosis, making same-day reporting and treatment a reality.

Is Molbio Diagnostics a Unicorn?

Founded in 2014, Molbio Diagnostics became Goa’s first startup to surpass a turnover of one billion, achieving Unicorn status.

Who is the founder of Molbio Diagnostics?

Sriram Natarajan is the Founder, Director, and CEO of Molbio Diagnostics Pvt. Ltd.

October 12, 2024

Darwinbox Success Story | How is This HR Tech Startup Revolutionizing the Human Resource Industry?

Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by Darwinbox.

The human resource department is present in every organisation. Its role is crucial for keeping an organisation balanced as they take care of its employee hiring process, performance appraisal, and payroll and determines what different policies and strategies should be applied in contributing to the success of an organisation.

To elaborate broadly, human resource management can have multiple responsibilities and functions to carry out. Over the years, human resource management (HRM) has evolved to adapt to the changing needs of employees in a company.

Today, top companies have special Human Resource Management Software to keep things in a systematic manner and efficiently aid in the data management of employees and various other HR processes. Moreover, it is the HR tech that the companies are embracing to bring a new change in the work culture.

Darwinbox is one of the leading cloud-based Human Resource Management Software (HRMS). The company has its headquarters in Hyderabad with various other offices located across India, and other countries like Singapore, Kuala Lumpur Jakarta, Manila, Bangkok, UAE, and the USA.

Read on further to know about Darwinbox’s industry details, founders, business and revenue model, funding and investors, and many more.

Darwinbox – Company Highlights

Startup Name	Darwinbox
Headquarters	Hyderabad, India
Sector	HRMS, IT services and IT Consulting
Founder	Chaitanya Peddi, Jayant Paleti and Rohit Chennamaneni
Founded	2015
Type	Private
Valuation	$1.07 billion
Revenue	$6.36 million (2020)
Website	darwinbox.com

Darwinbox – About and How Does It Work?
Darwinbox – Industry
Darwinbox – Founders
Darwinbox – Startup Story
Darwinbox – Name, Logo, and Tagline
Darwinbox – Mission and Vision
Darwinbox – Business and Revenue Model
Darwinbox – Funding and Investors
Darwinbox – Awards and Achievements
Darwinbox – Competitors
Darwinbox – Future Plans

Darwinbox – About and How Does It Work?

Founded in 2015, Darwinbox is a SaaS platform engaged in providing a better, simpler, and mobile-first HR Tech experience driven by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning, and empowers workers across the full lifecycle (hire-to-retire).

At present times, the company serves over 650 enterprises including Adani, Kopi Kenangan, MatchMove, Mahindra, Bank BTPN, TVS, Shakey’s, JSW, Bank Danamon, Nivea, Swiggy, Tokopedia, JG Summit Group, NutriAsia, Indorama, and others, and have over 1.5 million workers in 90+ countries.

Darwinbox has a new-age platform designed to provide enterprises with automated day-to-day HR processes that simplify human interactions and deliver quality insights to help build better workplaces both for the organisation and employees.

Darwinbox – Industry

Darwinbox belongs to the IT services and IT consulting industry. All of us are aware that the IT industry is like the backbone of any company, without which no company can stand tall and strong. It is reported that the marketplace for technology and information technology consulting services in India is projected to be worth $48 billion, accounting for approximately 20% of the overall worldwide consulting industry.

According to the latest Emeregen Research, the global Human Capital Management market size was $18.04 billion in 2020 and it is expected to deliver a revenue CAGR of 7.9% till the year 2028.

Darwinbox – Founders

Chaitanya Peddi, Jayant Paleti, and Rohit Chennamaneni are the founders of Darwinbox.

Chaitanya Peddi

Chaitanya Peddi is one of the three founders of Darwinbox and is presently performing as its Product Head. Before starting the journey with Darwinbox, Chaitanya worked as a consultant at Ernst & Young in their Business Advisory Services division. His first company, where he worked as an Analyst in Product Development was Verizon Communications. Chaitanya has an MBA degree in Human Resources from XLRI, Jamshedpur.

Jayant Paleti

Jayant Paleti co-founded Darwinbox in 2015. He presently is the Head of the Sales department at Darwinbox. Jayant got his B.Tech degree from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. Afterwards, he got an MBA degree in finance from the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow. He has been associated with EY (Ernst & Young) for almost four years. Prior to this, he worked at Deloitte for one year. Jayant started by working as a Business Analyst at Modelytics.

Rohit Chennamaneni

Rohit Chennamaneni is the co-founder of Darwinbox and is also currently the head of its operations. Before co-founding Darwinbox, he worked with Google, and McKinsey & Company. He was also an intern at Procter and Gamble. Rohit graduated from the Vellore Institute of Technology and holds an MBA degree from the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow. He worked in areas such as sales, operations, human resources, and leadership development.

Darwinbox – Startup Story

While working in a corporate firm, Jayant Paleti realised that his company lacked systematic functioning to provide a one-stop solution for the HR department. Soon after, he got over a discussion with Chaitanya and Rohit only to find a common observation that how companies did not have a good HR system. This was an opportunity that spurred the three friends to meet up every day over many rounds of coffee and tea at a local restaurant in Hyderabad.

The three founders worked day and night to study the HR tech market in India to learn about the already available products so that they can come up with a new one. Through many challenges and competition, the Telugu trio experimented with many products intending to launch a product that is more than just a provider of HR solutions by including additional services like asset management, insurance, and digital education.

Darwinbox initially started with one of the most required HR functions by every organisation – attendance and payroll solutions. To add, the founders used their own savings when Darwinbox was established in 2015.

After months of hard work, the company finally raised seed funding in 2016. They raised around Rs 4 crores from investors like Endiya Partners, 3One4 Capital, and many others.

Today, Darwinbox is regarded as the 84th Indian business to join the billion-dollar club, which also includes freshly minted unicorns such as Analytics SaaS and Edtech venture LEAD School.

Darwinbox – Name, Logo, and Tagline

Darwinbox Logo

The Darwinbox logo can be defined as a basic but eye-catching logo. It comprises the box symbol, which is intended to be used as Darwinbox’s symbol, followed by the company name in its trademark blue and black colour combination.

Darwinbox – Mission and Vision

The vision of Darwinbox is, “Building A Leading Technology Brand From Asia For The World.”

Darwinbox – Business and Revenue Model

Darwinbox’s business operates on a SaaS model that offers solutions related to the HR needs of an enterprise across the employee life cycle, which includes the six HR modules – payroll, recruitment, employee engagement, talent management, people analytics, and core operations like attendance, leave, etc.

The company’s core business operations are to engage and empower employees while automating and streamlining all HR functions. Some of the products & solutions offered by Darwinbox are:

Employee Onboarding
Employee helpdesk
Time & Attendance
Payroll
HRMS Suite
Talent Management Suite
Performance Management
Travel & Expense
Compensation Suite
Remote Work Suite

Darwinbox has been involved in bringing some innovations to assign employees with much more convenience and allow them to find time to do other things. In short, the company’s business also involves providing the best possible user experience to its customers. To name a few, Darwinbox has launched the following creations:

Mobile HRMS – To help employees on the go with its Mobile-first HR technology.
A.I in HR – With the help of Artificial Intelligence, Darwinbox helps to deliver even more insightful decision-making skills.
Multi-language support – As a global company, Darwinbox’s platform is built in a way that supports multiple languages.
Darwinbox Studio – Provides 200+ seamless integrations to have a secure way of data management. Clients such as Swiggy, Emcure, Kotak Life Insurance, cult.fit, Tata Cliq among others uses Darwinbox Studio.
HRMS on WhatsApp – To help employees receive notifications for events, leave, attendance, rewards, and recognition through WhatsApp. Darwinbox is the first ever to come up with HRMS to integrate with WhatsApp for Business.

The revenue of Darwinbox stood at $30 million in 2022. The company has announced that its revenue has doubled in comparison to the previous year. Most of its revenue, about 75% is generated from its business in India and 25% from other countries in Asia and the Middle East. It is the only Indian unicorn whose revenue is mainly from India.

Darwinbox – Funding and Investors

Darwinbox has received a total of $107 million in investment over seven rounds. Their most recent funding came in the form of a Series D round on January 24, 2022. The company has received funding from 11 investors. The most recent investors are SCB 10X and Lightspeed India Partners.

The list of funding and investors of Darwinbox is given below:

Date	Funding Round	Amount Raised	Lead Investor
January 24, 2022	Series D	$72 million	TCV
January 18, 2021	Series C	$15 million	Salesforce Ventures
September 25, 2019	Series B	$15 million	Sequoia Capital India
January 1, 2019	Venture Round	–	iLabs Capital
June 20, 2017	Series A	$4 million	Lightspeed India Partners
July 26, 2016	Seed Round	$500K	–
July 1, 2016	Seed Round	$547K	Endiya Partners

Darwinbox – Awards and Achievements

Darwinbox has won the following awards:

Customers’ Choice in the 2022 Gartner® Peer Insights™ ‘Voice of the Customer Report for Cloud HCM Suites.
‘Rising Star’ and as a product with the ‘Great User Experience’ award by Finances Online (2017).

Darwinbox – Competitors

Darwinbox competes with the following list of competitors:

SAP
Oracle
Ramco Systems
Adrenalin eSystems
PeopleStrong
ADP
Workday Human Capital Management
Zoho

Darwinbox – Future Plans

The company is planning to expand its operations globally, starting in the USA. Along with its global expansion, Darwinbox further plans to accelerate its product development. It also expects to generate 35% of its total revenue from each of its Indian and Southeast Asia business operations in the future.

“We are looking to enter the US markets this year. It will be a super force multiplier, but could become a substantial contributor to revenue in the next three-four years,” said Jayant Paleti, co-founder and Head of Sales at Darwinbox.

“We will probably get there ($100 million annual revenue) in the next two or two-and-a-half years, and after that IPO is a possibility,” Jayant further said.

FAQs

What does Darwinbox company do?

Darwinbox is one of India’s leading cloud-based Human Resource Management Software. The company offers HR Tech experience driven by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning and empowers workers across the full lifecycle (hire-to-retire).

Who owns Darwinbox?

The owners of Darwinbox are Chaitanya Peddi, Jayant Paleti and Rohit Chennamaneni.

Is Darwinbox a unicorn?

Darwinbox turned into a unicorn startup after raising $72 million in a Series D funding round on 24th January 2022.

Who invested in Darwinbox?

Darwinbox has eleven investors out of which the most recent investors are SCB 10X, Lightspeed India Partners, and TCV.

How much funding has Darwinbox raised to date?

Darwinbox has raised a total of $107 million as of August 2022.

September 3, 2022

Women-Led Indian Startups That Turned Unicorns
In this fast-paced world, where the speed of women is always compared with that of men, long gone has the time when women lagged. The exponential growth of women in all possible areas of interest has proven how unstoppable feminine energy has become. One of the many fields where women are leaving a significant mark is the startup industry. With every passing year, there is a notable amount of growth in the unicorns led by women. The entrepreneurial venture is welcomed more warmly than ever with every passing quarter.
Women-led Indian Startups

Priyanka Gill – MyGlamm (The Good Glamm group)

MyGlamm’s Valuation: $1.2+ Billion
Year Founded: 2014
Unicorn Status: 2021

MyGlamm – Women-Led Startups That Turned Unicorns

Founder and CEO of POPxo, Priyanka Gill is now a successful entrepreneur, journalist, and angel investor. She started her journey by starting a digital community platform for women- POPxo. It was started in 2014 to engage millennial women with content related to Personal care, beauty, and Fashion. In no time POPxo emerged as the largest digital platform with roaring popularity. Later in 2021, Gill joined Darpan Sanghvi (MyGlamm) and Naiyya Saggi (BabyChakra) to establish “The Good Glamm Group” to form a house of brands. They further strengthen each other’s position in the beauty and personal care market to rule the Digital FMCG industry.

Naiyya Saggi – BabyChakra, MyGlamm (The Good Glamm Group)

The Good Glamm Group Valuation: $1.2+ Billion

Year Founded: 2021
Unicorn Status: 2021

Naiyya Saggi – Founder, The Good Glamm Group – Women-led Unicorn Startups of India

Also known as the founder of BabyChakra, who is also the Co-founder and the President of MyGlamm, and the Co-founder of The Good Glamm Group along with Priyanka Gill, Naiyya Saggi is counted as one of the most successful young woman entrepreneurs in India. She completed her MBA from Harvard Business School, where she was a Fulbright and J.N.Tata scholar, after obtaining a BALLB (Hons). Saggi served as a Business Analyst at McKinsey & Company, and eventually, after completing her MBA, she founded BabyChakra, then became the Co-founder and President at MyGlamm, and eventually became the Co-Founder of The Good Glamm Group, when Darpan Sanghvi, Priyanka Gill, and Naiyya Saggi from came together to establish The Good Glamm Group in September 2021.

Falguni Nayar – Nykaa

Nykaa’s Valuation: $12.86+ Billion
Year Founded: 2012
Unicorn Status: 2020

Nykaa’s name stands with one of the very few female-led profitable unicorns. Falguni Nayar, an IIM Ahemdabad alumni quit her job at the age of 49 in 2012 to finally set a rolling pin for her entrepreneurial journey that was sitting in her head for a long time. Nykaa gained instant popularity among Indian women due to its wide range of beauty segments. The Falguni Nayar-led company turned unicorn in 2020 and is hailed as the first women-led unicorn startup in India. After the Nykaa IPO, which was oversubscribed 81.78 times, the company managed to catapult its valuation to more than $12 bn, and Falguni Nayyar, who owns more than 53% stakes in the company, turned to be the richest self-made female Indian billionaire.

Top 35 Successful Women Entrepreneurs In India [2022 Updated List]

Women entrepreneurship is growing at a fast pace in Idnia. so we have listed some of the most successful women entrepreneurs in India.

StartupTalkyAshwini

Upasana Taku – MobiKwik

MobiKwik Valuation: $1+ Billion

Year Founded: 2009
Unicorn Status: 2021

Upasana Taku – Founder of MobiKwik

Upasana Taku is the founder of MobiKwik, one of the most prominent Indian payment service providers that offer mobile phone-based payment systems and digital wallet services. Bipin Preet Singh and his wife, Upasana Taku, founded MobiKwik in 2009, the valuation of which reached $1 bn in October 2021.

Upasana Taku is a Stanford University graduate who completed her MS in Management Science and Engineering from the same university. Starting as a Business Analyst, Product Management at HSBC, Upasana founded MobiKwik, where she is still serving the role of the Chairperson, Cofounder and COO. Taku was also the Senior Product Manager at PayPal, Consultant at multiple companies and the Co-founder of ZaakPay.

Divya Gokulnath – Byju’s

Byju’s Valuation: $18+ Billion
Year Founded: 2011
Unicorn Status: 2018

Divya Gokulnath, a businesswoman and a teacher, happens to be the co-founder and the Director of Byju’s. Byju’s is an Indian educational technology (EdTech) online tutoring firm. It was founded in 2011 by the power duo – Byju Raveendran and Divya Gokulnath. Over the years the tutoring app has evolved and grown into one of India’s most valuable unicorns with a current valuation of $18 billion. Divya Gokulnath has played a key role right from the beginning by offering the expertise she had as a former teacher.

Ghazal Alagh – Mamaearth

Mamaearth’s Valuation: $1.2+ Billion
Year Founded: 2016
Unicorn Status: 2022

Founder of Mamaearth, Ghazal Alagh, and her story has caught the eyes of many Indians after starring as an investor in the reality show called shark tank. Her brand, “Mamaearth” offers a wide range of skincare, and beauty products and is very popular among Indian households. Mamaearth was founded by Ghazal and her husband Varun Alagh in the year 2016. Her goal is to make the beauty industry chemical toxicity free.

Rajoshi Ghosh – Hasura

Hasura’s Valuation: $1+ Billion
Year Founded: 2017
Unicorn Status: 2022

Rajoshi Ghosh happens to be a National University of Singapore and Stanford Ignite alumni. Hasura went from being a home-cooked food delivery company to a Software-as-a-service company. It was founded by Rajoshi Ghosh and Tanmai Gopal in the year 2017. In 2022, it entered the unicorn club soon after raising $100 million in series C funding.

Gazal Kalra – Rivigo

Rivigo’s Valuation: $1.07+ Billion
Year Founded: 2014
Unicorn Status: 2019

Gazal Kalra along with Deepak Garg visioned revolutionizing truck driving in India by establishing Rivigo Services. It was founded in 2014. It is a tech-enabled Cargo service offered in India. In the year 2019, the company turned into a unicorn. Gazal quit the company’s board in 2018. She is currently working on her new startup, which is in stealth mode.

Dr. Garima Sawhney – Pristyn Care

Pristyn Care’s Valuation: $1.4+ Billion
Year Founded: 2018
Unicorn Status: 2021

Dr. Garima Sawhney is a Gynecologist by profession. She, along with Harsimarbir Singh and Vaibhav Kapoor founded Pristyn Care in the year 2018. Pristyn Care focuses on availing surgeries and treatment with ease to the masses. The company has a widespread partnership with over 500 hospitals spreading out in the major cities of India. The healthcare-tech startup entered the $1 billion club when it raised around $100 mn in funds via its series E round in December 2021.

Sudha Murthy Success Story: Career, Early Life, Personal Life, Books, and Awards

Sudha Murthy is the chairperson of the Infosys Foundation and wife of N. R. Narayana Murthy. Lets look at the success story of Sudha Murthy.

StartupTalkyManav Makhija

Ruchi Kalra – Ofbusiness

Ofbusiness’ Valuation: $1+ Billion
Year Founded: 2016
Unicorn Status: 2022

39-year-old Ruchi Kalra has been into the startup game for quite a long time. Ofbusiness was founded by Ruchi and her husband Ashish Mahapatra in the year 2016. The company is one of the best raw materials supplying startups in India, which is known for offering a wide range of products at the lowest prices. Ofbusiness turned unicorn in July 2021 and is currently valued at $1.5 bn. The financial services arm of Ofbusiness, Oxyzo is also a unicorn that achieved the unicorn valuation in March 2022. Kalra recently made a statement that her company is all set for its Initial Public Offering.

Smita Deorah – LEAD

LEAD Valuation: $1.1+ Billion
Year Founded: 2012
Unicorn Status: 2022

Smita Deorah – Co-CEO and Co-Founder of LEAD

Smita Deorah is the Co-Founder & Co-CEO of LEAD. It was founded in 2012 by Sumeet Mehta and Smita Deorah. LEAD is a technology-based school Ed-tech company that focuses on transforming the education system in India, ensuring high-quality education for children. LEAD is also a unicorn, and now under the guidance of Smita Deorah, it is giving some of the major players like Unacademy, Byju’s, UpGrad, Vedantu, and Eruditus a cut-throat competition.

Ambiga Subramanian – Mu Sigma

Mu Sigma’s Valuation: $1.5+ Billion (2018)
Year Founded: 2004
Unicorn Status: 2016

Dhiraj Rajaram, Ambiga Subramanian’s ex-husband, launched Mu Sigma in 2004. After their divorce, Dhiraj took over as CEO, in addition to being the former CEO of a data analytics service provider with offices in Bangalore (Karnataka) and Illinois (Chicago). Ambiga is also India’s very first youngest rich woman who is self-made. With her devotion and expertise, she turned the company into a high-profit-making machine, establishing herself as one of the first self-made women to turn a company into a unicorn in no time. Mu Sigma has last been valued at $1.5 billion, in 2018. The former founder CEO, COO, Head of Innovation, and Head of Talent.

Conclusion

In the Indian startup ecosystem, women have broken the glass ceiling of prejudice and have proved themselves as able leaders, guiding their companies to unicorn valuations and letting them achieve many feats. It is crystal clear that over the recent years, this number kept growing several folds. From Ghazal Alagh’s “Mamaearth” to Priyanka Gill’s “The Good Glamm Group” and Falguni Nayyar’s “Nykaa”, the women entrepreneurs of India have left no stone unturned to bring the companies they’re leading to greater heights. Indian female entrepreneurs have surpassed the limits of age, qualification, and many other stereotypes and climbed the ladders of great opportunities fearlessly. According to surveys, with women leaders sitting at the top, the culture of the companies also has improved significantly over time.

FAQs

Who are the top female entrepreneurs in India?

A list of the Top Female Entrepreneurs in India are:
- Falguni Nayar
- Naiyya Saggi
- Priyanka Gill
- Ghazal Alagh
- Upasana Taku
- Kiran Mazumdar Shaw
- Vandana Luthra
- Indra Nooyi
- Vani Kola
- Radhika Ghai Aggarwal
- Supriya Paul
- Malini Agarwal
Which are the top startups led by women?

Top women-led startups that turned into unicorns are:
- MyGlamm (The Good Glamm group)
- Nykaa
- Byju’s
- MobiKwik
- Mamaearth
- MobiKwik
- Hasura
- Rivigo
- Pristyn Care
- Ofbusiness
- LEAD
- Mu Sigma
Who are the women who lead billion-dollar startups in India?

Some of the most prominent billion-dollar startups led by women in India are:
- Priyanka Gill – MyGlamm (The Good Glamm Group)
- Naiyya Saggi – The Good Glamm Group
- Falguni Nayar – Nykaa
- Upasana Taku – MobiKwik
- Divya Gokulnath – Byju’s
- Ghazal Alagh – Mamaearth
- Rajoshi Ghosh – Hasura
- Gazal Kalra – Rivigo
- Dr. Garima Sawhney – Pristyn Care
- Ruchi Kalra – Ofbusiness
- Smita Deorah – LEAD
- Ambiga Subramanian – Mu Sigma
How many unicorns does India have now?

India has over 100 unicorn startups, as of May 2022.

Which are the women-led highest-valued startups in India?

Nykaa is the highest valued startup in India led by Falguni Nayar with a valuation of $12.86 Billion.
May 16, 2022
List of Top 14 Unicorns in the United States

Ever heard of a unicorn? If you are imagining the beautiful mythical creature then you are wrong! Today’s generation has a different understanding of unicorns, thanks to Mr Aileen Lee, who popularized the term in 2013. So, what exactly is a unicorn? It is a private startup company that has a valuation of over $1 billion.

What is more shocking is that there are more than 900 unicorns across the world as recorded till December 2021. It makes you think the world is rich, isn’t it? Some of the former popular unicorns around the world are Facebook, Google, and Airbnb. Did it ring a bell? Well, it should! These unicorns later went on to become some of the largest companies in the world. We are here to look into the unicorns that are currently ruling the US.

Given below is a list of the top unicorns in the United States. We have curated a list of the best startup companies that have made a mark in the US market in a very short period.

1. SpaceX
2. Stripe
3. Epic Games
4. Instacart
5. Databricks
6. Chime
7. Fanatics
8. Gopuff
9. Plaid Technologies
10. Grammarly
11. Faire
12. Brex
13. JUUL Labs
FAQ

1. SpaceX

Country- USA

Valuation- $100 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2012

SpaceX Logo

SpaceX or Space Exploration Technologies Corp. was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk. Its headquarters are in Hawthorne, California. Musk founded SpaceX with the aim to reduce space transportation costs and to conduct the colonization of the planet Mars. The company has developed a liquid propellent rocket, a spacecraft, and an orbital rocket among its many products. It is on the verge of creating a mega constellation named Starlink for providing commercial internet services.

2. Stripe

Country- United States

Valuation- $95 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2014

Stripe Logo

Stripe is a financial services company that is headquartered in San Francisco. However, it also has another headquarter in Dublin, Ireland. Stripe usually works with e-commerce websites and mobile applications. One of its major achievements includes the introduction of Radar, an anti-fraud tool to block fraud transactions.

3. Epic Games

Country- United States

Valuation- $42 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2018

Epic Games Logo

Epic Games is a popular video game and software development company is headquartered in Cary, California. This unicorn was founded by Tim Sweeney in 1991. It was earlier named Potomac Computer Systems. Its first commercial video game release was ZZT in 1991. It is mostly known for developing the commercially available game engine, Unreal Engine. It is also used to power internally developed video games.

4. Instacart

Country- United States

Valuation- $39 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2014

Instacart Logo

This popular retail company operates both in the US and Canada. Instacart operates a grocery delivery service and a pickup service in both countries. The company’s services are offered through its web and mobile app.

5. Databricks

Country- United States

Valuation- $38 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2019

Databricks Logo

Databricks is a popular software company that was founded in 2013. The creators of Apache Spark created this unicorn with the aim of creating multiple open-source projects. Most of them spin around data science, data engineering, and machine learning. It mostly develops and sells cloud data platforms.

Top 15 Unicorn Startups in Europe to watch out for in 2021

Europe is counted as one of the most startup friendly country around the world, It has a huge number of unicorns so lets look at top uniconrs

StartupTalkyPratyusha Srivastava

6. Chime

Country- United States

Valuation- $25 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2019

Chime Logo

This financial technology company provides free mobile banking services owned and provided by Central National Bank or The Bankcorp Bank. It issues Visa debit cards to the account holders and they also get access to the online banking system. The company earns a majority of its revenue through the collection of interchange fees.

7. Fanatics

Country- United States

Valuation- $18 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2012

Fanatics logo

This popular American retailer unicorn, Fanatics was developed in 1995 and is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. It mostly deals with sports merchandise, equipment, and sportswear. Founded by Alan Trager, Fanatics proudly boasts of having connections with over 1080 product vendors and companies like Majestic, Adidas, Reebok, Nike, and more.

8. Gopuff

Country- United States

Valuation- $15 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2020

Gopuff Logo

This food delivery company operates not only in the US but also in England. Its headquarters are currently in Philadelphia. The unicorn boasts of operating in over 650 cities in the US. You will also be shocked to know that the company’s worth as of 2021 is $15 billion. It makes for a huge amount, isn’t it?

9. Plaid Technologies

Valuation- $13.4 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2018

Plaid Technologies Logo

This is also a fintech startup that is headquartered in San Francisco, California. It is responsible for building a data transfer network that is known to power Fintech and other digital finance products. The company also hosts a technology platform that enables the applications to connect with the bank accounts of the users. Apart from the US, Plaid Technologies also operates in the UK, Canada, Spain, France, Ireland, and the Netherlands.

10. Grammarly

Valuation- $13 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2019

Grammarly Logo

Who doesn’t know Grammarly? This popular cloud-based writing assistant has helped millions of users around the world correct their grammar and tone. It uses a special AI method to identify mistakes and search for an alternative for those words in the platform. It was initially released in 2009 and remains one of the most popular writing assistants in today’s world. Right from reviewing spellings, punctuation, grammar, engagement, and clarity, it looks for everything in content.

List of Unicorns Startups in India | Top Unicorns in India

India has over 80 unicorn startups including Paytm, Byju’s, Zerodha & more. Here’s an exhaustive list of Indian Unicorns Startups as of 2022.

StartupTalkyAnik Banerjee

11. Faire

Valuation- $12.4 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2019

Faire Logo

It is another popular eCommerce platform based out of the US. Users can shop from over 40,o00 independent brands through Faire’s website. It acts as a wholesale marketplace for both brands and retailers. It mostly helps the retailers find and buy unique merchandise as per their demands or requirements.

12. Brex

Valuation- $12.3 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2018

Brex Logo

This technology company deals in financial services and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. It not only offers cash management accounts but also business credit cards to other technology companies who require them. The cards offered by Brex are business charge cards and are issued by the Emigrant Bank.

13. JUUL Labs

Valuation- $12 billion

Unicorn Entry- 2017

Juul Labs Logo

It is an electronic cigarette company that was carved out of Pax Labs a few years ago in 2017. The electronic cigarette made by JUUL labs atomizes the nicotine salts that are derived from tobacco. Moreover, one-time-use cartridges are used to provide the products for the same. This popular company headquarters is in San Francisco. If you are not aware, JUUL even became the most popular e-cigarette in the US back in 2017.

Conclusion

With the advent of growing competition in the market, unicorns are striving hard and leaving no stone unturned to remain in the field. This is happening in every part of the world and the US seems to be leading the way here. Multiple unicorns have already reached heights of success while a few others have just entered the market. Only time will tell what lies in the fate of these non-mythical, real unicorns that are currently running for success and fame.

FAQ

How many unicorns are there in the United States?

There are approximately 487 Unicorns in the USA.

Which city has the most unicorns in the United States?

San Francisco has the most unicorns with a total count of 203 unicorns.

How many unicorns are there in the world?

As of January 2022, there are more than 1000 unicorns in the world.

January 26, 2022
Insights on the Indian Startup Ecosystem by Ankit Kedia, angel investor turned VC

Ankit Kedia is the Founder of Capital A, a new-age venture capital firm for early-stage startups in India. He launched the fund formally in 2021 after having spent the last 14 years as a second-generation entrepreneur in his family business – Manjushree Technopack Limited. Ankit has been angel investing since 2017 and Capital A is the formalization of this passion and his USP as an angel investor turned VC. He comes with a rich operating experience across the B2B space including in verticals like manufacturing, supply chain, healthcare, MedTech, fintech, and others.

At Capital A, the team is on a mission to back meaningful startups and founders looking for smart capital instead of just going after the valuation frenzy. They have also backed consumer startups with a solid product-market fit and impact. Their focus is on highly promising Indian startups across different industries and it has made 20+ investments over the last six months of its existence.

The following is an excerpt of the interview with Mr. Ankit Kedia, Founder & Lead Investor, Capital-A.

1. How was the year 2021 for you as an investor/VC?

The year 2021 was a solid one for investors. We saw an incredible amount of VC Capital being deployed across a highly diversified group of sectors. As far as Capital A is concerned, this was our maiden year and we have invested in over 20 early-stage startups across different sectors and have more in the pipeline for 2022.

2. How often do you bet on the entrepreneurs and not on the ideas? And when/if you do that, what quality of the entrepreneur usually makes you do that?

Given that we are an early-stage focused VC fund, we always end up in a dichotomy of choice between the founder and their idea. There is no binary answer for this. We have made bets on founders who are fresh out of college but come with great execution capability and zero experience. We have also backed seasoned professionals beginning their start-up journey after 10+ years of industrial experience.

Typically, we look for founders who have absolute clarity in their ideas and basic commercial acumen. If both these qualities exist in them, it is easier to assess the business. This is because we are assured that the founder knows their territory well. While an educational qualification from top business schools and engineering institutes is good, we have never used this as a prerequisite for evaluating investment opportunities.

3. What is a warning sign for you when investing in a startup?

If the founder keeps wavering on his/her product idea and wants to pivot even before having secured seed funding, it usually is a red flag. Another aspect that we carefully evaluate is the future-proofing of the business model in terms of technology and scalability. If either of these isn’t likely to exist in the next 5 years, we tend to hold off any further discussions.

4. What are some common biases you find in the Indian Startup ecosystem?

While investing, many VC founders are most likely to pursue the crème de la crème from IITs and IIMs who they feel are capable of executing and scaling up to large businesses. In my view, we need to look beyond this bias and consider those from the non-premier institutes as well to democratize the startup ecosystem. Another bias which many early-stage investors have is that they tend to back founders and startups with other bluechip angels or VCs as their investors. While this is a good background, it displays the lack of understanding and belief of the incoming investors. It also displays a piggyback approach towards investing. Although we also consider such startups, only a small percentage of our fund is reserved for Series-B investment.

Indian Startup Ecosystem Rewind 2021 – The Year of Unicorns

Here’s a rewind of the year full of startup events, valuations, predictions and more. Let’s look at the events of the Indian startup ecosystem 2021.

StartupTalkyHarshit Verma

5. What are your views on the Shark Tank India Episodes until now?

The Shark Tank show on Sony TV is an incredible start and will be a great way to get more and more entrepreneurs into the startup ecosystem. I love the section in which the sharks explain various VC jargon to viewers. From an investor’s point of view, I would like the producers to tighten the quality of startups pitching to the sharks and not just select those who are vying for publicity on national TV.

Shark Tank India: Episode 1 Review – Was it Worth the Hype?

The most awaited reality show, Shark tank India has released its first episode. Let’s look at the products featured and did the show live upto the hype?

StartupTalkyHarini Rao

6. We are seeing many startups exiting with IPO, what’s your opinion on that? How is it going to change the ecosystem?

India’s startup sector has seen a record number of IPOs in 2021. The reason is quite simple. There is a lot of pent-up appetite for investment amongst global investors. Many companies are also looking at leveraging the stock markets that are bullish about a strong recovery from the pandemic to fund their expansion plans and achieve financial security. The ecosystem will see an enormous amount of global capital being poured into the startup space in India. The pandemic-induced lockdown led to a record high adoption of digital technology, thereby helping startups fuel their growth. There is a renewed confidence amongst the investors and IPOs will become a realistic exit option for investors.

7. More than 42 unicorns in 2021. What do you think caused this wave? Is the valuation justified according to you?

India stands among the top 3 countries (behind US and China) witnessing a surge of unicorns. This surge can be explained by the massive interest from global investors aspiring to secure their territories within the Indian startup ecosystem. Some innovative startups amongst the unicorns including Zetwerk and Apna which made it to the list due to their offerings. There are a few unicorns that commanded ridiculous valuations. In my opinion, they were just fortunate to be in the right place at the right time.

What Makes A Unicorn Startup & How To Build a Unicorn Startup

A unicorn in the Business world indicates a privately-owned startup that has a valuation of $1 billion. But what makes a startup into a unicorn? Know Unicorn Startup Characteristics

StartupTalkyPV Vyshnavi

8. How can we support/ enable entrepreneurs in tier2 and tier 3 cities?

Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities have very innovative founders and business ideas. However, they sometimes lack the right connect, platforms, incubators, or accelerator programs to bring them to the forefront. In fact, many founders focus on solving problems specific to Tier 2 and 3 towns which could be a very big gap in the market. In my opinion, VCs should identify the right venture partners to find out these hidden gems and also actively partner with academic institutions to develop student interest in the startup ecosystem.

9. What do you look forward to as an investor in the year 2022?

The year 2022 will be similar to 2021 or even better as startups continue to attract capital from both private and public markets. The year 2021 saw one of the highest investments both from PE as well as VCs with many startups also going to the capital markets. The IPO frenzy has injected a lot of confidence among investors and startups will continue to benefit from the pent-up demand from 2020.

10. What are a few sectors you think would be hot in the upcoming year?

Sectors like EV, e -Commerce, l ogistics, and even fintech will continue to be the flavor of the seasons amongst the VCs.

Indian Startups – Funding & Investors 2021 Data | Updated

Exclusive Startup Funding Data of the Indian Startup Ecosystem 2021. The most updated list of Startup Funding news India.

StartupTalkyJeenal Jain

11. One learning that you would like to share with founders who are looking to raise funds?

One of the most common challenges that we face with founders looking for capital today is that they underplay their equity without understanding how valuations and captable work. The founders end up giving a lot of equity to investors who barely bring value to the table other than wanting to spray and pray. Any founder looking for early-stage smart capital must be equally selective about their investors as much as the latter cherry-picks investment opportunities.

Another challenge many founders are facing today is around individual investors on the captable who become extremely specific about their exits. In some cases, we have also seen their rigidity to sign on SHAs as they are entitled to the same rights as major investors. My advice to founders is that while your friends and family are one of the earliest believers in your ideas, it is very important to anticipate future rounds and draft agreements in the interest of your organization, and not the investors. Sometimes, the fundraising process can become very overwhelming, and hence, it is important to create a healthy mix of advisors, investment bankers and leverage early investors as your mascots for the same.

January 6, 2022
What Makes A Unicorn Startup & How To Build One
People know about popular unicorn companies like Uber, Swiggy, Airbnb, Snapchat, and Pinterest and their journey to success, but most people don’t know what a unicorn company exactly means. What are the different criteria for a startup company to become a unicorn? A unicorn in the Business world indicates a privately owned startup company that has a valuation of $1 billion.

The term was initially coined by a well-known venture capitalist Aileen Lee, who choose the mythical animal to represent the statistical rarity of successful startup companies. The simplest definition of a startup has remained unchanged ever since, while the number of unicorns has gone up. Unicorn has now become a catchphrase within the global startup market. When a startup becomes a unicorn, it shows how the business model of the company and its value proposition is in the eyes of the investors. The unicorn helps grows in both visibility and operational outlay, which often leads directly to greater business opportunities for the organization.

The article ahead will give you an insight on How to become a Unicorn Startup, the Features & Characteristics of a Unicorn Company, and more.

The Characteristics of Unicorn Startup
Investors of the Unicorn Companies
Can Only Startups be a Unicorn?
Disruption and Value Seeding
Market Size of the Unicorn Companies
Maximizes Growth and Net Profit
Which Indian Startups turned Unicorn in 2021?
FAQ’s
Conclusion

The Characteristics of Unicorn Startup

The process to be a unicorn is not easy and each and every unicorn has its own story. All the unicorn companies have a similar set of features that makes them a unicorn startup.
- Groundbreaking innovations: The unicorn companies have brought a disruption in the field they belong to. Uber, for example, changed the way people commuted. While Airbnb is known to have changed the way people planned their way while traveling. The innovative strategies are what make them a unicorn company.
- The First innovations: The unicorn companies are mostly the starters in their industry. They change the way people do things and gradually create a necessity for themselves. They are also known to continuously innovate and stay ahead of competitors which might later boom.
- High Technology: Most unicorn companies have a business model run on a higher level of technology. Almost 87% of the unicorn products are software, 7% of them being hardware, while the other 6% of them being based on products and services.
- Consumer-focused startups: Their main goal into simplify and make things easy for consumers and be a part of their day-to-day life. Over 62% of the unicorns are particularly B2C companies. Another key ingredient is keeping their products and services affordable.
- Privately owned: Many known unicorn companies are nowadays privately owned which gets their valuation bigger when an established company invests in it. There are more than 361 private companies around the world valued at over $1 billion. India has 16 of these companies, that are taking up 4% of the overall share.
Popular unicorn companies outside the US

Key ingredients of a Unicorn
- To make a simple solution to an existing problem
- Make a strong and highly marketable value proposition
- Make a plan in order to have a clear vision for the future of the company and the products and services they offer
- Unicorn companies have Potential beta testers and customers
- They usually have an easy-to-use UX that allows users to quickly adapt and get the product.
Investors of the Unicorn Companies

Great ideas usually don’t have value until you do something with them, which is what the unicorns companies are good at as they have the right people, skills, tools, and data to make the magic happen. This is taken into consideration by the investors for deciding which startup to fund. It is very important to project revenue and growth.

Some projections need to be backed by hard data and the forecasting growth for the next 6, 12, or 18 months. If a startup in need of funding without any numbers to back up its claims, the potential investor may not be interested in good. Recent startups wait in order to seek out investors until they have a marketable product with proven demand as well as a number of opportunities coming your way.

Best startups of the decade which defined 2010

The mindset of the people has changed from, over the decade, as now people wantto be the boss of their own and don’t want to restrict themselves in the wallsof 9-to-5 jobs. This decade brought a hit of entrepreneurs and their startupswith amazing ideas and execution, that has helped people and ha…

StartupTalkyAshwini

Can Only Startups be a Unicorn?

The answer is yes because the unicorn is a term given only to startups who have a valuation of over a billion. The only startups that have a valuation of 10 billion are grouped under the term called decacon (which is a super unicorn). Dropbox, SpaceX, and WeWork are some examples of decacon.

For the startups that are based out of Canada, there is an exclusive term for what we call a unicorn. It is the narwhal. This means that any Canadian startup company with a valuation of over 1 billion is called a narwhal. Some of the famous narwhale companies are Hootsuite and Wattpad.

How to become a unicorn startup in 2020

Top 10 Most Highest Valued Startups in the world

There are over a billion successful startups in the world, every startup striveshard to be successful and reach the top, but only a few make it to the list ofmost valuable startups in the world. Being the most valuable startup is a perk in itself because the funding securedis much more compared…

StartupTalkyArbaz Sayed

Which Indian Startups turned Unicorn 2021?

Indian Unicorn Startups 2021

Here’s the list of Top Unicorn Startups in India 2021

Disruption and Value Seeding

The main reason behind the growth and success of each and every unicorn is the disruptive impact it has on its chosen market. A well-known example of this is the on-demand taxi aggregator Uber. Uber uses smartphones as a medium to connect consumers with their nearby cab drivers at the touch of the button, the only reason that has driven the massive success that the company continues to enjoy.

Uber not only made booking a cab booking more convenient for the end-user but also headed more operational efficiency for cab drivers and taxi service providers by helping them optimize their revenue streams. As a result, the company is now one of the most successful unicorns with a valuation of 64.5 billion in 2020.

Market Size of the Unicorn Companies

It is important for startups aspiring to make the title of a unicorn in order to analyze the market they are operating in. Entrepreneurs must understand and analyze their target markets well in advance in order to aim for the title of a unicorn in order to analyze the markets they are operating in. They must analyze their target market and target audience well in advice before aiming to make their startups into the next big thing in the startup community.

An example of the is Airbnb. Founded as an alternative lodging/hotel solution for business travelers all over the world, the company then changed its approach to target the much larger global hotel industry, which is currently worth 550 million.

Where Can You Look For Ideas For Your Business

There are so many different factors that contribute to the success of your startup. Business idea is an important factor among them. It has an important role in creating sales and profits. Where can you look for ideas for your business? There are so many ways.

StartupTalkyATHUL C K

Maximizes Growth and Net Profit

There no fixed rule that requires a company to be profitable in order to become a unicorn. In fact one of the earliest unicorns, Nutanix earned the status in 2013 despite a complete lack of profits. The point is that profits and growth don’t always go hand in hand. In fact, going after profit can sometimes slow your ability to increase revenue.

The startups must work towards building sustainable growth rather than opting for a quick, short-sighted bump in profits. Instead of only focusing on growing your margins to impress investors with fast ROI, they must also focus on perfecting your product, increasing your total revenue, and growing your user base.

FAQ’s

What is a startup unicorn?

A term that describes a privately-owned startup with a valuation of over $1 billion.

What is a unicorn in a startup?

In finance, “unicorn” is a term that describes a privately-owned startup. The term was introduced by venture capital investor, Aileen Lee, in 2013 to describe rare tech startups that were valued at more than $1 billion. The phenomenon of unicorns is quite controversial.

Which Indian startup became unicorns in 2020?

In all, 11 Indian startups — Unacademy, Pine Labs, FirstCry, Zenoti, Nykaa, Postman, Zerodha, Razorpay, Cars24, Dailyhunt, and Glance — became unicorns this year.

Which is India’s fastest Unicorn startup?

Bengaluru and San Francisco-based SaaS startup Postman became the fastest SaaS startup to reach unicorn status. In June 2020, the six-year-old startup secured a Series C funding of $150 million at a valuation of $2 billion.

Which country has the most unicorns?

The number of unicorn companies found in China in early 2020 was bigger than those of 29 other countries, including Germany, India, and the UK, combined.

Conclusion

Hope you got an idea on how to build a unicorn startup & what are the unicorn startups’ characteristics. Startups into tech will now embrace machine intelligence mostly in its devices or products. Artificial intelligence is the future and is making innovations in the tech industry for years. But its presence will become more in the coming years. This in turn will give rise to unicorn startups which will dominant the startup industry. The moto is not to make unicorn startups but to create something that takes away the human effort by making the world a little better.
July 8, 2021