Hello,

We might be in the midst of a funding winter but not everyone is feeling the chills.

Even as annual funding this year dropped by almost 34% (data by Tracxn), fintech behemoth PhonePe is looking to raise around $1 billion in a new round, reported Bloomberg. 

The Walmart-owned company is expected to close this all-equity deal in the next two weeks, which may take its valuation to around $13 billion, making PhonePe one of India’s most valuable fintech companies. 

In other news, everyone in South Korea is about to become one year younger as the country ends a system that counted newborns a year old. 

They say, “age is just a number” but who doesn’t want to be a little bit younger? 

ICYMI: What did the world Google for in 2022?

Of course, ‘Wordle’ topped the list. Speaking of which, have you played today’s game yet?

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Pixxel’s path to making space history
• Coursera CEO on problem-solving
• We Founder Circle launches two angel funds

Here’s your trivia for today: Which was the first car to cross top speed of 200 mph?

Spacetech

Pixxel’s path to making space history

Founded by BITS Pilani graduates Awais Ahmed and Kshitij Khandelwal, Pixxel is exploring new ways of earth monitoring and observation. The spacetech startup recently created history by setting off its third hyperspectral satellite Anand on the PSLV C54 Mission by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). 

Shooting for the stars:

• Hyperspectral imaging refers to a type of technology that first emerged in the 1970s, which helps better monitor and observe activities on earth from space today. 
• Anand has been built for earth observation applications to be used in agriculture, energy, and climate sectors. The satellite had been in the works for nearly two years. 
• For Pixxel, the primary source of revenue is selling data to clients. For instance, for a client who wants to monitor 1,000 acres of land, Pixxel prices the imagery at $1 per acre. 

<Funding Alert>

Startup: Uniqus 

Amount: $12.5M

Round: Series A

Startup: Vidyut 

Amount: $4M

Round: Equity plus debt

Startup: Onsite 

Amount: $1.5M

Round: Seed

Edtech

Coursera CEO on problem-solving

In early 2020, when the world was yet to take the COVID-19 pandemic seriously, CEO of online course provider Coursera Jeff Maggioncalda was ahead of the edtech game. His close attention to the situation in China paid off. 

In March of that year, the team announced Coursera for Campus, which enables colleges and universities around the world to integrate and offer online education via its platform–with tweaks. 

Online learning:

• Within seven months, the company went from 30 customers using Coursera for Campus to close to 4,000. 
• India is a big market for Coursera, which already has more than 17 million registered learners. 
• The company now believes that the future of higher education exists at the intersection of university and industry.

Venture Capital 

We Founder Circle launches two angel funds

Early-stage startup investment platform We Founder Circle (WFC) has launched two funds—Invstt Trust and We Founder Circle Global Angels Fund—in GIFT City. 

Building blocks:

• An AIF registered with SEBI as an angel fund, Invstt Trust will cater to early-stage Indian startups, with a target size of the fund of up to Rs 200 crore and a green shoe option of up to Rs 200 crore.
• We Founder Circle Global Angels Fund is a cross-border fund targeting global investors, with a fund size of $30 million and a green shoe option of $30 million for a term of seven years, which can be extended by an additional two years. 
• The average ticket size of these funds would range between Rs 3 crore and Rs 4 crore, and they will invest in startups raising pre-seed, seed, and Series A rounds.

News & updates

• Pink slips: More tech startups in Southeast Asia laid off workers this year, as macro headwinds widened losses and venture capitalists pushed startups to extend their runways. GoTo Group, Glints, and Carousell are the most recent companies to downsize their headcounts within the last 30 days.
• Rising prices: Airfares will increase around the world next year, by as much as 12% on Europe-Asia routes and 10% for North America-Asia flights. Asia is set for some of the biggest changes as demand swells, Amex GBT said in its Air Monitor 2023. 
• Sentenced: A US judge sentenced former Theranos Inc President Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani to 12 years and 11 months in prison on charges of defrauding investors and patients of the blood testing startup led by Elizabeth Holmes. 

Which was the first car to cross top speed of 200 mph?

Answer: The 1969 Dodge Hemi Charger Daytona.

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