Aptoide becomes the first rival app store to return to Google Play in the US

Source: Tech Crunch

Aptoide becomes the first rival app store to return to Google Play in the US

Startups

Aptoide has returned to Google Play in the U.S., marking a significant shift toward competition in the Android app market. This change follows a court ruling in the Epic Games lawsuit, which forced Google to allow third-party app stores. Through the Play Catalog Access Program, Aptoide can now leverage Google Play's infrastructure, eliminating the need for sideloading and expanding its reach to millions of American users.

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Social media platforms still facing thousands of user addiction lawsuits after failed appeals

Startups

"Meta, TikTok, Snapchat, and Google face thousands of consolidated lawsuits alleging their platforms were intentionally designed to be addictive to minors. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the companies' attempt to use Section 230 protections to dismiss these claims. While the legal outcome remains uncertain, Meta has already lost two similar jury trials, marking a significant shift in liability regarding child safety concerns.".

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YouTube now requires creators to have twice as many watch hours to start earning money

Startups

"YouTube is increasing monetization thresholds for new creators starting February 1, requiring 8,000 annual watch hours or 20 million Shorts views within 90 days. While existing partners remain unaffected, Shorts creators must maintain 10 million views to keep earning from the Shorts Creators Pool. Additionally, YouTube is expanding its Premium Lite subscription globally to boost creator revenue, following similar reward program revisions by X and Facebook.".

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Capillary Tech Promoter Sells Stake Worth ₹172 Cr

Business

Capillary Technologies International Pte Ltd, the Singapore-based promoter entity of SaaS firm Capillary Technologies, offloaded 32.9 lakh shares in a bulk deal worth ₹171.5 crore. The sale, executed at ₹520.86 per share, diluted the promoter's stake by over 8.5% to book profits. This move follows a recent stock uptick despite a Q1 FY27 net loss and a significant cyber fraud loss at a Czech subsidiary.

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Clicks’ Power Keyboard brings BlackBerry-style typing to any phone — with some compromises

Startups

Clicks Technology has launched the $99 MagSafe-compatible Power Keyboard, a slide-out physical keyboard designed to give smartphones a BlackBerry-like feel. Featuring a 2,150 mAh battery that supports wireless charging, the Bluetooth device is highly customizable and compatible with various phone sizes. While some users may find it bulky or top-heavy, it serves as a tactile alternative to onscreen typing before the company releases its own smartphone.

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Meta’s new Glimmer AI model offers a hint at Zuckerberg’s personal intelligence vision

Startups

Meta has released Muse Glimmer, an open-weight 30-billion parameter model designed to run AI agents locally on consumer hardware. Available under the Apache 2.0 license, Glimmer enables multi-step tasks like coding and file management without cloud reliance, enhancing user privacy. This release aligns with Mark Zuckerberg’s vision of personal superintelligence, though Meta continues to keep its most powerful model, Muse Spark, closed-weight and under company control.

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Eternal’s Enterprise AI Turn: Why The Zomato Parent Spun Out Nugget

Business

Eternal has spun off its AI platform, Nugget, into a separate entity under Carthero Technologies Private Limited. Originally developed to optimize Zomato's internal operations, Nugget now provides conversational AI, voice agents, and workflow automation to external enterprises, including competitor Swiggy. The cash-flow positive venture generated ₹7.2 Cr in FY26 revenue and serves diverse sectors like finance and retail, reflecting a broader trend of consumer tech companies commercializing internal tools. (70 words) -.

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Parliament Clears Taxation Bill; FM Re-assures No MDR On P2P UPI Payments

Business

"Parliament has cleared The Taxation and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, enabling the government to potentially introduce a merchant discount rate (MDR) on specific UPI payments. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman emphasized that end-customers will not face separate transaction charges. The NPCI-led UPI and Services Steering Committee will now determine the scope and structure of any MDR, which may target high-turnover merchants while exempting peer-to-peer transactions.".

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Sila lands $1.4B Pentagon loan as militaries demand more batteries

Startups

"The U.S. Department of Defense has granted Sila a $1.4 billion loan to expand production of its silicon-carbon battery material in Washington. This initiative aims to reduce reliance on Chinese graphite anodes, offering higher energy density for EVs and defense applications. Sila plans to increase its factory capacity fivefold. Additionally, the Pentagon announced funding for Sunrise Energy Metals, Niron Magnetics, and Strategic Bauxite to secure critical minerals.".

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Archer buys former rival Wisk Aero

Startups

Archer Aviation has acquired Wisk Aero, SkyGrid, and Insitu from Boeing in exchange for an ownership stake in the company. Boeing will hold approximately 16.5% of Archer following the deal. This acquisition resolves a previously contentious relationship marked by trade secret lawsuits. Archer, which is expanding into defense and commercial eVTOL markets, continues to develop its Midnight aircraft as it prepares for operations later this year.

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ideaForge Slips Into The Red In Q1, Reports ₹2.3 Cr Loss

Business

ideaForge reported a net loss of ₹2.3 crore for Q1 FY27, returning to the red after a ₹61 crore profit in the previous quarter. Despite a 436% year-on-year increase in operating revenue to ₹68.6 crore, revenue fell 51% sequentially from ₹141 crore. Total income reached ₹70.5 crore, while total expenses nearly doubled year-on-year to ₹82.5 crore, contributing to the quarterly loss.

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A data breach at shipping giant Ceva Logistics is rippling across banks, retailers, Steam gamers, and beyond

Startups

Ceva Logistics, a global shipping giant, suffered a cyberattack starting July 29, impacting eight European warehouses and causing significant shipping delays. The breach compromised personal customer data, including names and addresses, affecting clients like Valve, Bol, and ING. Ceva has activated security protocols and is working with authorities to resolve the incident, though some services remain disrupted while the investigation into the data theft continues.

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Signed up for Klaviyo? Dozens of advertisers may have seen your password

Startups

Security researcher Sam Jadali discovered that marketing giant Klaviyo inadvertently shared new customer sign-up data, including passwords and emails, with third-party advertisers like Google and Facebook. A misconfigured web form caused the leak between February 2024 and November 2025. Klaviyo confirmed the bug is fixed and claims fewer than 200 people were affected, though the company has not publicly disclosed the incident or provided full log details.

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Bakingo parent raises nearly Rs 100 Cr from Faering Capital

Startups

FA Gifts Private Limited, the operator of FlowerAura and Bakingo, has raised nearly Rs 100 crore through Series B compulsory convertible preference shares. The investment came from two funds managed by private equity firm Faering Capital. While the specific use of these funds was not disclosed, previous investments supported Bakingo's expansion into smaller cities and technology upgrades. The Gurugram-based company continues to scale its gifting and bakery operations.

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Apple Pay Likely To Launch In India By October: Report

Business

Apple Pay is expected to launch in India by late September or October, targeting the premium credit-card market. The service will initially support contactless payments via Visa and Mastercard through NFC-enabled terminals, rather than UPI. Apple is currently negotiating transaction fees with major card issuers. This rollout follows nearly a decade of regulatory and technical delays, marking a significant expansion of Apple's services business within the country.

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Info Edge reports 43% rise in net profit for Q1FY27

Startups

Info Edge, the parent company of Naukri and 99acres, reported a 43% year-on-year increase in net profit to Rs 490 crore for Q1 FY27, with revenue rising 11.4% to Rs 881 crore. Growth was driven by strong recruitment activity and AI adoption. While Naukri earned a profit of Rs 353 crore, 99acres recorded a small loss of Rs 2.13 crore despite a 17% revenue increase.

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Discovered Materials is playing AI whack-a-mole to hunt cooler chips

Startups

Discovered Materials, a Y Combinator startup, has raised $9 million in seed funding to develop AI-driven materials for more efficient, cooler-running semiconductors. Using a pipeline of AI agents and physics models, the company aims to identify and patent novel substances that reduce heat in AI chips. While the startup has identified promising candidates, the primary challenge remains the physical synthesis and commercial manufacturing of these materials.

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Google Play adds Venmo as a payment option

Startups

"Google is integrating Venmo as a new payment method on Google Play, allowing users to purchase apps, games, and digital content, or tip creators. This addition joins existing options like PayPal and Cash App. The move comes as global in-app spending continues to rise, with Sensor Tower reporting over $167 billion in total user spend across iOS and Google Play in 2025, a 10.6% year-on-year increase.".

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Zostel Withdraws Delhi HC Plea Seeking SEBI Review Of OYO’s IPO Disclosures

Business

Zostel has withdrawn its plea to the Delhi High Court requesting that SEBI scrutinize PRISM's draft IPO disclosures regarding Zostel's claimed 7% stake in the OYO parent. The court noted that SEBI would review these concerns during the regulatory approval process. This development is part of a long-standing legal dispute over a failed 2015 acquisition, while PRISM maintains that Zostel's recent legal applications are frivolous.

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Aum Ventures raises Rs 225 Cr first close for new deeptech fund

Startups

"Aum Ventures has raised Rs 225 crore in the first close of its Rs 750 crore India Innovation Fund II. Targeting pre-seed and seed-stage Indian deeptech startups in sectors like AI, semiconductors, and spacetech, the fund aims to invest in 25 to 30 companies. With over 65% of initial capital from international investors, this move aligns with increasing Indian government policy support for high-risk research and development.".

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