💁‍♀️ Can GenAI truly replicate human creativity?

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26 November 2024 View in Browser

Hello,   There’s a new challenger in the quick commerce arena: Amazon.    Amazon India is reportedly set to launch its quick commerce business, tentatively named Tez, by December 2024 or early next year.   Amazon India, which is primarily planning to offer groceries and daily essentials through the arm, is setting up dark stores and finalising the SKUs and logistics for the operation. With this, the ecommerce company is one of the last big firms to join in on the quick commerce race in the country.    Globally, Amazon is aiming much higher than groceries and household items. This time, it’s working towards an ambitious goal: loosening NVIDIA’s iron grip on the $100 billion AI chips market.    Hidden away in an Austin engineering lab, Amazon’s engineers are busy designing an alternative to NVIDIA’s chips, the current iteration of which may just be a make-or-break moment for the company.   While Amazon may not release a chip anytime soon, is NVIDIA’s supremacy under threat?   Developments in the AI sector are, at this point, a waiting game, with new use cases to explore each day. Case in point: AI in music and audio.    NVIDIA is exploring a new AI model for generating music and audio that can modify voices and generate novel sounds. Its version can generate sound effects and music from a text description, and even take in and modify existing audio, for example, taking an audio clipping of a recorded speech and changing the accent.   While it has no immediate plans to publicly release the technology anytime soon, executives at the company believe it will “bring new capabilities to music and video games”.   It’s far from the only company dipping into text-to-audio capabilities of AI.   In today’s newsletter, we will talk about  Content creation with GenAI A LinkedIn for healthcare professionals Edodwaja brings mobile STEM labs Here’s your trivia for today: Which garden flower’s name means “nose twister”?

In-depth Content creation with GenAI With NotebookLM, Google unveiled a larger application for AI, where more than helping humans be more productive, generative AI (GenAI) is fundamentally reshaping how creative industries operate. An EY report suggests that India's adoption of GenAI could add a staggering $359-438 billion to the country’s GDP.     As we embrace this technological leap, the big question remains—can GenAI truly replicate human creativity or pave the way for new forms of innovation?   Who makes better content?: Digital illustrator and content creator Abhijeet Sarkar sees AI as a creative assistant that helps with tasks like resizing designs or generating elements, allowing him to focus on brainstorming and artistic details that make his work unique. Google-backed Kuku FM, for instance, uses GenAI to streamline content creation. The platform offers exclusive audio content, including audiobooks, podcasts, and talk shows, with a focus on personalisation. Rapidly reshaping creative industries, GenAI is projected to become a $10 billion+ market in the coming years, says Unmesh Kulkarni, Head of GenAI at Tredence, a global data science and AI solutions company.  He believes AI-generated music, audio content, and videos are poised to be the next big areas of disruption. Read More

Funding Alert 1) Elchemy: $5.6M | Series A 2) Beyond Appliances: $2M | Seed 3) Indic Wisdom: $2M | pre-Series A

Women Entrepreneurs A LinkedIn for healthcare professionalsAfter over a decade of experience in the healthcare industry, Dr Chandrika Kambam noticed that many healthcare professionals remain inactive on mainstream social media. She also observed a significant skills gap in the sector. Additionally, there was no dedicated job portal catering specifically to healthcare professionals.   In 2022, she started Anastomos, a networking platform for healthcare professionals, where one can find job postings, mentorship, learning and development courses and more.   Finding jobs: The platform offers a tech-driven solution where hospitals can post locum job openings, and doctors can easily pick up shifts based on availability. The platform also allows hospitals to access the professional’s credentials. These professionals can earn by filling shifts. In addition to locum jobs, it offers permanent placement opportunities, posting vacancies both in India and abroad. It connects recruiters with the candidates and vice versa. The platform is free to join for both healthcare professionals and organisations. Professionals do not pay for job recruitment. They only pay if they choose to participate in leadership mentoring sessions, purchase courses from third-party vendors, or access international courses. Read More

In-focus Edodwaja brings mobile STEM labsImparting quality education in rural India is a big challenge, hindering students’ curiosity and development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Entrepreneur Madhulash Babu’s solution is a mobile lab to help students learn and get hands-on experience with gadgets to build curiosity.   The flagship offering of Hyderabad edtech startup Edodwaja—the Futuristic Lab On Wheels (FLOW) bus—visits schools and colleges across Telangana, enabling students to learn and explore tech tools first-hand.    Learn on wheels: The solar-powered bus is equipped with high-end tech, including a 3D printing machine, AR/VR glasses, weather station, and Alexa-controlled lighting. The bus aims to impart hands-on education combined with theoretical learning to bridge the tech learning gap prevalent among students living in rural areas and help them master modern technologies. Edodwaja charges Rs 350 per student during school visits. In the last four months, it conducted a total of six visits across the state, from government schools to even the Indian School of Business. Read More

From the CapTable SoftBank's new India Strategy: The end of the mega-check era During a quarterly earnings call earlier this month, Yoshimitsu Goto, CFO of Japan’s SoftBank Group, unveiled the company’s investment strategy. After two years in "defensive mode," SoftBank—one of the world’s most prominent tech investors—plans to ramp up its investment efforts. Its focus, as has been the case over the past four quarters, remains artificial intelligence (AI).   Its recent $500 million investment in OpenAI, the Sam Altman-led AI major, only served to reaffirm this commitment. Additionally, reports indicate that SoftBank has also backed Perplexity, a promising AI firm in the US that’s valued at $3 billion. In India, though, SoftBank is taking a somewhat different approach.   Though the Japanese VC is in discussions to lead a $100-120 million funding round in Addverb, an Indian warehouse automation robotics firm, its involvement in India’s AI and deep tech sectors has been minimal. Indeed, having hit the brakes on new investments in the country—its third largest market—over the past 30 months, SoftBank is set to resume investments in the country with a fresh, new approach. It plans to do smaller deals in the country, while also shifting its sectoral focus.   Key takeaways: SoftBank is shifting its investment strategy globally, focusing on AI in various markets. While this is true in India as well, the scarcity of such companies has meant that the Japanese investor is taking a different path. SoftBank is targeting proven models that have yielded success, and has begun investing at earlier stages, prioritising companies valued between $300 million-$2 billion. The Japanese investor has returned $7.2 billion already of the $10.7 billion it invested through its Vision Fund over the past few years. Continue Reading

News & Updates

Halt: TotalEnergies SE won’t make any fresh investment in the Adani Group until the consequences of US bribery indictments against founder Gautam Adani and other individuals have been clarified. The decision may add to worries about the group’s ability to finance its expansion. Crypto: Bitcoin hit a new record high last week, with prices climbing above $99,000 for the first time. However, prices have since taken a breather, and Bitcoin was trading around $98,243.25 early Monday, according to CoinGecko data—up only a fraction of a percent on the day. Anti-trust: The CCI turned down a request from Apple to put a hold on an investigation report, which found the company breached competition laws, allowing the case to continue. In August, CCI ordered a recall of investigation reports after Apple said the watchdog had disclosed commercial secrets to competitors in the case dating back to 2021, including Tinder-owner Match.

What you should watch out for

Fintech product delivery in 10 minutes: Invincible Ocean introduces no-code solution for onboarding In Association with Invincible Ocean   Onboard in 10 Minutes or Less! Invincible Ocean's new AI-powered no-code platform is here to revolutionise fintech onboarding. With a simple drag-and-drop interface, companies can design customised onboarding journeys tailored to their brand and industry—all without writing a single line of code! Learn how this game-changing solution is making compliance easier and onboarding faster for businesses worldwide:  Know More GenWise’s online club is helping elders escape loneliness In Association with WebEngage Startup Program    Who says tech is just for the young? GenWise is proving that grandma can be a gadget guru too! Founded by Rajat Jain, Nehul Malhotra, and Geetanshu Singla, this Delhi-based startup is combating elder loneliness, one app download at a time.  From sceptical seniors to power users, discover how GenWise achieved an 80% retention rate and amassed 1.6 million users in less than 18 months! Know More

Did you know?

Which garden flower’s name means “nose twister”?   Answer: Nasturtium.

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