India's restaurants just won a four-year battle for customer data access from Zomato and Swiggy. But here's the twist: this "victory" comes precisely as the industry becomes more platform-dependent than ever. While the NRAI celebrates phone number sharing, investors are pouring billions into QSRs and cloud kitchens—business models that assume permanent platform capture. With delivery platforms extracting 16-30% commissions and controlling discovery, logistics, and customer acquisition, data shar...
Nov 27, 2025•11 min•Ep. 630
There's a quiet tension underlying India’s AI boom. Startups are swiftly building bold products on foundations they don’t control. From synced ride-hailing fares to the regulator with only a single office, we look at the strange mix of innovation, vulnerability, and policy catch-up shaping the space. What happens when the platform you rely on starts competing with you? Tune in. Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India’s first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for ...
Nov 26, 2025•13 min•Ep. 629
Eight years ago, Havells acquired Lloyd to become a household name in consumer electronics. Today, that dream has become its biggest headache. Lloyd's revenue dropped 18% in the September quarter. Warehouses are jammed with unsold air conditioners after an unusually short summer. And, in January, new energy-efficiency rules will make clearing old stock costlier. Despite tripling revenue, Lloyd's operating margins collapsed from 17% to -7% in four years. Lloyd has consumed over 3,000 crore rupees...
Nov 25, 2025•12 min•Ep. 628
Instant fashion is everywhere now. Open Myntra or Ajio and you will see the option to get clothes delivered in minutes. But who is this really for? Are shoppers truly demanding 30 minute outfits? In this episode, we dive into what is driving the push for instant fashion, how it works behind the scenes, and why it has become such a high stakes bet for India’s biggest fashion apps. Take this survey to share your best prompt. Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India’s first subscrib...
Nov 24, 2025•12 min•Ep. 627
Arya.ag helped India's farmers escape the grip of moneylenders. They could now store their grain in proper warehouses, get loans in seven minutes, and wait for better prices instead of selling at harvest-time lows. But there's a problem: agricultural prices have crashed to five-year lows. Wheat that sold for Rs 4,000 per quintal two years ago now fetches just Rs 2,600. For farmers like Himanshu and Neetu, the math is brutal—saving Rs 18,000 on interest means little when revenue has dropped by Rs...
Nov 23, 2025•15 min•Ep. 626
India is using more AI than ever. But most of that intelligence is not Indian. OpenAI, Google and others are expanding in India fast. They already shape how millions work, learn, and search. Meanwhile, India’s own sovereign AI model is only expected in 2026. Other countries like South Korea and China have already built and deployed theirs. What does sovereign AI actually mean, why does it matter for everyday users and why is India is still struggling to build the full stack. And most importantly...
Nov 20, 2025•12 min•Ep. 625
A cardiologist in Nagpur performs two similar angioplasties. But the stents inside his patients tell two very different stories. One gets Indian-made devices under a government scheme. The other insists on an imported brand. This contrast is now common across India. Price caps pushed foreign stent makers into a corner in 2017. But they never left. And now, they’re back with new valves, pacemakers, and high-margin cardiac devices. Domestic players, meanwhile, grew fast but still struggle with dat...
Nov 19, 2025•12 min•Ep. 624
India’s largest cineplex chain, PVR INOX, has pulled off a major financial reversal, posting a ₹100 crore profit this quarter, a drastic recovery after bleeding nearly ₹12 crore last year. Over 40 million people showed up—but occupancy ratios are still struggling to cross 30%. To fix this, PVR INOX is expanding into new, non-metro markets like Gangtok and Raipur. But there's a major twist: the company is no longer footing the bill for expansion. Taking a page from hospitality giants like Marriot...
Nov 18, 2025•13 min•Ep. 623
Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu, India’s knitwear capital, has long depended on massive U.S. orders that shaped its factories, products, and growth. But when the Trump administration imposed a 50% tariff on Indian garment imports, the town’s export engine received a long-pending shock. Turns out, the crisis became a turning point. Manufacturers are now scrambling for discounts, shifting production to Sri Lanka and Kenya, reorienting toward Europe, and overhauling product lines from mass-market basics to in...
Nov 17, 2025•13 min•Ep. 622
India's largest school board, CBSE, has announced that students as young as Class 3 will begin learning Artificial Intelligence. This isn't the first time. The board rolled out an AI elective for Class 9 in 2019, long before generative AI was a household name. Now, the goal is to make "AI thinking" as fundamental as grammar. We dive into this massive national experiment, exploring what "learning AI" means for a third grader—it’s less about building chatbots and more about "computational thinking...
Nov 16, 2025•12 min•Ep. 621
What does it take to perform at your best — not once, but over and over again? Olympian Nisha Millet has spent her life answering that question. In sport, as in business, success isn’t about one big win — it’s about showing up, even when it’s hard. From the pressures of competing at the Olympics to building a career as a coach and entrepreneur, Nisha shares what the pool taught her about focus, resilience, and managing performance under pressure. In this episode, host Rachel Varghese explores ho...
Nov 13, 2025•39 min•Ep. 620
SoftBank just sold about $5.8 billion worth of Nvidia shares earlier this week. The move frees up cash for new AI bets and comes as AI stocks power most of this year’s market rally. Nvidia’s rise has been spectacular but so have the warnings about overheating. Some analysts see a rotation coming: money could move from pricey tech giants to steadier markets. And that’s where India enters the picture. It’s grown slower, but on stronger fundamentals like broad demand, digital momentum, real earning...
Nov 12, 2025•13 min•Ep. 619
When Ozempic began changing how the world lost weight, most slimming companies panicked. But VLCC didn’t. Backed by Carlyle, it’s opening more clinics than ever before. Because to Carlyle, Ozempic isn’t a threat—it’s just another doorway into India’s beauty economy. In this episode, we look at how VLCC’s new owners are turning an existential challenge into expansion, why its products are taking a back seat to real estate, and what the future of India’s weight-loss industry looks like in the age ...
Nov 11, 2025•13 min•Ep. 618
In 2025, the University of Southampton became the first British university to open a campus in India. It was more than a milestone. After a single policy change, foreign universities are rushing to claim their place in India’s higher-education market. States are competing to host them, and universities are chasing new revenue abroad. Everyone seems to be winning. But beneath the glossy partnerships and big promises, what does this experiment really mean for students? And what happens when a “for...
Nov 10, 2025•9 min•Ep. 617
Across India, lenders like HDFC and Kotak are repurposing the same algorithms that once judged credit risk to run hyper-personalised marketing campaigns. These systems now predict who’s ready for a credit card, or insurance plan by studying every transaction, payment, and habit — turning customer data into personalised sales pitches. The RBI has drawn clear lines for how AI can be used in lending. But when it comes to marketing, the rules are still fuzzy. That leaves space for India’s biggest ba...
Nov 09, 2025•15 min•Ep. 616
India’s quick-commerce poster child, Zepto, is racing to the public markets after a festive season high. The company clocked 20 lakh daily orders during Diwali — coming only second to Blinkit. But behind that surge lies a far more complicated story: leadership churn, regulatory heat, and a business model that’s still chasing profitability. In this episode, we unpack Zepto’s dual reality — a startup celebrating record growth while quietly firefighting internal challenges. From FDA raids on dark s...
Nov 06, 2025•11 min•Ep. 615
Remember Blackberry? The phone that once ruled business meetings and earned the nickname “Crackberry”? It’s making a comeback—but this time, not in your pocket. In this episode, we dive into Blackberry’s surprising pivot from smartphones to car software. Its QNX system now runs the brains of over 250 million vehicles worldwide, powering everything from navigation to safety. And the nerve centre of this quiet comeback? India. With its Hyderabad hub, partnerships with Mahindra, Tata Motors, and Ta...
Nov 05, 2025•13 min•Ep. 614
When your insurance card suddenly stops working, it is not just a glitch. It is the symptom of a deeper crisis in Indian healthcare. Hospitals say insurers have failed to update reimbursement rates despite medical inflation. Insurers say hospitals are inflating bills and resisting standardization. Millions of policyholders are caught between them, forced to pay out of pocket for care they thought was covered. How did India’s healthcare system end up in this deadlock. And who really decides what ...
Nov 04, 2025•10 min•Ep. 613
Groww, the platform that turned stock trading into an everyday habit, is gearing up for India’s biggest-ever broking IPO. On paper, it’s flying high — profits have tripled, revenues have surged past ₹4,000 crore, and competitors like Zerodha and Angel One are feeling the lagging behind. But look closer, and the shine dulls a little. A big chunk of Groww’s recent gains comes from one-time accounting adjustments, while its active user base and broking income are already slowing. To keep the engine...
Nov 04, 2025•12 min•Ep. 612
Lenskart changed how India buys glasses. It made eyewear affordable, stylish, and available on every street corner. But behind that success is a story of shortcuts. Cheap acetate frames, thinner coatings, and rushed prescriptions have left many customers questioning the quality they once trusted. As the company prepares to close a massive IPO, its promise of clarity is facing some uncomfortable scrutiny. In this episode we look at how Lenskart built its empire on affordability and what that mean...
Nov 02, 2025•11 min•Ep. 611
Last week, ChatGPT launched its own AI browser — a tool that promises to surf the web for you. It can summarise articles, add chocolates to your cart, or even tell you which email to reply to first (though… not always correctly). OpenAI’s vision is clear: make ChatGPT the centre of your digital life. But are users buying in? From buggy app integrations with Canva and Spotify to real concerns around privacy and data access, host Rachel Varghese explores why AI-powered tools aren’t quite the game-...
Oct 30, 2025•10 min•Ep. 610
Ola’s ride-hailing business is losing speed. Its market share has dropped from 45% in 2018 to around a quarter today and investors are running out of patience. Some even explored a merger with Rapido in late 2024 but the talks collapsed. Bhavish Aggarwal’s focus on Ola Electric and his reluctance to sell have kept the cab business in limbo. Leadership churn, shrinking cash reserves, and a collapsing valuation have added to the strain. So why can’t investors leave and why is Aggarwal refusing to ...
Oct 29, 2025•10 min•Ep. 609
If you’ve ever used a Classmate notebook or a Doms pencil, you’ve already been an unwitting part of one of India’s quietest rivalries in action. For years, ITC ruled the stationery aisle — backed by its giant paper mills and powerful brands. But Gujarat-based Doms is catching up fast. Since its 2023 IPO, Doms’ sales have surged, its stock has tripled, and it’s closing in on ITC’s notebook empire. With everything made in-house and a perfectionist at the helm, Doms is turning pencils into profit, ...
Oct 28, 2025•12 min•Ep. 608
LG Electronics India just pulled off a record-breaking IPO, drawing bids worth over 4 lakh crore rupees. Investors love its dominance in consumer electronics and its unrivaled retail network. For decades, LG has built trust through deep relationships with local retailers, flexible margins, and a people-first culture. But as the company shifts toward profit maximization and premium products, those same relationships could be tested. Can a business built on generosity stay efficient enough to comp...
Oct 27, 2025•10 min•Ep. 607
Accenture is reinventing itself. Literally. Its new “Reinvention Services” division, led by former Americas CEO Manish Sharma, is supposed to make Accenture the best version of itself for clients. But inside the company? "Reinvention" signals a deep internal culling after nearly 11,000 job cuts. The layoffs, however are also fuelling a new kind of hiring boom elsewhere. The Big Four—Deloitte, PwC, EY, and KPMG—are seizing the moment. As they race to turn themselves into AI and tech transformatio...
Oct 26, 2025•14 min•Ep. 606
Trump hiked H-1B visa fees overnight. For Indian students and engineers, it was a shock. For GCC employees, it was a chance to step up. While global capability centres handle tech, ops, and innovation, final decisions usually stay in the US. Senior employees started to wonder: could the visa disruption finally shift some power to India? In this episode, we explore why GCCs’ leap from execution to strategy is still far from guaranteed. Tune in. ⏳ How is AI changing your workday? Take our 5-minute...
Oct 23, 2025•13 min•Ep. 605
Meesho is preparing for one of India’s most watched IPOs. The company built its success in small-town India, where trust matters more than speed. Over 75% of its orders are still paid in cash on delivery. That approach helped Meesho win millions of new shoppers and grow faster than bigger rivals. But it also ties up cash and squeezes margins, making investors uneasy. Now Meesho is working with Razorpay to encourage more prepaid payments and faster settlements. But can a company that grew by trus...
Oct 22, 2025•10 min•Ep. 604
At 2 a.m. in Bangalore, a call-centre agent is resolving flight refunds with a new kind of colleague — one that never sleeps. AI copilots are now embedded across India’s BPM sector, watching every click and keystroke to improve their own efficiency. For firms like Capgemini and Genpact, the real prize isn’t labour anymore — it’s workflow data. Because in the race toward “agentic AI,” whoever owns the data, wins. And India, for all its scaled up manpower, might be training the machines that will ...
Oct 21, 2025•12 min•Ep. 603
Is the AI revolution already running out of steam? Despite years of hype about a world transformed by smart tools and endless innovation, the data tells a quieter story. The growth is flat, the excitement is fading, and there have been fewer breakthroughs than expected. Has AI already peaked or are we just looking in the wrong places? In today's episode, we dive into one of The Ken ’s most thought-provoking essays by Praveen Gopala Krishnan, 'What does an AI bubble burst look like?' Tune in. Day...
Oct 20, 2025•13 min•Ep. 602
When Dreamfolks Services entered India’s aviation scene, it quietly built the plumbing that made airport lounge access possible. It linked banks, card networks, and travellers to hundreds of lounges nationwide. For years, it stayed out of sight, powering a privilege most flyers never thought twice about. Now, it’s being shown the door. Adani, India’s biggest airport operator, is moving fast to take full control — not just of the runways, but everything that happens beyond security. Lounges, food...
Oct 19, 2025•8 min•Ep. 601
