Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (January 8, 2026)
Featured stories
Ripe for growth: Why online grocers are keen to serve picky customers with premium produce
Online grocery is moving beyond speed to serve a more demanding customer. A growing set of urban consumers wants fruits and vegetables that look and feel handpicked, with no bruises, clear traceability, and reliable quality. They are also willing to pay a premium for this assurance and the convenience of doorstep delivery.
This shift has pushed quick commerce platforms and specialised startups to experiment with premium produce formats. Swiggy and Zepto are piloting curated offerings, while younger players such as FirstClub, Pluckk, Handpickd, and Freshly are building supply chains focused on freshness, hygiene, and quality checks rather than just delivery time. Read more.
How Good Monk is rethinking nutrition by blending supplements into everyday Indian food
Good Monk, a Bengaluru-based nutrition startup under Superfoods Valley Private Limited, develops easy-to-mix, clinically validated nutrition powders that address common vitamin and mineral gaps in Indian diets. Its Co-founder, Amarpreet Singh Anand and his wife, Sahiba Kaur, initially invested roughly Rs 1 crore of personal capital and raised Rs 28–30 crore in external funding. The next fundraising round is underway to support brand building, organisation expansion, innovation, and capacity enhancement.
Founded in 2022, Good Monk offers tasteless powders that blend into daily food, has served over 4 lakh users and currently operates at a Rs 30 crore annual run rate. Its growth has been nearly 30-fold over 20 months, driven largely by repeat usage and word-of-mouth. Its products are FSSAI-approved and manufactured in GMP-certified, HACCP-compliant facilities, ensuring regulatory compliance and food safety. Read more.
Latest news
OpenAI unveils ChatGPT Health to centralise personal medical and wellness data
OpenAI has launched a new dedicated experience called ChatGPT Health to centralise personal medical and wellness data. This move aims to provide a more informed and confident way for users to navigate their personal health journeys by bringing together scattered information from various sources, the company said.
The tool addresses a significant trend in AI usage: according to the company, roughly 230 million people worldwide already ask wellness questions on the platform every week.
The new platform wants to solve the problem of fragmented health data. Currently, many individuals find their medical history and fitness tracking spread across different portals, wearables, and digital notes. Read more.
Meesho shares hit lower circuit after exit of senior executive
Meesho’s stock slipped into the lower circuit on Thursday amid a mix of management churn and increased share supply in the market. The decline came after the ecommerce company disclosed the exit of a senior executive, alongside the expiry of the lock-in period for a portion of its pre-IPO equity.
The developments come less than a month after Meesho’s market debut, which had drawn strong investor interest and a sharp listing pop. With nearly 2% of the company’s outstanding shares becoming eligible for trading this week, the shares opened higher on Thursday, later settling 5% down in the lower circuit at Rs 164.4 apiece on the NSE. Read more.
Funding news
Haircare startup &Done raises $3M in funding led by RTP Global
Professional haircare brand &Done raised $3 million in a Series A funding round led by early-stage venture capital firm RTP Global, All-in Capital, Suashish, and angel investors, including Info Edge Ventures partner Kitty Agarwal and Titan Capital co-founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal.
Founded in 2023 by Saumya Yadav and Atit Jain, &Done manufactures products specifically formulated for Indian hair types and weather conditions. The Gurugram-based company will use the fresh capital to scale research and development, expand its team and grow its salon network. The brand is currently available in over 500 salons across Delhi NCR, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Hyderabad.
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Menstrual hygiene brand Fabpad raises seed funding led by Inflection Point Ventures
Menstrual hygiene brand Fabpad has raised an undisclosed amount in a seed funding round led by angel investing platform Inflection Point Ventures.
The Kolkata-headquartered company plans to use the funds to expand its distribution across direct-to-consumer channels, online marketplaces, quick commerce platforms and offline retail. The capital will also be used for brand building, hiring senior talent and meeting working capital needs.
Led by Shripriya Dhelia and Dipesh Dhelia, Fabpad operates an asset-light model offering both reusable and disposable menstrual hygiene products. The brand currently supplies products to NGOs and institutions while also manufacturing for private-label domestic and international brands.
Other news
Cashify appoints Raghvendra Singh as Chief Technology Officer
Re-commerce platform Cashify has appointed Raghvendra Singh as its Chief Technology Officer, effective January 1, 2026.
Singh, who has spent over a decade at the company in roles including Head of Engineering, will focus on strengthening the technology foundation to support business expansion. He will oversee platform architecture, infrastructure and security while embedding artificial intelligence and data into the company’s decision systems.
The appointment comes as Cashify targets 30-35% growth in the year ahead. The company plans to expand into non-smartphone categories and increase its retail presence to more than 300 stores across India, up from its current count of over 200. Founded in 2013, Cashify facilitates the buying, selling and repairing of used electronic gadgets and serves as an official trade-in partner for brands such as Apple, Xiaomi and Samsung.
(The copy will be updated with the latest news throughout the day.)
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