Daybreak

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 let go?Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

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, and giving one of India's biggest conglomerates a run for its money.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

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 compete with rivals like Samsung and Whirlpool? Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

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 transformation powerhouses, corporate restructuring at tech-services giants like Accenture and IBM just made hiring tech talent a whole lot easier for the Big Four. Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

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 survey: https://theken.typeform.com/to/yQTIGKihDaybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

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 trusting cash-first customers convince them to go digital without losing their loyalty?Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

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 one day replace it.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

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.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

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 courts, duty-free zones, and retail stores are all coming under its fold. Some are being rebranded, others replaced — and nearly all are being pulled into Adani's growing airport ecosystem.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

What if the smartest money move you ever make… is doing less?In this episode of Daybreak, host Snigdha Sharma sits down with Megha Jose, CEO of Fortune Wealth Management and founder of Thryve, an investment advisory firm, to explore the idea of “Lazy Girl Investing.” Can women really build wealth without the burnout? And does the real rebellion lie beyond hustle culture?From confronting financial shame to finding your “North Star” and rethinking how you see the stock market, Megha breaks down simple, low-effort systems that make your money work for you—quietly, confidently, and consistently.Because financial freedom isn't loud. It's quietly compounding in the background.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

Silver is having a moment, and not in the way you might think.Once hoarded by billionaires, now sought after by AI and clean energy — the world is experiencing a historic silver crunch. Jewellers are refusing orders, mutual funds are freezing ETFs and Diwali shopping just got a lot more expensive.The thing is, silver supply has been trailing demand for years now. And now, the gap is finally showing. What's behind this sudden shift?Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

Across India, many heirs are stepping away from running their inherited businesses to run family offices instead. They see investing as more flexible, more global, and less tied to daily operations.Their parents built factories but they are more interested in managing portfolios.It's a practical shift but one that's changing how old wealth works and what it values.What's driving this change and does India's next generation of uber-rich business owners still want to build anything at all?Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

Launched last year with the promise of 10 million internships, the Prime Minister's Internship Scheme was meant to bridge the gap between young graduates and India's job market. A year on, the numbers tell a different story. Fewer than 9,000 interns have joined so far, even as top companies like TCS and Reliance came on board. Behind the slow start lie deeper problems — poor funding exacerbating a mismatch between corporate expectations and student realities.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

OpenAI's latest classroom experiment is starting in India. A deal with the Arise school network gives 10,000 free ChatGPT licenses to teachers but the fine print has schools on edge. But between NDAs, data collection, and new privacy laws, India's educators are asking what OpenAI really wants from their classrooms. Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

Six months after launch, Eli Lilly's Mounjaro is already India's second-biggest pharma brand, ahead of antacid Pan and just behind antibiotic Augmentin. Days later, Eli Lilly announced a $1 billion investment and a new Hyderabad hub.The timing is no accident: India has one of the world's largest obese and diabetic populations, Ozempic's patent expires in 2026, and local pharma giants are gearing up with cheap GLP-1 generics.In this episode of Daybreak, we unpack how this landscape presents both an opportunity and a challenge for Eli Lilly.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

When Deloitte refunded part of the A$439,000 it was paid by the Australian government for a report riddled with AI-generated errors, it seemed like the perfect moment to slow down. Instead, the firm doubled down and announced a global rollout of Anthropic's Claude to nearly half a million employees. That decision captures the strange new logic shaping the Big 4 consulting companies. PwC, EY, KPMG, and Deloitte are no longer just using AI, they are performing it.Audit and tax work has slowed, regulation is tightening, and growth now depends on signalling technological boldness. In this new credibility economy, hesitation looks worse than failure. A mistake is no longer a crisis; it has become proof that you are early. But as every firm rushes to prove its AI edge, sameness is setting in, and the next real differentiator may not be accuracy at all.What could it be then?Tune in.

Founded by the Patel brothers, Vini Cosmetics built Fogg into the country's top deodorant brand with its no-gas formula, and high-margin pitch. In 2021, global giant KKR swooped in with a $600 million deal, valuing Vini at $1.2 billion—the biggest private equity play in Indian FMCG.But the partnership never clicked. The founders refused to fully step back, while KKR struggled with the quirks of a brand-led business in a market it didn't quite understand. Advertising budgets were slashed, rivals like Denver surged ahead, and new launches flopped.Today, Vini is still profitable, but its margins are shrinking, and Fogg's dominance is fading. And even as the founders return fully into the picture, it's future looks foggy at best.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

Even as markets wobble and trading volumes shrink, one online broker has raced ahead. Dhan, a four-year-old broking startup, managed to grow rapidly, post profits, and raise $120 million at a $1.2 billion valuation—all in the middle of a market correction.In this episode, we look at Dhan's journey from a niche platform for power traders to one of India's newest unicorns.What's making investors so bullish on Dhan when the rest of the industry is slowing down?Tune in.Correction note: In this episode, the host mistakenly referred to Dhan's raise as $120 billion; the correct figure is $120 million, led by Hornbill Capital, valuing the company at around $1.2 billion.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

Humantic AI is changing up IT services sales. Founded by serial AI entrepreneur Amarpreet Kalkat, the 24-person startup has built what it calls “buyer-first intelligence”—using AI to decode a client's personality, communication style, and preferences from public data. Humantic wants to give sellers an instant human edge in billion-dollar deals. But challenges loom. Enterprise buyers are wary of bloated sales stacks, and Humantic will have to prove it's more than just another disposable add-on in a sector already crowded with AI promises.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

Phonepe is stepping into the public markets with a $15 billion IPO. For Walmart, which has pumped billions into the payments firm, this is both a chance to cash in and a test of its India strategy.Unlike Paytm's disastrous, hype-heavy listing in 2021, Phonepe is going in with steadier financials, fewer regulatory scrapes, and the scale to back its story. Yet, the timing isn't without risk: subsidies are shrinking, UPI share caps are on the horizon, and investor appetite has cooled since 2021.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

India's packaged-food bigwigs ignored spices for a long time. Not anymore.Since 2020, everyone from ITC to Tata Consumer Products, from Dabur to Wipro, has been scrambling to cement their place in this essential corner of the Indian kitchen. They've pounced on spice brands, sometimes paying top dollar for them, all while their investors cheered them on. In fact, the stocks of Tata Consumer and ITC have both outperformed the S&P BSE FMCG index over the last five years.Turns out, this was all the vindication that Norwegian conglomerate Orkla needed to go publicBut this isn't just another public listing. It's the opening salvo in what industry insiders are calling the “great spice wars”. And here's where it gets even spicier: though the category offers some of the highest margins in FMCG products—with pure spices commanding 30–35% gross margins and blended spices going up to 60%—they come with their own unique challenges.Tune in.*This episode was originally published on July 22nd 2025Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

It takes 150 crocus flowers to make just one gram of saffron. For comparison, a spice like cumin, gets you hundreds of kilos per acre whereas saffron yields barely two.Despite getting a prestigious GI tag from the Indian government and even a National Mission dedicated to its revival, Kashmir's saffron production has plummeted:from 8 tonnes in 2011 to just 2.7 tonnes in 2024.So what's going wrong? And can India learn something from Iran, which currently dominates 90% of the global saffron market?Reporters Mehroob Mushtaq and Numan Bhat, traveled deep into saffron country, met the farmers, walked the fields, and came back with a story that's rich in detail, visuals, and hard truths.Tune in.*This episode was originally published on July 21st 2025.Compete in India's first and only case-build competition.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

India's soda shelves have changed almost overnight. Coke and Pepsi now sell zero-sugar versions of their drinks at prices as low as 10 rupees. The move came after Reliance launched Campa Cola with its own budget zero-sugar option. Now, they are taking over in big cities and small towns alike.But what looks like a health trend is really a business strategy.   What is really inside those bottles? And what does it mean for consumers? Tune in.Compete in India's first and only case competition.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

Swiggy, once the dominant force in India's quick-commerce market, is now struggling to keep pace. Since its IPO, Instamart's share has slipped to about 25%, well behind Blinkit's commanding over 50%. To engineer a turnaround, CEO Sriharsha Majety is driving sweeping changes at the company—fuelled by a wave of ex-Flipkart hires, including Amitesh Jha as Instamart's new chief. The shake-up marks a cultural pivot from Swiggy's meticulous “doc culture” to a harder-edged “move fast, fail fast” ethos. But with Blinkit and Zepto racing ahead, whether this reset can restore Swiggy's edge or leave it further behind in the quick-commerce race remains to be seen.Compete in India's first and only case competition.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

What happens when a woman writes the cheques in venture capital? In India fewer than 5% of VC partners are women and Archana Jahagirdar, founder of Rukam Capital, is part of that rare group. Since 2019, she has backed Sleepy Owl, Burger Singh, Pilgrim and Beco—bets that reveal how India's middle class eats, shops and aspires. In this episode Archana talks to host Snigdha Sharma about why copying Silicon Valley often fails here, how VCs shape culture, what she looks for in founders, and why consumer trust can be the ultimate advantage. Tune inDaybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

Blinkit now controls more than half of India's quick commerce market, a sector long thought too competitive, too crowded, and too expensive for anyone to dominate.From its ever-expanding network of dark stores that powers its 10-minute deliveries to the recent, bold pivot toward an inventory-led model, Blinkit's rise is built on a mix of speed, scale, and risk.But rapid expansion also brings higher costs and greater exposure. Has Blinkit created a sustainable advantage, or has it built a fragile empire that could be tested soon?Tune in. Compete in India's first and only case competition. Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

Vinfast, Vietnam's ambitious electric vehicle maker, is making its last-ditch global play in India after racking up billions in losses in the US and Europe. But its strategy is unlike anything the market has seen before. Instead of competing with giants like Tata and Mahindra in big metros with flashy showrooms, Vinfast is starting in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities like Coimbatore and Shimla—using car workshops as sales hubs.It's betting on a country that is invested in EV adoption, rising middle class families who value range over power, and robust charging grid. The question is whether this unconventional approach will help it carve a space in India's crowded EV market, or mark another costly failure.Tune in.Compete in India's first and only case competition. Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

For decades, every Amazon meeting began in silence with employees reading six-page memos that shaped the company's biggest innovations like Prime and Alexa. Jeff Bezos banned PowerPoint in 2004 to build a culture of truth-seeking through crisp writing and messy discussions. Now, that tradition faces disruption as internal AI tools like Amazon Q and Cedric draft, summarise and analyse documents in minutes. Some employees are embracing the speed while others fear a loss of originality and rigour. Is AI strengthening Amazon's culture or quietly dismantling the practice that once defined its success?Tune in.Click here to sign up for The Ken's case competition.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

IRMA was never just another B-school. Born out of Verghese Kurien's (the father of Operation Flood movement) mind, it built a one-of-a-kind management program for rural India—training managers for cooperatives, NGOs, and grassroots institutions, far away from the IIM playbook.Now, Delhi has other plans. An Act of Parliament is folding IRMA into a vast new central university, the "Tribhuvan" Sahkari University, with hundreds of affiliates. On paper, it's about scaling cooperative education nationwide. But the shift is sparking anxiety over placements, faculty, and whether Kurien's vision will survive in a system built for size.Tune in.Compete in India's first and only case competition.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

India's millionaire households have jumped 90% in just four years, and a gold rush for wealth managers has begun. Firms like Nuvama, Kotak, and 360 One are in a race for high-net-worth clients—deploying relationship managers, slashing rates, and dangling exotic products to stay ahead.But the old playbook of generous distribution fees is colliding with a new reality. Today's wealthy are savvier, fee-sensitive, and increasingly leaning on advisory-first models or even building in-house family offices. That's left pure-play firms in a difficult spot, even as VC-backed challengers chase growth at all costs.Tune in.P.S. Are you a manager, recruiter or founder who has been part of a hiring process in the last year? Rahel from 90,000 Hours  wants to hear from you. Take our survey.Compete in India's first and only case competition.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

Gold has hit record highs: $3,702.95 an ounce globally and ₹110,666 per 10 grams in India, up over 40% this year. But inflation seems to be easing, and there's no immediate threat of war. What could be behind the surge? Experts point to central banks around the world buying gold, expectations of U.S. rate cuts weakening the dollar, and Indian households holding onto their gold, limiting supply. The rally matters for India because it pushes up imports and puts pressure on the rupee, which hit a record low of 88 against a dollar this year. What does gold's rise tell us about global money and India's economy.Tune in.P.S. Are you a manager, recruiter or founder who has been part of a hiring process in the last year? Rahel from 90,000 Hours  wants to hear from you. Take our survey.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

Private equity is reshaping India's schools. A relaxed New Education Policy and rising demand for international curricula have opened the doors for global operators to buy up chains across the country.The promise is scale, better infrastructure, and tighter governance. But the reality looks a little different—lean budgets, shrinking salary hikes, and a growing focus on cost-cutting. And the fallout? Increasing staff attrition, decreasing academic quality, and schools trading their founder-led ethos for a standardised model.Tune in.*Disclosure: The writer comes from a family that previously owned a school acquired partially by International Schools Partnership (ISP)Compete in India's first and only case competition.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

India's largest stockbroker, Groww, is chasing an ambitious IPO. But behind the headlines, its core broking business is under stress. Its clients are leaving, regulations are squeezing revenues, and profits are wobbling. To keep its $7–8 billion valuation intact, Groww is making big moves. It's acquiring loss-making wealth-tech startup Fisdom for $150 million and launching “W,” a new unit for the rich. Wealth management is the trend everyone wants in on, but can Groww really pull it off? Or is this just optics ahead of the IPO? Tune in.Compete in India's first and only case competition.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

Most SaaS companies have accepted the “cloud and AI tax” , the cost they pay to Amazon, Google, and Microsoft for storage and processing data. But Zoho is refusing to play along. Famous for its frugality, Zoho is now building its own AI models and data centers to keep costs down for the small and medium enterprises that make up most of its clientele.While rivals lean heavily on third-party clouds, Zoho has bet on a homegrown LLM—Zia—to power its products and stay affordable. But the strategy comes with risks, because building AI from scratch demands huge capital and relentless innovation.Tune in.Compete in India's first and only case competition.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

Urban Company's IPO is off to a roaring start. Retail investors snapped up shares within an hour of the issue opening. By the second day, demand was more than five times the supply, and in the grey market, the stock was already trading nearly Rs.40 above its official price band. The company has reported its first-ever annual profit, rolled out new services like Insta Help and Revamp, and is raising nearly Rs.1900 crore to fuel its next phase of growth.On paper, it's a remarkable turnaround story. But there's another side you won't find in most headlines. Urban Company has built its business on the backs of gig workers. A majority of them are women who have been asking for things as basic as employment benefits, fair policies, and a share in the company's success.In this special episode, we revisit host Snigdha Sharma's earlier conversation with two such workers whose voices cut through the numbers.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories. If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here: https://the-ken.com/case-competition-2025/ 

Physics Wallah has filed for a ₹3,820 crore IPO earlier this week making it India's first  edtech unicorn to go public. Founded by Alakh Pandey, the YouTube tutor turned entrepreneur, PW disrupted test prep with free videos and low-cost courses. It scaled into a unicorn with offline centres, AI tools, and millions of loyal students. But as it steps into the public markets, Pandey's cult-like persona, the company's biggest strength, may also be its biggest risk. Can a business built around one man survive investor scrutiny?Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

With ties to the US and China on shaky ground, India is leaning on a new partner—the UAE. The economic relationship has surged past $100 billion in FY25, and this surge has resulted in Indian companies from Tata to Omega Seiki Mobility setting up shop in the Emirates' tax-free zones.Attractive incentives like access to capital, world-class infrastructure, and geographical centrality are attracting Indian manufacturers abroad. But this raises a big question: is the UAE a launchpad for India's global ambitions—or a risk to it's own manufacturing dreams?Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

The Online Gaming Bill 2025 has wiped out India's real-money gaming industry overnight. But the ripple effects extend far beyond fantasy cricket and poker tables.For years, payment aggregators like Razorpay, PhonePe, Cashfree, and PayU quietly powered the industry's explosive growth. They processed deposits, payouts, and billions of rupees in prize transfers every month. Real-money gaming wasn't just another client vertical. It was their golden goose that delivered high margins in a hyper-competitive market.Now, with the ban in place, these fintechs face a sudden revenue void. For some, gaming accounted for as much as 30% of net revenues. The loss comes just as many are prepping for IPOs, making the timing even more brutal.So, what does the gaming ban really mean for India's payments industry?Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

Giva is shaking up India's jewellery market, long dominated by gold, with an unexpected bet on silver. Founded in 2019, the company has already grown into a $2 billion brand by targeting the massive but largely unorganized silver jewellery segment.Unlike competitors such as Caratlane and Bluestone that built their businesses around gold and diamonds, Giva has leaned on an “affordable luxury” play—high-margin silver products, agile design cycles, and impulse-friendly purchases. But challenges loom. Rising silver prices could cut into margins, and its aggressive offline push will test whether silver can truly rival gold in a market steeped in tradition.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

India is rolling out the biggest reform to its Goods and Services Tax since 2017. The GST Council has approved a new structure that takes effect on September 22. It will reshape how everything from household essentials to cars, insurance, and services are taxed. The government says GST 2.0 will simplify compliance and lower costs, but several states warn of heavy revenue losses and economists question the design. Markets have already responded with key sectors moving sharply. In this episode we go over what changes, who benefits, who loses, and whether GST 2.0 can deliver on the promise of a simpler tax system.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

Harshjit Sethi, managing director at Peak XV and the firm's AI investment lead, has resigned, marking yet another senior exit. His departure follows the exits of longtime partners Shailesh Lakhani and Abheek Anand, raising fresh questions about India's largest venture-capital firm. And the timing is striking: Peak XV is also on the verge of its biggest payday yet, with upcoming IPOs from Groww, Pine Labs, and Meesho that could deliver billions. In this episode, we look at the paradox of Peak XV's best year colliding with its worst, and what it means for its global ambitions.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

A severe shortage of seats and difficult tests result in about 25,000 Indians flying abroad to get a medical degree. The problems begin afresh when they return. Instead of warm welcomes, graduates are met with screening tests with high failure rates, tedious registration procedures and even unpaid internships.But, the thing is: India needs these doctors, and badly. For every 1260 people, we have only 1 doctor–a stark departure from the WHO recommended 1:1000 ratio. However, bureaucratic mazes and a lack of infrastructural support put these young doctors in a difficult position.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

When Peyush Bansal spent more than Rs 200 crore to buy back Lenskart shares from investors at a deep discount, it wasn't just a bold trade. It was a rare  move few founders manage. He essentially clawed back equity before heading into an IPO. And this extra stake pushed him into “promoter” status, a role many startup leaders once avoided but are now racing to embrace. Why the sudden shift? What does it reveal about founders, investors, and regulators in India's IPO boom?Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

From the very public Ambani family feud to the private struggles of the Raymond family, the transfer of wealth and power has often been messy. With over 850,000 millionaires in India, and many of them looking to transition their wealth in the next decade, there's a growing, yet largely unaddressed market for a specific type of expert: the succession coach.Part mediator, part therapist, part strategist—they do more than just advise. They keep dynasties from tearing themselves apart.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

On August 27, 2025, U.S. tariffs on Indian exports doubled to 50%, slamming nearly $60 billion worth of goods from textiles and gems to furniture and leather. Industry groups warn shipments to America could plunge by more than 40%, with job losses running into the hundreds of thousands. But behind the headlines lies a deeper story.For decades, Indian exporters leaned on the predictability of the U.S. market. But it was a comfort trap that left them dangerously exposed. Now, that comfort has snapped. Factories are idling, the rupee is weakening, and growth forecasts are being cut. And yet, this shock could also be the push India needs to diversify and build resilience into its export ecosystem. Can a crisis this severe become the catalyst for transformation?Tune in.More on Trump's tariffs:1. US consumers may not notice the ‘Made in India' tag, but after Trump's tariffs, their wallets will2. Biden said 'please' till 2024. Trump's saying 'penalty' in 2025Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

Back in 2017, Google published the research that sparked the entire generative AI boom. But when OpenAI launched ChatGPT in 2022, Google was caught off guard. Fast forward to 2025, and Google's own AI, Gemini, is no longer a rushed response. It's a full-grown product, one the company is pushing hard by bundling it with Workspace and Google Cloud. In India, that strategy is already visible. Enterprises are adopting Gemini for everything from customer service to search to creative media. But here's the twist: India's cloud market is big on adoption but light on innovation, which means price matters. And Google is betting Gemini will give it the edge.Tune in.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

In March this year, a software developer that goes by Pea Bee online published a blog rather ominously titled ‘Everyone knows all the apps on your phone'. He found that several Indian app-based startups are flouting rules of Google Play—Android's app store—to access people's data.  In particular, some apps use a workaround to scrutinise the names and usage patterns of other apps on people's phones. In real time.Now, the fact that apps have a lot of your data may not be a surprise to you. We've been pretty cavalier about our data for some time now. Remember Digi Yatra? But the scary thing is that Indian companies are equally nonchalant about the user data they collect. The result? Data-security breaches have been on the rise. So what is a data conscious Indian customer to do? Tune in. *This episode was originally published on May 13 2025.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.One channel. Every show. No more switching feeds. Follow The Ken on Apple Podcasts or tune in on The Ken app.

Even though GLP-1 drugs have helped nearly 20 million people shed weight across the world since 2021, Indians had to wait until 2025 to get in on the action legally.To be fair, the country wasn't entirely in the dark. Semaglutide—the molecule behind pharma giant Novo Nordisk's blockbuster drugs Ozempic and Wegovy—was already available for diabetes treatment. But this March, Eli Lilly's Mounjaro (which uses a different molecule, tirzepatide) entered the market. In July, Wegovy arrived. And suddenly, India went from “we know GLP-1” to “we want the skinny shot”.Since then, the GLP-1 market in India—across diabetes and weight loss—has grown from Rs 531 crore to Rs 628 crore. And now, depending on the vantage point, things are about to get much bigger. And much cheaper.And naturally, pretty much every major Pharma major wants in on the action. Tune in. Do you work in IT? Take our surveyWant to join The Ken's team? Fill this form. 

Lenskart is gearing up for a nearly $1 billion IPO after closing FY25 on a strong note with ₹6,652 crore in revenue and ₹297 crore in profit. What's even more impressive is that almost 40% of that revenue now comes from its more than 600 stores outside India, rare feat for an Indian consumer brand.Unlike peers such as Zomato and Ola that stumbled in global markets, Lenskart has taken a slow-and-steady approach, leaning on selective acquisitions, smart investments, and joint ventures to expand abroad. At the heart of its success is a vertically integrated supply chain that gives the company pricing power, agility in launching new products, and the ability to deliver consistent quality no matter the geography. Tune in.Want to join The Ken's team? Fill this form.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

The Online Gaming Bill, 2025 has sent shockwaves through India's booming fantasy sports industry. Within hours of its passage in the Parliament on Wednesday, Dream11, the country's first fantasy sports unicorn with over 200 million users, found itself on the chopping block. Smrita Singh Chandra, a former VP at Dream11, called the ban on real-money online games 'deeply unjust' and 'unethical,' warning of devastating economic fallout.At stake is the fantasy sports industry valued at nearly $2 billion and projected to hit $5 billion by 2030. But the government isn't just worried about gaming addiction. It cited money laundering, tax evasion, and even national security risks.In this episode, host Snigdha Sharma unpacks the storm around Dream11: how the platform works, why Indian courts have long defended it as a 'game of skill,' and why critics and now the government, insist it is actually just gambling in disguise. Tune in.Want to join The Ken's team? Fill this form.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

OpenAI has just launched a special, India-only plan for ChatGPT. It makes access cheaper here than almost anywhere else in the world. At first, it looks like a win for millions of Indians who'll get to try cutting-edge AI at a fraction of the cost.But for India's AI startups, it may be a different story. Competing with global giants that have billions in capital, access to compute, and a head start on scale is already tough. Add aggressive pricing, and the playing field gets even steeper. After all, if Indians aren't paying with money, they're likely paying with something else: data and usage.So where does that leave Indian AI? Can startups like Sarvam, Krutrim, and others still carve out a niche through language, verticals, or local trust or will they be reduced to distributors for the biggies?Find our last episode on Sarvam here. Want to join The Ken's team? Fill this form.Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India's first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.