Top Startup News Today: From AI in Cancer Care to Creator Commerce Boom

India’s startup ecosystem woke up to yet another high-voltage day—one that cut across healthcare breakthroughs, deeptech ambition, creator commerce, electric mobility, and AI-led transformation. From a lab in Bengaluru working to personalise breast cancer treatment to young founders building AI-native mobility platforms for students, the energy was unmistakable: Indian startups are not just scaling—they are solving.

Here’s a detailed look at the biggest developments shaping the ecosystem.

Top Startup News Today

AI Meets Oncology: A Smarter Way to Treat Breast Cancer

At the heart of today’s developments is a story that could quietly transform cancer care in India.

Founded by IISc scientist Manjiri Bakre, OncoStem Diagnostics has developed CanAssist Breast, an AI-powered test designed to identify which early-stage breast cancer patients actually need chemotherapy—and who can safely avoid it.

For decades, chemotherapy decisions have often leaned toward caution, sometimes exposing patients to aggressive treatment that may not always be necessary. CanAssist Breast changes that equation. By combining tumour biology with artificial intelligence, the test provides a more personalised risk assessment, enabling doctors to tailor treatment decisions with greater confidence.

In a country where affordability and access remain key concerns, such precision tools can potentially reduce both emotional and financial burden on families—while ensuring better outcomes.

Funding Momentum: AI, Creator Commerce, Deeptech and Beyond

HireBound Raises $2 Million to Scale Agentic AI Recruitment

Bengaluru-based AI recruitment startup HireBound has raised $2 million in a seed round led by Kalaari Capital, with participation from Antler, Infinyte Club, and CareerNet.

The startup is building an agentic AI platform for staffing firms and enterprise talent teams. The fresh capital will accelerate product development and strengthen sales and customer success functions, as the company focuses on scaling annual recurring revenue.

With AI steadily reshaping hiring workflows, platforms like HireBound aim to automate and orchestrate recruitment processes in ways traditional HR systems never could.

Wishlink Secures $17.5 Million Series B to Power Creator Commerce

Creator commerce platform Wishlink has raised $17.5 million in a Series B round led by Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India, with continued backing from Fundamentum and Elevation Capital.

Wishlink plans to deepen its technology stack for its three core stakeholders—creators, brands, and consumers. The funds will go toward:

• Building advanced editing and monetisation tools for creators

• Developing deeper performance intelligence for brands

• Streamlining the purchasing journey for consumers

• Expanding sales and tech teams

As influencer-led commerce becomes mainstream, platforms like Wishlink are positioning themselves as the infrastructure layer connecting creators and commerce.

Oncare Raises $4 Million to Expand Affordable Cancer Care

New Delhi-based oncology care platform Oncare has raised $4 million (around Rs 27 crore) in a Series A round led by Sky Impact Capital, with participation from Huddle Ventures, Lotus Herbal Group, SteerX, and Tremis Capital.

Oncare focuses on affordable and standardised cancer treatment. The capital will help the startup expand into metro cities as well as Tier II and III markets. It also plans to strengthen its technology infrastructure to streamline clinical operations and improve patient experience.

“A cancer diagnosis is overwhelming enough. Access to the right care should not make it harder,” said Deepak Kumar, Co-founder of Oncare. The company is working toward building a nationwide oncology network that brings trusted care closer to patients’ homes.

Kris@Work Raises $3 Million for AI-Powered Enterprise Automation

Bengaluru-based Kris@Work has raised $3 million in a seed round led by Infoedge Ventures, with participation from JN Capital & Growth Advisory (Singapore) and angel investors.

The company plans to expand its enterprise customer base, deepen go-to-market partnerships, and complete development across all four phases of its platform, with a focus on automation and multi-agent orchestration.

“SaaS is at a new inflection point. Agentic architectures and context-aware AI are making platforms smarter and more unified,” said CTO & Co-Founder Ramakrishna Mallya.

ZeroMobIt Raises Rs 1.5 Crore to Build AI-Native Student Mobility

Hyderabad-based ZeroMobIt has secured Rs 1.5 crore in a pre-seed round backed by angel investors including Sandeep Varaganti (CEO of JioMart), Dr Ashok Agrawal (SVP at Axis Bank), and other HNIs.

The company aims to accelerate development of its AI-native student mobility platform, enhance Edge AI-led safety systems, and expand across Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Mumbai.

“Student mobility has remained structurally unchanged for decades,” said CEO Vijay Ganagam. “We are building an AI-native, compliance-first infrastructure layer that aligns safety, scalability, and ecosystem trust.”

optoML Raises $1.8 Million to Push India’s Semiconductor Ambitions

Fabless semiconductor startup optoML has raised $1.8 million in a pre-Series A round led by Bluehill.VC and A99.

The funds will support hiring and development of next-generation chips. According to Manu Iyer, General Partner at Bluehill.VC, optoML sits at the intersection of analog in-memory compute architectures and optical interconnects—two irreversible shifts in compute.

With a 12nm tapeout with TSMC and partnership with Kaynes Semicon, the startup is moving from research to real silicon and scalable production—signalling progress in India’s deeptech ecosystem.

Institutional and Industry Developments

IIT Madras Professor Appointed to UN’s AI Panel

Professor B Ravindran of IIT Madras has been appointed to the United Nations’ Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence. Established through a UN General Assembly resolution in August 2025, the 40-member panel will guide global AI governance and assess AI’s societal impact.

Ravindran, Founding Head of IIT Madras’ Centre for Responsible AI, said he is honoured to represent India on the global stage.

Zelio E-Mobility Expands Manufacturing Capacity

Hisar-based Zelio E-Mobility has commissioned a new facility in Cuttack, Odisha, with an investment of under Rs 3 crore.

The plant adds 60,000 units annually, increasing total production capacity from 72,000 to 1.8 lakh units per year. The move is expected to reduce logistics costs, support dealership expansion, and create 60–100 local jobs while producing electric two-wheelers.

Toing Expands to Delhi NCR

Affordable food delivery app Toing has launched in Delhi NCR, expanding to 11 cities nationwide.

Now live in Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Faridabad, and Ghaziabad, the app promises the lowest item prices, matching or beating restaurant menu rates, with no packaging or platform fees. Targeting Gen Z and value-conscious consumers, it features outlets such as Punjabi Anghithi, KFC, and Bikanervala.

ConvoZen Unveils Indigenous Speech Models

Enterprise conversational AI platform ConvoZen has launched two indigenous frontier speech models—Akshara (speech-to-text) and Ragini (text-to-speech)—at its Conversational AI Summit.

Akshara is trained on anonymised real-world B2C telephonic conversations and is optimised for Indian business terminology and code-switched speech. The company claims 32% lower word error rates than the next-best Indic ASR system and over 55% fewer errors than leading global models on public benchmarks.

Ragini offers multilingual, human-like text-to-speech with improved pronunciation of Indian names and terms like UPI and Aadhaar.

ConvoZen serves over 50 enterprises including TATA AIG, HDFC Life, CARS24, and Jana Bank.

Zendesk Opens Innovation Hub in Pune

Zendesk has inaugurated a new Innovation Hub for Research and Development in Pune as part of its global product expansion strategy.

The hub will focus on AI-powered solutions around the Zendesk Resolution Platform. Currently employing nearly 300 people, the facility is expected to grow by 15% by the end of 2026.

Expansions and Strategic Moves

• Zyoin Group has signed an MoU with Lex Visas to support GCCs in managing cross-border talent mobility across 50+ countries.

• Pankaj Walia has joined Nexedge Capital as co-founder after a 22-year career at Standard Chartered Bank, to lead expansion across HNI, UHNI, and NRI segments.

• Bharat Supply plans to open 40 new distribution centres across Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and neighbouring states, creating over 500 jobs.

• Yellow Fertility plans to invest Rs 50 crore over two years, launch five new centres across Kolkata, Bhubaneswar, Delhi, and Bengaluru, and establish 30 IVF lab centres by the end of 2026.

What stands out from today’s developments is the diversity of ambition.

Healthcare startups are rethinking cancer treatment. Deeptech founders are building next-generation semiconductor solutions. AI is reshaping recruitment, enterprise automation, and speech technology. Creator commerce continues to attract significant capital. Meanwhile, logistics, EV manufacturing, fertility care, and student mobility are expanding deeper into Tier II and III India.

The Indian startup ecosystem is no longer confined to metros or a single sector. It is spreading geographically, technologically, and socially—touching everything from hospital rooms to chip design labs to last-mile delivery routes.

And if today’s momentum is any indication, the next wave of innovation is already underway.