
US-6, China-3, India-1...; Mukesh Ambani and Isha Ambani raising India's global status in this list, its related to...
India has emerged as a hub of successful startups over the past decade many of whom have become unicorns– a private firm whose market valuation is $1 billion or more. As per a global list by Crunchbase, the United States has the most unicorn companies at 793, followed by China (284), and India with 88 companies with a valuation of $1 billion or more.
The US also dominates the list of top 10 largest unicorns with as many as six companies, followed by China at three, while the solo Indian company to be ranked among the top 10 is Reliance Retail– the retail arm of Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries, headed by his daughter, Isha Ambani. Which country has the highest number of unicorns?
As per the Crunchbase list, there are 793 unicorns in the US, followed by 284 in China, 88 in India, and 40 each in the United Kingdom and Germany– the largest economy in Europe. Check out the complete list below: USA: 793 China: 284 India: 88 UK: 64 Germany: 40 France: 30 Canada: 30 Singapore: 22 Israel: 22 South Korea: 21 Brazil: 20 Japan: 16 Hong Kong: 12 Australia: 12 Mexico: 10 Ireland: 10 Indonesia: 10 Switzerland: 9 Netherlands: 9 Sweden: 8 Who are the top 10 largest unicorns globally?
According to Crunchbase, Elon Musk-led SpaceX is the world's largest unicorn with a market cap of $350 billion. ChatGPT maker OpenAI is ranked second with an mcap of $300 billion, followed by TikTok parent Bytedance at three with a valuation of $220 billion, and China's Antgroup at four ($150 billion mcap).
Reliance Retail, which is led by Isha Ambani– the daughter of Asia's richest man, Mukesh Ambani– is the only Indian unicorn among the top 10, coming at number five with a valuation of $100 billion. Here's the complete list: SpaceX: $350 billion OpenAI: $300 billion ByteDance: $220 billion Ant Group: $150 billion Reliance Retail: $100 billion xAI: $70 billion Shein: $66 billion Stripe: $65 billion Databricks: $62 billion Anthropic: $62 billion About Reliance Retail
Reliance Retail, India's largest retailer, is run by Isha Ambani, the only daughter of Asia's richest man Mukesh Ambani. The retail arm of Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries is a partner brand of major international brands such as Versace, Amiri, Armani, and Balenciaga, bringing reputed international brands, into the Indian market.
Under Isha's leadership, Reliance Retail, which has an estimated value of around Rs 8.3 lakh crores, has witnessed exponential growth in a short period of time, opening 3,300 stores across the country in 2023.
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The Hindu
8 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Why we need a research-based social entrepreneurship course in Indian academia
India is making strides in digital innovation and financial growth, but still faces challenges such as unemployment, inequality, and the rural-urban gap. As a result, social entrepreneurship is becoming popular as a strong way to connect businesses with social impact. To fully realise its potential, universities need to include research-based, practical social entrepreneurship in their curricula. Recent data from the GUESSS India 2023 Survey shows a notable change in career goals among Indian university students: 33% are in the early stages of starting their businesses, while 4.8% are already running revenue-generating start-ups. However, 70% still intend to find jobs after graduation, although this figure drops to around 52% over five years. Despite this, Indian students exhibit the highest global entrepreneurial intent, scoring 4.6 on a scale of 7, compared to the global average of 3.7. Nearly 63% get initial investments or support from their universities. This reflects a rising interest among today's youth in having independence, social impact, and the chance to build something that not only creates profit but also tackles important national issues, going beyond traditional career paths. Transformative approach Social entrepreneurship is an increasingly recognised effective model to bridge the gap between social justice and economic development. Unlike traditional business models that prioritise market returns, social enterprises focus on serving underserved and neglected communities, offering scalable and sustainable solutions. Addressing the root causes of inequality — like access to clean water, quality healthcare, education, and decent livelihoods — drives social entrepreneurs. The Stanford Social Innovation Review points out that businesses focused on underserved and untapped markets can make a real social impact while still being financially viable. India's development issues — such as rural sanitation, clean energy, climate resilience, and women's empowerment — create a strong environment for social entrepreneurship projects. India has many innovative ventures that highlight successful social entrepreneurship. At IIM BAngalore, Saahas Zero Waste has turned the campus into a model of a circular economy by focusing on waste segregation, composting, and recycling. Tamil Nadu's Gramalaya NGO has enhanced sanitation, hygiene, and clean water access while building self-sustaining financing models for toilet construction. These stories go beyond programs and numbers; they focus on people. Research-led innovation Private universities bring together scholars from many fields. When they join forces to tackle real-world issues and turn their research into practical solutions, they can unlock the untapped potential of India's Ph.D.s. For instance, a public policy scholar studying poverty might collaborate with an engineering scholar to create a solution. A business scholar could then help expand this solution, leading to both academic success and positive social change. Universities should take an important role in encouraging such teamwork across disciplines to support social entrepreneurship. They should promote research that tackles social issues, moving from a purely theoretical activity into something that drives real change. Despite a growing start-up ecosystem, disruptive innovation is rare. Research scholars can improve socially driven innovation by applying their expertise to real-world problems. To become an 'impact nation,' India needs inclusive, non-urban-centred innovation. This means integrating social entrepreneurship into education, policy, and practice. The writer is Curator of Ph,D. VISTA Programme, Alliance University, Bengaluru.
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Business Standard
8 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Higher sales realisation, volume growth boost cement firms' earnings in Q1
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Economic Times
8 minutes ago
- Economic Times
She earned Rs 10 a day; her son rakes in Rs 2 crore per year, owns 13 homes. Man's rags-to-riches story goes viral
Synopsis Losing his father early, he faced immense poverty, working tirelessly to support his family. After completing his engineering, he moved to the US, building a fortune and fulfilling his dream of providing his mother a dignified life. Agencies From ₹40 a Day to 13 Homes: A Man's Extraordinary Journey of Grit Once, his family struggled to earn Rs 40 per day. Today, he is the proud owner of 13 luxurious homes in India. Taking to the subreddit Indian Flex, a man shared his inspiring rags-to-riches story. The story begins in the shadow of immense poverty. The narrator lost his father as an infant in 1985, leaving his mother as the sole provider. She toiled endlessly in agricultural fields during the early 1990s, often earning as little as ten to thirty rupees a day. Their home was a fragile structure where rainwater frequently flooded the kitchen, and nights were filled with tears of despair from both his mother and grandmother. Life was a constant reminder of scarcity—no gold, no proper clothing, and food that barely filled their 1991, the lack of financial stability also robbed the family of social respect. The struggle to survive meant that every family member, including the narrator as a child, had to contribute to daily earnings. In 1993, they could only make twenty to forty rupees per day combined, a meager sum that forced the young boy to shoulder responsibility beyond his years. Despite his young age, he worked through every summer holiday to afford basic necessities like notebooks. His first job in 1994 paid him nine rupees per day, followed by another in 1995 where he earned twelve rupees. By 1996, he took up backbreaking labor as a load man for twenty-eight rupees a day. While his peers enjoyed summer breaks with movies, bicycles, and family outings, he sacrificed leisure to fund his dressed in one set of clothes for the entire school year and living without luxuries like radios, fans, or even a bicycle, he remained academically brilliant. He topped his class in 1998 and again secured the first rank in Grade 12 in 2000. These achievements reflected both his intelligence and 1997, a blow came when his maternal grandparents chose to give away their land to his uncles rather than his mother. Despite these setbacks, he aspired to join the Indian Administrative Service or become an IPS officer. However, by 2003, after experiencing unfulfilled love and facing the realities of financial limitations, he gave up personal happiness and focused solely on one goal—buying a house for his 2004, he was weighed down by debt of nearly a lakh and still had no property of his own. But the following year brought a turning point. He completed his engineering degree in 2005 and secured a placement in a multinational corporation. In 2006, he moved to the United States, opening the doors to new of persistence paid off in extraordinary ways. By 2025, he had built a remarkable portfolio: four fully paid apartments in the US, a nine-crore luxury home with most of the loan already cleared, and thirteen properties in India that included apartments across metros and smaller cities, a villa, and several residential units. He also purchased six valuable land plots and two farmhouses and invested heavily in real estate instead of keeping money idle in material success extended to luxury cars, including a sports car worth one crore. With a combined annual income of $250,000 to $300,000 alongside his wife, he achieved the kind of lifestyle once unimaginable in his him, true wealth was not personal indulgence but fulfilling his lifelong promise to his mother. He built a villa in her name, showered her with gold, and ensured she lived the life of dignity she once lacked. Every house, plot, and investment was dedicated to giving her comfort. Unfortunately, she passed away three years ago due to medical negligence, leaving him devastated. He spent two years drowning in grief and alcohol before finding the strength to move forward today, success is bittersweet. He admits to breaking down when he sits before a table filled with food, remembering the hunger of his childhood. Driving his luxury cars sometimes brings tears as he recalls the sacrifices of his parents and grandparents. The scars of poverty, though hidden behind wealth, remain etched in his story stands as proof that persistence and sacrifice lead to transformation. He emphasizes that dreams cannot be realized overnight; they require years of commitment and relentless effort. Though he gave up youthful joys, relationships, and happiness, he achieved his ultimate goal—offering his family, especially his mother, a life of respect and abundance. Today, he passes this lesson on to his children, reminding them that with unwavering determination, even the harshest beginnings can be rewritten into a life of triumph.