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Welcome to another edition of 🔍 Startup Researcher - Asia, your essential digest delivering the latest news and premium insights on startups and venture capital across the region 🌏️
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📰 Important News
- Indian space-tech startup Digantara partnered with Singapore’s DSTA to co-develop space situational awareness tools to protect satellites.
- PhotonPay partnered with Stripe to enhance online acquiring infrastructure and help merchants scale across multiple global markets.
- Otsuka secured rights to commercialize Sky Labs’ cuffless ring-based blood pressure monitor in Japan to improve 24-hour hypertension management.
- TradeTogether received a full MAS Capital Markets Services license, enabling it to operate as a fully regulated fund manager for tokenized assets.
- DigiFT partnered with Hines to offer tokenized access to a fund investing in a $6 billion global real estate portfolio.
💸 Top Funding Rounds
- LimX Dynamics secured a $200 million Series B investment from global partners including Stone Venture, JD.com, and Orient Fortune Capital.
- ShengShu Technology raised over $86.47 million in a Series A+ funding round to advance its Vidu AI video platform.
- Drivn received up to $80 million in financing from Nomura to support the Phase 1 rollout of nearly 1,000 electric buses and trucks across India.
- Cryogenic tech firm Zhongke Qingneng landed $71.8 million in a Pre-A++ co-led by NIO Capital to advance hydrogen and nuclear fusion infrastructure.
- The Whole Truth closed a $51 million Series D round led by Sofina and Sauce.vc to scale its manufacturing capacity and prepare for a future IPO.
💰️ IPO and M&A Watch
- Concorde International Group is merging with YOOV in a $600 million deal to build AI-powered security and business automation solutions.
- Marico acquired a 60% stake in Cosmix Wellness at a $41.5 million valuation to expand its digital-first presence in the fast-growing wellness market.
- HORIBA India acquired Pristine Deeptech to set up a local R&D hub and advance lab-grown diamond materials for semiconductor innovation.
- Utopai East acquired Korean studio Alquimista Media to produce premium film and TV using cinematic AI and scale Asian IP globally.
- NEXUSCIPHERGUARD India acquired Bengaluru AI security firm AegisMind, keeping it independent as an R&D hub to drive long-term security research.
🏦 About Investors
- Unicorn India Ventures successfully closed its third deeptech fund at $132.8 million, attracting international investment to back 20 startups.
- 3C AGI Partners, led by Esther Wong and backed by VMS Group, launched a $100 million fund for foundational AI infrastructure.
- Golden Sparrow Ventures secured the first close of its $20 million Fund II, targeting early-stage Indian deeptech and enterprise AI startups.
- Temasek Holdings has appointed former Khaitan & Co partner Aman Dwivedi as Vice President for Legal and Regulatory in India.
- Ashish Agrawal, Ishaan Mittal, and Tejeshwi Sharma left Peak XV Partners to launch a new venture capital firm backing early-stage founders.
🚀Startup of the Week
Introducing our Startup of the Week 🏆
LimX Dynamics
LimX Dynamics, founded by Wei Zhang and Li Zhang, is a fast-rising player in embodied AI, building general-purpose humanoid robots that tightly integrate cognition and physical action. The company develops modular TRON 2 humanoid hardware, paired with LimX COSA, an agentic operating system enabling autonomous planning, motion, and real-world task execution. LimX recently closed a $200 million Series B co-led by JD.com, Stone Venture, and Orient Fortune Capital, with backing from industrial and automotive investors including SAIC and NIO Capital. Under its founding leadership, LimX is scaling mass production and international expansion, positioning itself as a platform company aiming to standardize the “body and brain” of humanoid robots and accelerate global adoption of embodied intelligence.
💼 Investor of the Week
Introducing our Investor of the Week 🏆
Unicorn India Ventures
Unicorn India Ventures, founded in 2015 in India, is a deeptech-focused venture capital firm backing startups building the country’s foundational technology stack. Led by co-founder and managing partner Bhaskar Majumdar, the firm invests across semiconductors, spacetech, and AI infrastructure, deliberately prioritizing core systems over crowded application layers. Its latest milestone came with the final close of Fund III at $132.8 million, surpassing its target and attracting a growing base of international LPs, particularly from the US, alongside Indian institutions. The fund plans to back around 20 startups, with strong follow-on support and an M&A-led exit strategy. Unicorn India Ventures positions itself as a patient capital partner helping transform deep scientific research into globally competitive Indian tech champions.
🤑Opportunities Expiring Soon
ELEVATE Program, ELEVATE NXT 2026
- 📢 Organizer: Startup Karnataka, GoK
- 🗂️ Category: Funding, Competition/Challenge
- 🪜 Target Stages: Pre-seed, Seed, Pre-Series A, Series A
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: DeepTech, AI & Data, Energy & Environment, Health & Life Sciences, Manufacturing & Materials
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 17, 2026
Y Combinator — Spring 2026 Batch
- 📢 Organizer: Y Combinator
- 🗂️ Category: Accelerator, Funding
- 🪜 Target Stages: Pre-seed, Seed
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Sector Agnostic
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 10, 2026
xG-Incubator
- 📢 Organizer: xG-Incubator
- 🗂️ Category: Incubator, Funding
- 🪜 Target Stages: Pre-seed, Seed
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Connectivity & Networks, DeepTech
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 9, 2026
Programa de Aceleração de Startups do Grupo Boticário (GB Ventures)
- 📢 Organizer: GB Ventures (Grupo Boticário)
- 🗂️ Category: Accelerator
- 🪜 Target Stages: Revenue-generating, Seed, Pre-Series A
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Retail & Consumer, Health & Life Sciences, Finance & Insurance
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 11, 2026
Scale Your Impact with Start it @KBC
- 📢 Organizer: KBC Group
- 🗂️ Category: Accelerator
- 🪜 Target Stages: Stage Agnostic
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Sector Agnostic
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 16, 2026
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