An AI tool to monitor newborn health; Scaling Mt Everest with YouTube videos

Hello,

Another one bites the dust? Not so fast.

Zomato is facing an insolvency plea before the NCLT after an operational creditor claimed the company didn’t clear its dues amounting to Rs 1.64 crore. However, investors aren’t taking this plea seriously. Zomato's share price shot up over 7% after it denied these allegations.

This follows a recent insolvency plea filed against an Ola Electric unit over non-payment of dues, which saw the EV maker’s share price tank to its lowest-ever at Rs 46.32 on Tuesday before recovering.

These are among the 40,943 applications filed under the Insolvency and Bakruptcy Code since 2016. Of them, 70% of applications involving Rs 10 lakh crore were resolved even before admission, MoS for Corporate Affairs Harsh Malhotra said in Lok Sabha.

Over the years, the tool has proven to be crucial in mitigating credit risks, with investors of financially stressed companies, including BYJU’S, Hero Electric, and SpiceJet, taking the route in hopes of maximising the value of distressed assets. 

However, the law has its limitations. 

A 2023 financial stability report by the RBI revealed that the resolution plan approval process typically involves only about 15% payment by the purchaser, and repayment can take years without any further interest collected by the banks.

As the Chinese general Sun Tzu once said: “Wheels of justice grind slow but grind fine.”

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• An AI tool to monitor newborn health
• Scaling Mt Everest with YouTube videos
• Focusing on male reproductive health

Here’s your trivia for today: What continent has the most members in the International Cricket Council with 34 of the group’s 108 members?

Healthcare

An AI tool to monitor newborn health

Until last year, ASHA worker Jyotsna Suresh Patel in Daman’s Kachigam village carried a heavy weighing scale to weigh newborn babies. The process was long and she struggled to ensure accurate readings while soothing anxious mothers. AI is now helping her accurately weigh babies in seconds.  

Shishu Maapan, an AI tool developed by Wadhwani AI, helps ASHAs record anthropometric measurements of newborns using a smartphone. Currently, 450 ASHAs have been trained in Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu.

Helping hand:

• The Shishu Maapan AI tool can be integrated into an application used by ASHAs in a particular state, and where such an application is not available, they can use the Shishu Maapan app, a platform that hosts the AI model.
• Using the application, a frontline worker uses a smartphone to capture a short video of the newborn baby who is placed unclothed on a flat surface, next to a wooden ruler. The AI tool extracts key anthropometric measurements from the video in real-time.
• According to Nikam, Shishu Maapan reports an average weight error of only 111 grams. The average error for other parameters such as length, head circumference and chest circumference is below 1.3 cm.

Funding Alert

Startup: Pilgrim

Amount: Rs 200 Cr

Round: Primary and secondary rounds

Startup: Protectt.ai

Amount: Rs 76 Cr

Round: Series A

Startup: Slikk Club

Amount: $3.2M

Round: Seed

Inspiration

Scaling Mt Everest with YouTube videos 

A year ago, Vasanthy Cheruveettil was emboldened to make her first solo trip to Thailand. On her return, the 59-year-old tailor from Taliparamba in Kerala’s Kannur district decided to set her sights even higher. An avid YouTube user, Vasanthy watched videos of people trekking to Everest Base Camp and was inspired. 

Last month, the 59-year-old woman from Kerala trekked solo to Everest Base Camp after walking for four months and training with the help of YouTube videos.

Sheer will:

• To prepare to trek to Everest Base Camp, Vasanthy walked every day for 4-6 km for four months, and since the place she lived in was hilly, the walk over uneven terrain helped her to build her stamina. 
• In February, she travelled to Kathmandu to catch a flight to Luka, where she would start her trek to Everest Base Camp. However, the flight was cancelled. She then befriended a German couple at the airport and it took Vasanthy nine days to reach Everest Base Camp. 
• She felt vindicated that she was able to achieve what she had set out to do. Embracing her Kerala roots, she wrapped a kasavu saree she had carried along around herself and clicked a photo.

Startup

Focusing on male reproductive health

A study by the Indian Journal of Urology further reveals that nearly one in four men experience sexual dysfunction yet, only a small fraction seek professional help due to stigma and misinformation. 

Addressing this gap is Raaz, a Bengaluru-based startup founded in 2024 by Harshit Kukreja and Akash Kumar, which offers personalised, evidence-based male reproductive treatment for conditions like erectile dysfunction and premature ejaculation. 

An unspoken need:

• Raaz specialises in male reproductive health, offering diagnosis, consultation, and treatment. It provides personalised treatment programmes integrating medication, nutrition, diagnostics, and tech-enabled compliance tracking.
• It follows an evidence-based methodology, offering treatments for conditions like erectile dysfunction and premature ejaculation using a combination of medications, behavioural techniques, lifestyle modifications, and psychological counselling. 
• Since its launch, Raaz has served over 5,000 users. The company has reported a 3X growth in user base in the last three months and aims to reach 50,000 patients by the end of the year. It also claims a repeat consultation rate of over 50%.

News & updates

• IPO: Pine Labs is planning a domestic IPO in the second half of 2025 and is undeterred by the current weak market conditions, CEO Amrish Rau said. The fintech firm is planning a $1 billion IPO. If the issue goes through, it would be the second largest fintech IPO in India after Paytm’s $2.5 billion listing in 2021.
• Competition: Zeekr is releasing advanced driver-assistance capabilities to its local customers for free as competition heats up. It’s the latest Chinese EV brand to upgrade its driver-assistance products as Tesla tries to attract more buyers of its own version, Full Self Driving, in China.
• Cloud: Alphabet will buy Wiz for $32 billion in its biggest deal, as the Google parent doubles down on cybersecurity to sharpen its edge in the cloud-computing race against Amazon and Microsoft. The price tag is much higher than the roughly $23 billion Google had offered for Wiz last year before antitrust worries forced the startup to shelve the deal.

What continent has the most members in the International Cricket Council with 34 of the group’s 108 members?

Answer: Europe.

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