Business briefs

E-commerce major Flipkart on Thursday said it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Uttar Pradesh Khadi & Village Industries Board (UPKVIB) as part of the former's 'Samarth' initiative. Flipkart Samarth is aimed at enabling artisans, weavers, and craftsmen from diverse backgrounds and rural parts of the country to set up their business on Flipkart, a statement said.

"UPKVIB and Flipkart will work together to help weavers and artisans sell Khadi fabrics and village industries products across Flipkart’s pan-India customer base of over 160 million," it added. * * * *

ContractPodAi to expand technology hub in India * ContractPodAi, a provider of AI-powered contract lifecycle management software, on Thursday said it plans to expand its technology hub in India.

Recently, ContractPodAi had secured USD 55 million in series B funding, led by Insight Partners with participation from the company's series A backer, Eagle Proprietary Investments. "The funds secured will be deployed towards business expansion. It will be used to build its global technology R&D centre out of Mumbai, India," a statement said.

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Milkbasket appoints former Ola exec Nitin Gupta as head of engineering * Milkbasket, a daily grocery delivery company, on Thursday said it has appointed former Ola executive Nitin Gupta as head of engineering.

"Technology, we believe, is also our edge and defensive moat against many heavily funded players in this space. I’m excited about the depth of experience Nitin brings with him and this shall be highly instrumental in Milkbasket's continuous endeavour to create a seamless grocery fulfillment platform for households across India,” Milkbasket CEO and co-founder Anant Goel said. Milkbasket has, till date, raised close to USD 26 million from Mayfield Advisors, Beenext, Kalaari Capital, Unilever Ventures, Lenovo Capital (LCIG), Blume Ventures and few family offices and USD 2.2 million in debt funding led by Innoven Capital.