Voice AI attracts interest; Inside PhonePe’s IPO plan

Voice AI Industry - Voice AI startups in India are experiencing increased investor interest, with three startups raising capital in January alone [3] - Global trends show that voice-focused companies like Deepgram and Synthesia are attracting hundreds of millions in funding, with major tech firms like Google investing in voice models [4] - Advances in speech recognition and synthesis are making voice interfaces more human-like, leading to accelerated enterprise adoption [6] - Indian startups are developing voice models tailored for local languages, such as Maya Research, Soket Labs, and Pixa AI [6] PhonePe IPO and Business Operations - PhonePe is preparing for a stock market debut, with its draft IPO papers indicating a shift from being a payments-only company, as payments' share of revenue is shrinking [8][12] - The company is attempting to secure a non-banking finance company (NBFC) license, which would allow it to lend directly, improving margins and control over credit products [9] - Regulatory restrictions have narrowed revenue options, particularly affecting rent payments and real-money gaming, which contributed over 21% of FY25 revenue [10] - In the six months ending September 2025, payments accounted for 86.9% of operating revenue, down from 92.3% the previous year, while lending and insurance distribution revenue more than doubled to Rs 452 crore [11] - PhonePe's IPO is expected to value the company at around $15 billion, with existing shareholders offloading over 50 million shares [12] Shadowfax Listing - Shadowfax made a muted stock market debut, with shares listing at a 9% discount to the issue price, indicating cautious sentiment towards new-age listings [15] - The IPO raised Rs 1,907 crore, with a price band of Rs 118-124, and the company is valued at Rs 6,353 crore post-listing [15][16] - Despite the initial listing challenges, early shareholders are still experiencing substantial paper gains [15][22] Pine Labs Financial Performance - Pine Labs reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 42 crore in the December quarter, recovering from a loss of Rs 57 crore in the same period last year [22] - The company's operating revenue rose 24% year-on-year to Rs 744 crore, with a significant increase in EBITDA [29]