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Flipkart Group Completes $ 100 Million Employee Stock Repurchase Plan

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Flipkart, India’s biggest ecommerce company, successfully completed the repurchase of employee stock options (ESOPs,) worth $100 million. More than 3,000 current and former employees of Flipkart, Myntra, Jabong and PhonePe took part in the stock repurchase program for the fourth time.

The ecommerce firm provided all the eligible, current and former employees of Flipkart and group companies an opportunity t0 sell a part of their vested ESOP units to the company. This is the fourth time in five years the company gave all the ESOP holders this opportunity to encash their vested stock options.

In an emailed statement, Flipkart said this repurchase program will heavily benefit the employees who have been with the company since 2010. The official statement further added, “Flipkart employees get a threshold period of one year, the stock options start vesting on monthly basis over a four year period after the first year of employment. The decision is welcomed by Flipkart employees across company’s locations in India.

Speaking about the buyback program, Sachin Bansal, the Chairman of Flipkart and Binny Bansal, Group CEO said, “Employees are our biggest source of strength, without whom Flipkart couldn’t have built the ecommerce industry in India. As an organization, we believe they should be equal partners in Flipkart’s success. This ESOP repurchase programme is an extension of that culture and a token of thanks for the dedication and hard work they have put in over the years. We’re delighted to be setting the benchmark on this important parameter, not only in the startup industry but the wider Indian private sector as well.”

Recently, in a deal valuing Flipkart at $ 10 billion, Japan based venture capital firm SoftBank offered to buy Flipkart stock from investors and former and existing employees of Flipkart. In December this year, the company reported a 43% rise in Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) for six months quarter that ended on 30 September 2017. The mutual fund investor Morgan Stanley also marked up the valuation of the ecommerce behemoth to $ 9.36 billion from $ 7 billion for the September quarter.

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Sundar Pichai Reaches Billionaire Milestone as Alphabet CEO

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Sundar Pichai, the visionary CEO of Alphabet Inc., has officially entered the ranks of global billionaires, accomplishing this rare feat after a decade at the helm of one of the world’s most influential tech giants. Pichai’s net worth hit $1.1 billion—according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index—fueled by Alphabet’s incredible market performance and the company’s growth of more than $1 trillion in value since early 2023. Achieving billionaire status without being a founding member sets Pichai apart, highlighting his significant impact among non-founder tech leaders.

Born in Tamil Nadu, India, Pichai’s success story is rooted in humble beginnings. He spent his childhood in a modest two-room apartment, only gaining access to a telephone at age 12. A scholarship took him to Stanford University in 1993, with his family making great sacrifices for his education. After joining Google in 2004, Pichai played a pivotal role in the development of Chrome and rose steadily, ultimately becoming CEO in 2015. His leadership through Alphabet’s restructuring and his stewardship over high-growth areas like YouTube, Google Cloud, and Google Play have been critical to the company’s success.

During his tenure, Pichai has championed aggressive investments in artificial intelligence and cloud infrastructure, positioning Alphabet at the forefront of technological innovation. While his annual salary sits at $2 million, the majority of his fortune stems from stock awards and financial incentives tied to performance. Pichai’s journey exemplifies the rise from modest beginnings to extraordinary success, serving as an inspiration and proving that transformative leadership and strategic vision can redefine what’s possible—even without a founder’s equity stake.

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IIT Hyderabad Unveils Palyanka, Heavy-Lift Drone for Air Ambulance Use

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Hyderabad - Drone

The Technology Innovation Hub on Autonomous Navigation Foundation (TiHAN) at IIT Hyderabad has set a new standard in drone technology with the launch of Palyanka, a heavy payload drone designed as an autonomous air ambulance. Capable of carrying up to 200 kg, Palyanka is engineered to swiftly transport patients, medical equipment, or critical cargo across challenging terrains, bypassing traditional barriers like road congestion and remote inaccessibility. This advanced UAV operates autonomously, making it highly effective for rapid response in both urban and rural emergencies, and stands at the forefront of disaster relief operations in scenarios such as floods and fires.

Built for versatility, Palyanka doesn’t just function as an air ambulance. Its robust design enables use in rescue missions, cargo deliveries, and even as an air taxi for metropolitan connectivity. Inspired by the Sanskrit word for palanquin, the name “Palyanka” reflects the drone’s role as a safe and efficient carrier. All components, from conceptual design to IP, have been developed in-house at IIT Hyderabad, ensuring the drone meets stringent standards for durability and performance under extreme conditions.

With a development journey spanning over five years and led by Prof. P. Rajalakshmi, TiHAN’s team has transitioned from early drone prototypes to a full-scale, high-capacity solution like Palyanka. The team is now preparing pilot projects in hilly terrains and working on further enhancing the drone’s endurance with innovative heat-resistant materials. By pioneering such indigenous solutions, IIT Hyderabad’s TiHAN is transforming emergency medical services and logistics, marking a pivotal advancement in India’s urban mobility and public safety landscape.

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X’s Major Price Cut in India: Premium Plans Now More Accessible Than Ever

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X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, has announced a major reduction in its subscription prices across India, slashing fees by up to 48%. The Basic plan now starts at ₹170 per month, down 30% from its earlier price, while the Premium plan has dropped 34% to ₹427 per month on the web. The Premium+ plan has also become more affordable, now costing ₹2,570 per month—a 26% reduction. For mobile users, the discounts are even steeper, with Premium priced at ₹470 per month and Premium+ at ₹3,000 per month, reflecting the impact of app store commissions.

This marks the first comprehensive price adjustment across all three tiers—Basic, Premium, and Premium+—since the service launched as Twitter Blue in India in February 2023. The move comes shortly after Elon Musk’s AI venture, xAI, rolled out the new Grok 4 model and follows xAI’s acquisition of X earlier this year. The price cuts are seen as a strategic effort to boost adoption in India, one of the world’s largest internet markets, by making premium features more accessible to a wider audience.

Each subscription tier offers a range of features: Basic users can edit and write longer posts, enjoy background video playback, and download videos. Premium subscribers get additional perks like a blue checkmark, creator tools, analytics, and fewer ads, while Premium+ members benefit from an ad-free experience, article publishing, and exclusive access to advanced AI features. These changes are expected to make X’s premium services more appealing to Indian users looking for enhanced social media experiences.

 

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