Hari Menon exits BigBasket; Sarvam AI hits unicorn status

Key Takeaways

• Hari Menon steps down as BigBasket CEO after 13 years; Amazon India's Amit Nanda takes the top job
• Sarvam AI raises $234 million in Series B, reaching a $1.5 billion valuation and unicorn status
• SpaceX agrees to acquire AI coding startup Cursor for $60 billion, while Starlink faces potential data routing restrictions in India

Hari Menon, who cofounded BigBasket in 2011 and led the company through its acquisition by Tata Digital, has stepped down as CEO. Amazon India veteran Amit Nanda replaces him as the online grocery platform sharpens its quick commerce strategy against aggressive rivals like Blinkit and Zepto.

The same week, Bengaluru-based Sarvam AI announced a $234 million Series B round, valuing the company at $1.5 billion. The funding cements Sarvam's position as India's newest AI unicorn and its most prominent player in sovereign AI infrastructure.

Why is Hari Menon leaving BigBasket now?

Menon's departure was not a surprise. ET reported in September 2025 that he was preparing to hand over the reins as his five-year post-acquisition tenure neared completion. He and fellow cofounder Vipul Parekh will remain on the board.

Tata Group acquired Alibaba's stake in BigBasket in 2021, valuing the company between $1.5 billion and $2 billion. Under Tata Digital's ownership, BigBasket fully pivoted to quick commerce in August 2024. But the bet came late. Rivals moved faster, and BigBasket's turnover slipped in FY25.

Still, there are signs of recovery. Tata Digital CEO Sajith Sivanandan told ET in April that BigBasket was clawing back market share. Its rapid delivery arm, BB Now, operates around 500 dark stores and fulfils 450,000 to 500,000 orders daily.

Who is Amit Nanda, BigBasket's new CEO?

Nanda spent 11 years at Amazon India, most recently as Director of Selling Partner Services. His mandate is clear: sharpen execution in quick commerce and drive operational innovation. Industry observers see his appointment as part of a broader professionalization effort under Tata.

"The transition to Amit Nanda is a strategic decision to sharpen execution capabilities as we navigate the intense demands of the hyper-competitive quick-commerce sector," one industry analyst noted.

How will Sarvam AI use its $234 million?

Sarvam cofounder Vivek Raghavan outlined the spending priorities: compute infrastructure, model training and fine-tuning, inference scaling, and enterprise software layers. A $150 million chunk came from HCLTech, which acquired a 10.46% stake.

"The capital we've raised is very large in the Indian context, but still quite small globally," Raghavan told ET. "We will have to remain capital-efficient in how we do things. At the same time, we also need significantly more capital to develop frontier capabilities."

Sarvam's foundational models, Sarvam-30B and Sarvam-105B, support 22 official Indian languages. The company says API calls tripled in recent months, exceeding 300 million last month. Its conversational AI products average over 2 million calls daily across Indian language applications.

“Our mission remains building a sovereign AI ecosystem that is rooted in Indian data, linguistic diversity, and secure deployment.”

— Sarvam AI Leadership

DeepSeek closes $7.4 billion with unusual structure

Chinese AI startup DeepSeek has raised more than $7.4 billion in its first fundraising round, valuing the company above $50 billion, according to The Information. The deal structure is unusual: to preserve founder control, investors placed capital into a limited partnership managed by CEO Liang Wenfeng rather than investing directly in the company.

For context, Sarvam's $234 million is roughly 3% of DeepSeek's haul. The gap illustrates both the capital intensity of frontier AI and how far Indian startups must stretch their dollars.

SpaceX to buy AI coding startup Cursor for $60 billion

Days after its market debut, SpaceX has agreed to acquire Anysphere, the company behind AI coding assistant Cursor, for $60 billion. The deal is expected to close in Q3 2026.

SpaceX had been exploring the acquisition for months. In April, it secured an option to buy Cursor for $60 billion or pay $10 billion to deepen its partnership instead. The purchase could strengthen xAI's position in the AI coding market, where it trails larger competitors. Cursor gains access to far greater computing power for training and deploying its models.

Will Starlink face data routing restrictions in India?

India is unlikely to permit interlinked satellites for internet services, sources told ET. The restriction could complicate Starlink's launch plans in the country.

The concern centers on laser inter-satellite link (LISL) technology, which allows Starlink's newer satellites to beam data directly to one another in space. This mesh network creates what officials view as a security challenge: Indian data could be routed through hostile jurisdictions or surveillance hubs before reaching its destination.

Indian VCs are betting on US AI startups

The funding news arrives amid a broader shift: Indian venture capitalists are increasingly investing in US AI startups. The trend reflects both the limited number of Indian AI companies reaching scale and the global nature of the AI opportunity.

Sarvam's unicorn round stands out precisely because it bucks this pattern. The company raised domestic capital for a domestic AI stack, betting that India's linguistic diversity and data sovereignty requirements create a moat foreign models cannot easily cross.

Telegram restrictions tighten in India

India continues to tighten restrictions on Telegram, though details of the latest measures were not specified in the newsletter. The messaging platform has faced repeated scrutiny over encryption, content moderation, and cooperation with law enforcement.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did Hari Menon step down as BigBasket CEO?

Menon's five-year post-acquisition tenure was nearing completion. ET had reported in September 2025 that he was preparing to hand over leadership. He remains on the BigBasket board alongside cofounder Vipul Parekh.

Who is the new BigBasket CEO?

Amit Nanda, who spent 11 years at Amazon India as Director of Selling Partner Services. His mandate is to strengthen quick commerce execution and drive innovation.

How much did Sarvam AI raise and what is its valuation?

Sarvam raised $234 million in its Series B round, reaching a $1.5 billion valuation. HCLTech contributed $150 million for a 10.46% stake.

Why is SpaceX acquiring Cursor?

The $60 billion acquisition would strengthen xAI's position in the AI coding market, where it trails rivals. Cursor gains access to greater computing power for model training and deployment.

What is the LISL concern with Starlink in India?

India worries that laser inter-satellite link technology could route Indian data through foreign jurisdictions or surveillance hubs, creating security risks. This may block Starlink's satellite mesh network from operating in the country.

Source: Tech-Economic Times