AI, health, inclusion: test your business creativity with Edition 185 of our weekly quiz!

Lateral Sparks, the weekly quiz from YourStory, tests your domain knowledge, business acumen, and lateral thinking skills (see the previous edition here). In this 185th edition of the quiz, we present issues tackled by real-life entrepreneurs in their startup journeys.

What would you do if you were in their shoes? At the end of the quiz, you will find out what the entrepreneurs and innovators themselves actually did. Would you do things differently?

Check out YourStory’s Book Review section as well, with takeaways from over 355 titles on creativity and entrepreneurship, and our weekend PhotoSparks section on creativity in the arts.

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Q1: Financial investments

The youth of today are fluent in digital technology and online transactions. Yet, levels of awareness and engagement in financial services like mutual funds investment are low. How can this gap be addressed?

Q2: Wedding dresses

Low-income families find it difficult to buy bridal dresses, as most are out of their budget. How can they get access to such precious items while also preserving their dignity?

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Q3: Media and health

In many societies, discussions about menstruation and female sexuality are still considered taboo. How can such issues be candidly addressed, and at scale?

Q4: Radiology services

Many countries like India face a significant diagnostic capacity gap, with scarce access for patients to qualified radiologists. How can technology help here?

Q5: Textile supplies

In a fast-changing global economy, MSMEs from the textile sector face many challenges in accessing high-quality raw materials and securing financing. How can these needs be satisfied?

Answers!

Congratulations on having come this far! But there’s more to come – answers to these five questions (below), as well as links to articles with more details on the entrepreneurs’ solutions. Happy reading, happy learning – and happy creating!

A1: Financial investments

Founded by Satyajeet Kunjeer, fintech startup Deciml helps users start their investment journey through micro-investments. For example, when they make a digital transaction, Deciml rounds up the amount to the nearest ten and invests the spare change in mutual funds.

Users can set a fixed amount to be invested daily from their bank account, shifting the investment narrative from distant goals like retirement to immediate aspirations like purchase of sneakers or bikes. Read more here about how it also creates relatable, bite-sized content to explain investment concepts.

A2: Wedding dresses

Founded by Nasar Thootha, the Nasar Thootha Dress Bank is a community-driven initiative that provides free bridal wear to underprivileged women across India. The platform enables donors to pass on their bridal outfits to less-privileged women.

Hundreds of sarees, salwar sets, and wedding gowns have been dry-cleaned and sorted for families to sort through and pick up. Read more here about how choice and dignity for these communities are enabled via access to outfits that are valued between Rs 6,000 to Rs 60,000.

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A3: Media and health

Simran Balar Jain leverages social media to address women’s health issues with a simple and candid approach. “My content is about documenting everything—beauty and fashion, travel and women’s health. This also includes sex education,” she explains.

She conducts Q&A sessions with her audience and meets with her gynaecologist to brainstorm potential topics and verify information. Read more here about how Jain simplifies medical terminology and debunks misconceptions about topics like the female orgasm.

A4: Radiology services

SPARK Radiology is a medical imaging solutions startup that leverages AI to streamline radiology workflows such as reporting and approval. This helps meet growing demand and workforce shortages in the healthcare system.

“By integrating AI-driven reporting assistance into their daily routine, SPARK.ai allows radiologists to utilise their time more efficiently, focusing on more critical work, reducing burnout, and ensuring an improved diagnosis,” CEO Allison Garza explains. Read more here about how this startup helps build a more robust and scalable healthcare ecosystem.

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A5: Textile supplies

Founded by Heet Jain and Dhrati Jain, Dukaan Dost hopes to be a one-stop shop for all raw textile needs for MSMEs. This includes supplies as well as logistics and financing solutions for garment manufacturers in the ‘fibre to fabric’ value chain.

It combines global sourcing with tailored solutions to empower MSMEs in their journey to scale. Read more here about its operations in India, Taiwan, Vietnam, and China, and its offerings of yarns like Supercool and Metallic along with innovative fabrics such as Everlon and Monotone.

YourStory has also published the pocketbook ‘Proverbs and Quotes for Entrepreneurs: A World of Inspiration for Startups’ as a creative and motivational guide for innovators (downloadable as apps here: Apple, Android).