Tariffs to spark biz in India?; Creating studio-quality ads with tech

Hello,

Not many want Donald Trump’s favourite word in their dictionary.

After the US President put tariffs on almost everything entering the country, American stock indices tumbled, with the Nasdaq plunging 5.4% and the Dow down 3.5% at 10:30 am EST.

The fear of an economic slowdown, or even recession, is widespread. The pan-European benchmark Stoxx 600 sank over 2%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 slumped 2.7% to its lowest level since August.

Is India faring any better?

The Sensex was down more than 300 points on Thursday, but the nation, despite being levied a 26% import tariff, has a competitive advantage. 

India’s pharmaceutical sector, which exported more than $8.7 billion of products to the US in FY24 (according to Jeffries), was exempted from the reciprocal tariff move. Also, as global supply chains realign, India stands to gain if it improves logistics and ensures policy stability.

“We should not lose sight of these strengths in the middle of what the newspaper headlines keep screaming about uncertainties,” advised Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran at Startup Mahakumbh in Delhi.

ICYMI: At Startup Mahakumbh, Union Minister Piyush Goyal compared Indian and Chinese startups, and it raised some eyebrows.

One can’t ignore the tariff’s short-term pain.

They are expected to dampen the growth prospects of IT companies in some key sectors. Also, American companies like Apple, which has based 15% of its production in India, may have a rethink, affecting jobs here.

The dog days aren’t over. 

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• VCs’ hope from Trump tariffs
• Creating studio-quality ads with tech
• Zoho’s vision for AI

Here’s your trivia for today: In 1792, which country became the first in Europe to abolish the slave trade?

Economy

VCs’ hope from Trump tariff 

Trump’s reciprocal tariffs on India could give the country’s manufacturing sector a competitive edge, according to venture capital investors. Startups manufacturing in the biotechnology, electronics, textiles, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, aviation, and automotive components spaces are likely to benefit the most, according to these VCs. 

However, the entire startup ecosystem, including the government, investors, and other stakeholders, should move fast to capitalise on the opportunity, VCs said.

Key takeaways:

• On April 2, Trump imposed new import taxes on all goods coming to the US. While China was hit the hardest with an effective import tax levy of almost 54%, India was among the top five, with a reciprocal tax of 26% on all goods imported from the country. 
• Although the import tax applies to all countries and may void the advantages held by key beneficiaries of the China Plus One strategy, such as India and Vietnam, India’s lower tax rate compared to Vietnam and China is expected to support its manufacturing sector. 
• “On the positive, there are very few hardware-only products from India—most are software only or IoT (internet of things) plus SaaS. For all companies, their competitors are from China, hence, the impact is likely to be relatively less,” said Sanjay Swamy of Prime Venture Partners.

Funding Alert

Startup: Scapia

Amount: $40M

Round: Series B

Startup: Pratilipi

Amount: $20M

Round: Series E

Startup: Sweet Karam Coffee

Amount: $8M

Round: Series A

Startup

Creating studio-quality ads with AI

In the era of short videos and shorter attention spans, brands have been doubling down on acing their digital advertisements game. However, the production costs can rack up to thousands of dollars per minute after factoring in hiring actors, booking locations, and post-production.

Hypergro.ai, with its latest upgrade, allows users to create hyper-realistic commercials with a 90% reduction in time and cost, which helps make high-production-value content accessible at scale.

AI video:

• Hypergro uses a combination of AI, machine learning, and deep analytics to create hyper-personalised video ads.
• The company’s products include AdGen AI, AdGPT, Audience AI, Image Fusion AI, and Adlytics AI, and are geared towards short video advertising.
• The company has more than 140 paid clients and over 65 subscription-based clients, with subscriptions priced at Rs 50,000 per month. It also helps brands collaborate with influencers and content creators for ads.

Interview

Zoho’s vision for AI

The development of an AI model in India has been the hottest debate of 2025. While several companies are racing to ride the new wave, SaaS company Zoho Corp has placed its latest bet with the launch of two foundational models, which will go live before the year-end. 

In an interview with YourStory, CEO Shaliesh Davey discussed his leadership style, the company’s AI strategy, and its next big bet on indigenous foundational models.

Into the future:

• Davey, who previously served as the Vice President of Engineering at ManageEngine, Zoho’s IT management arm, co-founded the firm in the mid-1990s. 
• According to Davey, there have been two major changes in the past year—the advent of reasoning engines, where an LLM can explain why it took a particular path, and the introduction of tools calling, allowing the LLM to access your environment directly. 
• The company has spent around $20 million over the past two years, and it expects the spending to remain in that range moving forward. “This includes both direct investments and renting GPU machines in data centers, which we plan to continue,” he adds. 

News & updates

• TikTok ban: Amazon and, separately, a consortium led by OnlyFans founder Tim Stokely are the latest to throw their hats into the ring for TikTok. The site faces an April 5 deadline to reach a deal to find a non-Chinese buyer under threat of being banned from the United States.
• Tariff effect: Volvo Cars’ new top executive said on Thursday the company would produce more cars in the United States while ramping up its regionalisation efforts, just as a 25% US tariff on global autos takes effect.
• Crypto slide: US crypto stocks declined on Thursday after US President Donald Trump’s latest round of sweeping tariffs rattled investor confidence due to rising global trade tensions, sparking a sell-off in riskier assets.

In 1792, which country became the first in Europe to abolish the slave trade?

Answer: Denmark.

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