Dhruv Mehra

💡 Big News for UAE Businesses: Bridging the Gap Between Free Zones and Mainland Dubai has announced a new permit allowing free zone companies to operate directly in the mainland — a move that’s set to redefine business flexibility and collaboration across the emirate. This initiative empowers free zone entities to expand their client base, partner with mainland companies, and participate in new markets — without the need for a separate mainland license. It’s a forward-thinking step by Dubai’s Department of Economy & Tourism (DET), aimed at boosting competitiveness and making it easier for entrepreneurs and SMEs to grow sustainably. 🌍 🚀 Dubai continues to prove that smart regulation fuels innovation and global growth. #Dubai #Business #UAE #FreeZone #Mainland #Innovation #Entrepreneurship #DigitalTransformation #EconomicDevelopment

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India’s education and training market is very large and growing fast, with tech (online/edtech) segments growing much faster than traditional/non‑tech segments, and competition is intense but fragmented outside a handful of large edtech brands. The opportunity for a new founder lies in picking specific segments (test prep, professional upskilling, corporate training, or vocational skilling) and niches where large players are not deeply focused, then building strong distribution and outcomes.​ Overall market size (INR Cr) India online education (consumer + higher ed + test prep etc.) was about USD 3.6B in 2025, projected to ~USD 23.9B by 2034 at 23.28% CAGR. At an exchange rate of ~INR 83/USD, this is ~INR 29,900 Cr in 2025 and ~INR 1,98,400 Cr by 2034.​ Historic data shows online education was INR 3,900 Cr in 2018 and projected to 36,030 Cr by 2024 at ~43.9% CAGR, indicating a steep scale‑up period from 2018–2024.​ Corporate training in India (largely non‑tech or blended) was USD 10.8B in 2024, i.e., ~INR 89,600 Cr, expected to reach USD 37.8B (~INR 3,13,700 Cr) by 2033 at 13.4% CAGR.​ Vocational training (short‑term skilling, certificates) in India was USD 1.29B in 2024 (~INR 10,700 Cr) and is projected to reach USD 1.95B (~INR 16,200 Cr) by 2033 at 4.7% CAGR.​ So, combining major “course” markets: Tech/online courses: ~INR 30,000–35,000 Cr currently, with fast growth.​ Non‑tech / offline‑dominant courses (corporate training + vocational, not counting full‑time schools/colleges): ~INR 1,00,000 Cr+ currently, but with slower average growth than online.​ Growth over last 5 years Tech / online courses (edtech) Online education grew from about INR 3,900 Cr in 2018 to a projected INR 36,030 Cr by 2024, implying a CAGR of ~44% during 2019–2024. The market then moderates to ~23% CAGR from 2025–2034 as it matures.​ Within online education, test prep and K‑12 segments saw some of the fastest growth (test prep projected ~50%+ CAGR 2019–2024), driven by competitive exams and better internet penetration.​ Post‑COVID, there is consolidation and slower funding, but user adoption remains structurally higher than pre‑2019, especially for working‑professional upskilling and hybrid courses.​ Non‑tech / offline courses Corporate training has grown at a strong double‑digit pace; estimates point to 13.4% CAGR from 2025–2033, with similar high‑single to low‑double‑digit growth in the preceding years driven by digital transformation and upskilling.​ Vocational training shows more modest growth at ~4.7% CAGR projected 2025–2033, driven by government schemes, gig work, and demand for short‑term skill‑based programs.​ Overall, non‑tech segments are growing, but at a slower blended pace than pure online edtech, and growth is often policy‑linked (NSDC, state missions, CSR, etc.).​

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In this final part of our four-part series on AI innovation at The Narayana Group, I'm thrilled to unveil perhaps our most impactful development yet—one that's transforming how we listen to our most important stakeholders: our parents. Communication between teachers and parents is the cornerstone of student success. That's why our dedicated teachers make over 7 lakh adoption calls monthly across India, speaking with each parent at least twice a month. But here's the challenge we faced: 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘇𝗲 𝟭𝟰 𝗹𝗮𝗸𝗵 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝘂𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵? Previously, we could only manually audit 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝟱% 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. That meant 95% of parent feedback, concerns, and insights potentially never reached decision-makers. 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝗻𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗱. So we asked: What if AI could help us listen to every single parent? Introducing 𝗻𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 – Our AI-powered call analysis system that transforms parent-teacher communication. With nScribe: • We 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗺𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗴𝘂𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀 into English with remarkable accuracy • Our advanced AI analyzes 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲𝘀 𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱 • Teachers 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 on their communication effectiveness • Administrators can identify emerging trends across locations • Most importantly—𝘄𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘇𝗲 𝟭𝟬𝟬% 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝟱% The impact has been transformative: ✅ Critical parent concerns are identified and addressed faster ✅ Performance monitoring across locations is comprehensive and data-driven ✅ Parents feel genuinely heard and valued ✅ Our entire organization becomes more responsive to stakeholder needs This isn't just about technology—it's about relationship building at scale. It's about ensuring that every parent, regardless of location or language, 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺. nScribe represents the culmination of our AI journey—combining cutting-edge speech recognition, natural language processing, and sentiment analysis to create a system that doesn't just collect data, but generates actionable insights that improve educational outcomes. With 𝗔𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀, 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗻𝗩𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗳𝗳, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗻𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀—we've created an AI ecosystem that serves every stakeholder in our educational community. Dr Sindhura Narayana

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Agilitas x Virat Kohli partnership is one of the masterstroke deals I have seen in recent times. Virat invests 40 CR in Agilitas for a 1.94% stake, putting Agilitas’s valuation around 2000 CR. 📈 In turn, Agilitas acquires one8world, making Virat a co-founder and shareholder. They now get two very important growth levers: ⬇️ 1. A powerful manufacturing (via Mochiko Shoes - a 600 CR+ footwear brand that Agilitas acquired in 2008 ), 2. India’s biggest athlete — exclusively aligned. Easily becomes a 4000 CR revenue brand in the next 5 years. Footwear + retail scale requires capital — but this partnership compresses customer acquisition, product cycles, and brand-building like few others. Even Virat said in his podcast with Abhishek Ganguly, the co-founder of Agilitas that, “I didn’t want a brand deal… I wanted to build something that outlives me.” And Abhishek said something even beautiful - “An ambition to build from India but be globally relevant.” This isn’t marketing. This is legacy building with shared skin in the game. And that is how startups work - shared ambition with one goal (to make the company big) and food (read stake) in the table for everyone! A company that can be built in the long term with culture, capital, and conviction aligned. This might be the first time in India, where an athlete joins hands with a sport company to re-imagine and build the sport ecosystem of India - truly revolutionalising the game with a clear vision. 🙌

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6 quarters of profitability. 30%+ CAGR growth in core business gross margins over the last three years Strong early consumer & provider traction in UAE and early pilots underway in other developed markets. FY25 was a milestone year for us — driven by our obsession with health outcomes, the potential of AI, and the belief that India can build digital healthcare for the world. Read the full Annual Letter here: https://lnkd.in/gjvH_FiM #DigitalHealth #HealthOutcomes #PractoFY25AnnualLetter

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India’s edtech space may be opening up a fresh opportunity for a new generation of players to innovate, as incumbents either die out or get consolidated. This time, I hope we do it right and avoid repeating past mistakes - including our own, and carry forward some hard-earned learnings: → There are only so many truly good teachers. → Some students simply don’t want to learn - don’t build for them or acquire them. → Many adults want outcomes without effort; adult learning/skilling is ngmi. → Certification is a bullshit business; even if people buy it, it doesn’t improve actual skills - otherwise we’d have seen the impact by now. → Not everyone wants to be an engineer/doctor/CA/lawyer. → A growing number of students genuinely don’t know what they want to do. → Star teachers are a boutique business - stop trying to scale them. → AI might be the best teacher we’ve been waiting for. → Personalized one-on-one human support will stay relevant for a long time. → Colleges that bring students together IRL will remain necessary - we just need a new generation of them. → High achievers need separate schools; their capability is getting stifled in normal ones. → We’ll need new vocational colleges for new-age professions - built by a new wave of education entrepreneurs. → Entrepreneurship-focused high schools may be the best way to nurture students who want to build. → We need a research-focused college for talent that doesn’t fit the current system - we’re losing far too much potential. → Teaching “Bharat adults” real, practical stuff (not random linkbait) is a massive opportunity enabled by AI-led content and personalization. → AI companions can finally solve the “motivation” layer in education (we tried and failed at this), and that can truly move the needle. → A “build and learn” model may be the most effective way to learn - we’re trying to enable some of this with AI Grants India. There are many more lessons from the incredible education entrepreneurs who built over the past decade in India. I hope these aren’t lost - and instead fuel the next generation.

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🚀 Teaser Out Now: GCC Mini-Series | Ep.1 with Lalit Ahuja (Co-Founder & CEO, ANSR) India’s GCC story has been three decades in the making - and it’s only getting started. To kick off our new GCC Mini-Series, I sat down with Mr. Lalit Ahuja, a pioneer who has helped shape the ecosystem from the ground up. 🎥 Watch the teaser here — full episode drops 13 Nov. In the full conversation, we tackle the big questions leaders keep asking: 📌 Past → Present → Future: How have GCCs in India evolved—and what’s next? 📌 India’s Edge: What makes India uniquely suited for high-impact GCCs? 📌 Building Great Hubs: What levers actually create successful GCC cities (talent, policy, infra, ecosystems)? 📌 Vanity vs Impact: Which metrics truly matter for GCC success—and which don’t? 📌 H-1B & Beyond: How US immigration dynamics are reshaping GCC strategy. If you lead enterprise tech, product, or transformation—this one’s for you. 👉 Drop your questions in the comments, share with a GCC leader, and hit follow so you don’t miss the premiere on 13 Nov. 🔥 Sponsors: LexStart Partners, Discover Dollar Inc, Stylumia, Swirl Gifting Partners: Nirantharaa, Kohom Organics Smitha Hemmigae, Muthulakshmi Subbiah, Abhay Tandon, Ayush Bothra, Shruti Sharma, Go Reccie #GCC #GlobalCapabilityCenters #ANSR #Innovation #India #DigitalTransformation #Product #TechLeadership #TIDPodcast #AbhayTandon

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"OTT platform Chaupal is redefining content consumption — especially in regional India and the global Punjabi diaspora. From humble beginnings to now being profitable as of April 2025, Chaupal's journey mirrors that of a tech startup backed by a fanatical user base and sharp strategic execution" Huge shoutout to Sami Khan for this piece and to Latika Sharma and Apple for facilitating this. https://lnkd.in/gx9QUNnK

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UAE’s Bold AI Move: Free ChatGPT Plus for All Residents The UAE just became the first country to offer free ChatGPT Plus access to all residents — a major move through a strategic partnership with OpenAI. As an Indian educator, this is inspiring — but also a wake-up call. Let’s be honest: 🇮🇳 India can’t just copy-paste the UAE’s strategy. With 1.5 billion people, the challenge is of a completely different scale & dynamics. That means India must play smarter. Tomorrow’s AI dominance won’t come just from algorithms — it will come from supercomputing power and massive data infrastructure. So here’s the real question: Can India start investing in computation power and building super data centers at a national level? Can we ensure that access to AI tools is not a privilege, but a public utility? India has the talent, the data, and the ambition. Now is the time to back it with infrastructure, policy, and vision. Just catching up won't do the cut, India has to plan to lead. digitalindia.com #IndiaAI #AI #DigitalIndia #Innovation #OpenAI #UAE #TechLeadership #Filo #FutureOfAI

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