Indian renewables startup Kotak Urja raises $8M from Kleiner Perkins, Sherpalo
Kotak Urja, a diversified Indian startup that is planning solar power installations as well as making some solar equipment, has raised $8 million from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Sherpalo Ventures and Applied Materials.
The investment is Kleiner Perkins’ first renewable energy move in India, according to VCCircle. Rather than the tech-heavy companies that the venture firm typically invests in at home, Kotak’s business is weighted more toward reselling or installing existing products in a growing… Continue Reading
Predictify, for crowd-sourced predictions, raises $4.3M
One of several startups that asks users to do poll-style votes in order to predict the future, Predictify is most notable for its partnership with the New York Times blog Freakonomics.
These sites are popping up everywhere. Most recently, we covered Xpree, which lets companies tap into the collective wisdom of their employees, and the Industry Standard, a former magazine that now asks readers to predict events like whether Yahoo will accept Microsoft’s acquisition offer.
Predictify doesn’t… Continue Reading
StudyPlaces raises $3M for education resources
Entering a market dominated by the venerable Princeton Review, new startup StudyPlaces is a information portal for higher education, with college listings, test primers and career advice, as well as community forums.
The company was started by well-known Indian entrepreneur Amitabh Nagpal and based primarily in that country, but also has both a presence and investors in the United State.
Investors in the $3 million round included Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Info Edge and Sherpalo Ventures…. Continue Reading