The Next Test For Ecommerce, Unacademy On Sale & More

The 2026 Outlook For Ecommerce 

The year gone by disrupted the traditional ecommerce playbook. While quick commerce and IPOs dominated headlines, an omnichannel and profitability-first reality dawned on the ecosystem. As we step into the new year, what could be in store for India’s ecommerce space?

D2C Gets Redefined: The online-first rule appears to be in a whirlwind. As more new age brands start first in retail, the D2C has now become all about control over data, product, and margins. The era of growth at any cost has ended. Investors are now prioritising CM2 and EBITDA as the true measures of growth.

Rise Of Owned Channels: With DPDP rules tightening data access and marketplaces offering shallow loyalty, brands are prioritising their own platforms. The new strategy? Build community and brand equity on owned-platforms while leveraging quick commerce purely as a fulfillment arm. 

Q-Comm Battle Royale: As giants like Flipkart and Myntra crash the quick commerce party, the fight has shifted from speed to “first-app preference.” However, high burn rates and operational inefficiencies loom large. For late entrants, overcoming the entrenched loyalty and dark store density of incumbents remains an uphill climb.

Search for AI RoI: The AI honeymoon phase is over and now the hard work begins. CXOs are demanding tangible P&L impact. The industry has moved beyond hype to a serious hunt for AI use cases that deliver measurable returns, with supply chain and demand forecasting leading the charge.

War for Lifetime Value: Marketing is also moving from mass acquisition to ecosystem lock-in. By leveraging data to target hyper-niche cohorts, platforms are fighting to maximise share of wallet among the top 10 Mn users. The goal is simple: deepen engagement and turn casual buyers into long-term loyalists.

As we enter a new year, with a new set of challenges, what will define the ecommerce sector in 2026? Let’s find out… 

From The Editor’s Desk

📈 Meesho, Aequs’ Bumper D-Street Debut

• The ecommerce giant listed on the exchanges at INR 162.5 on the BSE, a premium of 46% to its issue price of INR 111. It also debuted at a premium of 45% at INR 161.2 on the BSE. It eventually ended the day with a m-cap of $8.5 Bn.
• Aequs also made a strong debut on the bourses, with its shares getting listed at INR 140 apiece on the BSE and the NSE, a premium of 12.9% to the issue price of INR 124. Shares of the company ended the first trading session at INR 151.5.
• While Meesho’s IPO comprised a fresh issue of INR 5,421 Cr and an OFS of up to 10.6 Cr shares, Aequs’ public offering comprised a fresh issue of INR 670 Cr and an offer for sale of up to 2.03 Cr shares.

🛒 Unacademy Hunts For A Buyer

• After months of rumours, Unacademy cofounder and CEO Gaurav Munjal has publicly confirmed that the edtech unicorn is in talks for a sale, saying that the deal would go ahead if the transaction can create a “stronger entity”.
• Munjal also acknowledged that Unacademy’s valuation has likely fallen below $500 Mn, just about 14% of its 2021 peak of $3.5 Bn. This reflects the brutal reset in late stage edtech valuations particularly as the company has raised over $830 Mn so far.
• The admission marks a sharp shift from December 2024, when Munjal had dismissed reports of a sale to Allen at a $800 Mn valuation as mere rumours. Latest reports link Unacademy to a roughly $300 Mn deal with upGrad.

💰 VCs Accumulate Dry Powder

• Early stage investment platform IAN Group has marked the final close of its second fund at $100 Mn (INR 900 Cr). The fund will look to back early stage startups across AI, spacetech and semiconductor manufacturing .
• The close comes amid a broader swing back to early stage – about 58% of new funds launched in 2025 are targeting seed and Series A ventures. 
• Climate tech VC firm Transition VC also recently closed its maiden fund at INR 700 Cr. This signals that VC firms are already hunting for the next batch of category creators

🚚 Amazon’s $35 Bn Power Play

• The ecommerce giant has committed an additional $35 Bn (INR 3.15 Lakh Cr) investment in its India businesses by 2030, taking its total pledged outlay in the country to roughly $75 Bn.
• Amazon says the fresh capital will look to boost exports from the country to $80 Bn by 2030, expand its AI and logistics capabilities, and fuel SMB digitisation.
• The bet aligns with Amazon’s strategy of treating India as both a growth market and an export hub. The tech giant is lobbying to loosen FDI rules that would let it buy directly from Indian sellers for global customers.

⚖️ Sigh Of Relief For Byju Raveendran?

• A US court has withdrawn its earlier default ruling, which was widely interpreted as ordering the BYJU’S founder to pay over $1 Bn in damages. The court clarified that no damages were actually assessed and a fresh trial will begin in January 2026.
• The dispute centres on $533 Mn linked to the edtech’s US subsidiary, BYJU’S Alpha, with lender GLAS Trust alleging that the funds were misappropriated. Raveendran maintains the money was invested into the now-insolvent edtech startup.
• All of this plays out against BYJU’S dramatic collapse. The startup is undergoing insolvency after years of debt-fuelled acquisitions, opaque accounting, delayed filings and mounting losses.

Inc42 Markets

Inc42 Startup Spotlight

How Synthio Is Fixing Broken Conversations In Life Sciences

Life sciences companies struggle with siloed communication tools and complex compliance workflows. This slows down clinical operations and frustrates both clinicians and patients. Synthio Labs is helping solve this problem without compromising on scientific accuracy or regulatory rigour.

Clinical-Grade Voice AI: Founded in 2024, Synthio Labs is building a clinical-grade voice-AI operating system (OS) for the global life sciences industry. Its stack is designed specifically for regulated environments, focussing on medical reliability, auditability and domain-specific performance rather than generic chatbots. 

Synthio’s Three Pillars: The startup’s OS spans three key products. Jarvis is a voice-AI copilot for field and medical teams, helping them prepare for meetings. Ather blends voice, text and media to deliver personalised journeys across channels. Thirdly, the startup builds “digital twins” of markets and stakeholders, allowing teams to test strategies, messaging and scenarios before deploying them in the real world.

The Road Ahead: Freshly funded, Synthio Labs, going forward, plans to deepen its engineering bench, accelerate product development and scale deployments across the US and Europe. As compliance, accuracy and scale converge, can Synthio become the default voice-AI layer for global life sciences giants?

Infographic Of The Day

The past 12 months tested Zepto’s famously fast growth rhythm. The year saw the quick commerce giant scale down its café venture and lay off 500+ employees amid automation. Here’s what else defined the year for Zepto…