Tesla is desi and pricey; WeWork gets D-Street permit

Time of India

6 days ago

Tesla is desi and pricey; WeWork gets D-Street permit
Also in the letter:
Tesla bets on luxury as it rolls into India
What's the latest:
Why it matters:
EV penetration in India remains under 5%, and luxury vehicles account for just 1% of total car sales.
That puts Tesla in the same lane as the German trio—BMW, Mercedes, and Audi—rather than local EV players like Tata or Mahindra.
Tell me more:
Between the lines:
WeWork India IPO gets Sebi nod amid global parent's turmoil
IPO details:
The Rs 4,000-crore offering will be a pure offer for sale.
Promoter Embassy Buildcon plans to offload 33.46 million shares.
Investor 1 Ariel Way Tenant will sell 10.29 million shares.
No fresh capital will be raised by the company.
Backdrop:
A proposed 27% stake sale to WeWork Global fell apart last year due to valuation disagreements.
Embassy will remain the controlling shareholder after the IPO, while partially cashing out alongside its co-investor.
The bottom line:
Also Read:
Instamart contribution breakeven hinges on AOV ramp-up: Elara
Tell me more:
If it gets there, the platform is expected to close FY26 with a contribution margin loss of 2%, down from 4% last year.
Jargon buster:
But:
Elara expects Instamart's adjusted Ebitda loss—the measure of a business's core profitability—to shrink to 3% of gross merchandise value (GMV) by FY28, from 14% in FY25.
Sector view:
Nvidia revives China push without breaking US rules
What's the matter:
Also Read:
Quote, unquote:
Geopolitical tension:
AI-generated resumes jam hiring funnel, raise screening burden
Recruiters' dilemma
The numbers:
What they're saying:
Also Read:
Tesla (finally) entering India does not do much for the masses, and that's all according to plan. This and more in today's ETtech Top 5.■ Road ahead for Instamart■ Nvidia's China comeback■ AI's hiring woesNearly a decade after Tesla CEO Elon Musk teased the possibility of his cars rolling out in India, the company has finally opened its showroom in Mumbai . The store, located in the upscale Bandra Kurla Complex, will be followed by a second outlet in New Delhi before the end of July.Tesla will showcase its Model Y SUV , imported from China and priced at over $56,000 before taxes. That's a steep premium compared to what the car costs in the US, with India's steep import duties (70%) contributing to it.This isn't about chasing volumes. At least, for the time being. Tesla is aiming squarely at India's luxury car buyers, using this rollout to test the waters, build brand equity, and generate buzz.India has long pushed Tesla to manufacture locally, which would help it sidestep those punishing import tariffs. But for now, there's no gigafactory on the horizon . A broader US-India trade deal that includes lower duties on electric cars could change the equation.With sales slowing in the US, China, and Europe, Tesla could see India as a long-term bet rather than a short-term boost. The market is still small, but symbolic. For Musk, if policy support and local demand align, India could become a key growth lever. For now, however, it's all about presence, prestige, and patience.Karan Virwani, CEO, WeWork IndiaWeWork India has secured Sebi's approval to go public , even as its global parent, WeWork Inc. remains mired in financial distress.This marks the first significant public move by WeWork India since its US-based parent filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2023 . But the Indian unit has long operated independently and profitably, with exclusive rights to the brand since 2017.Unlike its crisis-hit global counterpart, WeWork India has stayed steady. It runs nearly 95,000 desks across 59 spaces in major cities, and has largely kept its distance from the chaos at headquarters.The listing offers a timely exit for Embassy and its investor, while drawing a clear line between the Indian brand's financial path and its troubled origin story. It's also a rare show of public-market confidence in India's flexible workspace sector.Instamart needs to lift its average order value (AOV) to break even on contribution margin within a year, according to a note by Elara Capital. Still, Swiggy's quick commerce arm isn't expected to turn profitable any time soon, the brokerage said.To hit breakeven target by Q1 FY27, Instamart must grow its AOV to Rs 637, up from Rs 527 as of March 2025, Elara analyst Karan Taurani noted.Contribution margin is the revenue that remains after covering variable costs like labour and raw materials.That said, profitability will remain out of reach for now. Fixed costs are high and hard to shed, partly because Instamart has fewer franchise stores than Blinkit. Add to that the heavy spending on branding and marketing, and the road to profit gets longer.Meanwhile, Instamart and Blinkit are estimated to have grabbed market share from Zepto in the June quarter, according to industry analysts. However, quick commerce players have been experimenting with new ways to charge users to cut losses.Nvidia is gearing up to resume sales of its H20 AI chips in China , after securing a green light from Washington on export licenses.The H20, a watered-down version of Nvidia's flagship AI chips, was built specifically to comply with US export control restrictions, but shipments had been held up since April due to licensing delays. China remains one of Nvidia's biggest markets for data centre GPUs, even as the US tightens controls on advanced chip exports.CEO Jensen Huang confirmed the restart while speaking to Chinese media ahead of his appearance at the China International Supply Chain Expo this week. It's already his third trip to China this year.Nvidia is treading a fine line — keeping Beijing onside without falling foul of US national security mandates. The company still faces stiff competition from Huawei and rising local challengers. But re-entering the market with the H20 could help Nvidia protect its turf, at least for now, as China doubles down on semiconductor self-sufficiency.Recruiters are swamped with AI-written CVs as jobseekers lean heavily on generative tools to polish resumes and prep for interviews.: AI may help candidates beat automated filters, but it's making life harder down the line. Companies are rolling out tougher assessments, live proctoring tools, and behavioural analytics to weed out inflated claims and overly rehearsed answers.Manual checks and deeper human interactions still matter, especially for senior or specialist roles. For large-scale hiring, recruiters are leaning on stricter technical and psychometric tests even before the first interview.TeamLease Digital estimates 25–30% of resumes are now AI-generated, a sharp rise from just 8% a year ago. Xpheno reckons half of all applicants use ChatGPT to tailor CVs to job descriptions.'There's a 25% jump in applications across roles,' said Kamal Karanth of Xpheno. 'But only human screening ensures final fit.' For senior hires, most filtering still happens via referrals, not machines.