Flipkart’s Seller Playbook, Troubles At Ola Electric & More

Flipkart’s Zero-Commission Tryst  

Flipkart is trying the zero-commission playbook. The ecommerce major has dropped its fees on all fashion products to lock-in sellers, improve margins and sharpen its pitch to brands. But can pricing relief alone deepen loyalty in a crowded market?

The Zero-Commission Net: The new policy now covers all fashion products, not just those priced below ₹1,000 earlier. This means that roughly 90,000 transacting sellers, from MSMEs to D2C brands, on the ecommerce platform can now sell apparels without paying commission. 

Unlocking Margins: With this move, Flipkart aims to make the category more attractive, improve assortment and help sellers reinvest in inventory and branding. Flipkart is also arming these sellers with AI-powered demand insights and catalogue tools to help merchants respond faster to demand shifts.

The Curious Timing: Flipkart is timing this seller push with its ongoing GOAT sale. It is using the high-traffic window to amplify demand, attract more merchants, showcase its zero-commission pitch to sellers and build long-term marketplace loyalty. But Flipkart is also banking on its previous insights to tilt the market in its favour.

The Shopsy Learnings: The fee waiver mimics its Shopsy strategy. After rolling out zero commission for all products under ₹1,000 on the hypervalue platform last year, FLipkart claimed that operating costs for sellers declined by up to 30%, a big incentive in a category where margins can be thin and customer acquisition expensive.

Competition Heightens: Not just this, Flipkart is also responding to rivals. Meesho has built a large seller base by championing zero commission, while Amazon India also recently cut fees on lower-ticket products and delivery services to retain merchants. As competition heightens, Flipkart appears to have realised that seller economics is becoming important to ensure merchants stay committed.

With India’s ecommerce economy projected to become a $450 Bn market by 2032, can zero fees and better tools help Flipkart deepen its fashion advantage? Let’s find out… 

From The Editor’s Desk

Elevate Education Bags ₹170 Cr 

• The edtech startup (formerly Sunstone) has raised $17.7 Mn in its Series D round led by existing backer WestBridge Capital to strengthen AI and tech capabilities, expand its network of partner institutions and upgrade academic courses.
• Founded in 2019, Elevate Education partners with institutions to deliver new-age programmes, practical learning and placement support. It claims to support over 25,000 students and has raised $87 Mn to date. 
• Going forward, the edtech platform is looking to double its revenue to ₹600 Cr by FY29, expand its user base to 60,000 students and partner with 40 institutions. It expects to generate ₹300 Cr in revenue and turn profitable in FY27.

More Troubles At Ola Electric

• The listed EV maker is facing insolvency petitions after two of its suppliers, namely Anevolve Mando E-Mobility and Sterling E-Mobility Solutions, moved the NCLT over alleged unpaid dues. 
• However, the OEM claims that the matter stems from an ongoing arbitration over “pre-existing” disputes. Ola Electric added that it had earlier raised warranty and performance concerns regarding certain parts supplied by the two vendors. 
• This comes as Ola Electric is trying to chart an operational turnaround after a challenging couple of years amid plummeting market share, mounting losses and rising customer complaints.

Dream Sports’ CTO Quits

• Amit Sharma has stepped down as the chief technology officer of the erstwhile gaming giant after a decade-long stint. He now plans to float his own AI venture as the Dream11 parent figures out its own next innings. 
• Sharma joined Dream Sports in 2016 and built the startup’s technology team from scratch. Prior to that, he worked in engineering roles at Netflix and Yahoo in the US. 
• The departure comes as Dream Sports is charting its next course after the Centre’s ban on real money gaming last year. Following the clampdown, Dream Sports pivoted to fintech, content and sports infrastructure businesses, but many failed to gain traction.

Leverage Edu Acquires Mundus

• The study abroad startup has forayed into the South American market with the acquisition of the Brazil-based international education company for an undisclosed amount. 
• The deal marks Leverage Edu’s first international buyout as it looks to expand its global footprint. Going ahead, the startup plans to aggressively pursue acquisitions in both domestic and overseas markets. 
• Founded in 2017, the startup’s offerings span fintech, accommodation, travel, and career support for students looking to study overseas. This comes as Leverage Edu is in talks with bankers for a potential IPO, which could be in the range of ₹2,000-3,000 Cr .

New CTO At PhonePe

• The fintech major has elevated the engineering head of its financial services’ vertical, Srijon Biswas, to the post of CTO. He will continue to report to outgoing CTO and cofounder Rahul Chari, who will now take charge as PhonePe’s CPTO.
• The rejig comes amid multiple leadership exits at the fintech giant. Over the past few months, insurance arm head Vishal Gupta, Indus Appstore’s CEO Akash Dongre and Share.Market’s CEO Ujjwal Jain have stepped down from their roles.
• The exits come as the Walmart-owned platform has halted its IPO plans. After filing its DRHP via the confidential route last year, the digital payments giant pulled the brakes on the ₹12,000 Cr public issue citing market volatility.

Inc42 Markets

Inc42 Startup Spotlight

How Novyte Is Optimising Materials Science With AI

New materials rarely fail at the idea stage. They crumble when founders have to turn new concepts into something manufacturable, stable and commercially viable. This “valley of death” can take years to cross, especially in chemical and industrial sectors. Novyte is leveraging AI to shorten this journey.

AI For Material Sciences: Founded in 2025, Novyte helps materials companies optimise formulations, discover new candidates and automate research workflows. Unlike many AI-for-science startups that chase novelty alone, Novyte is centred on what industry actually needs: synthesisability, scalability, and production readiness.

The Optimisation Layer: The ICT Mumbai-incubated startup’s core product, Novyte Q, uses chemistry-aware AI models to read scientific literature, suggest formulations, recommend experiments and evaluate stability using reinforcement learning and quantum chemistry methods. This helps teams replace hazardous ingredients, improve performance and reverse-engineer materials from technical data sheets.

Built For Enterprises: Novyte sells its software on an annual basis and deploys it on customer-owned infrastructure. The startup claims to have already built a high-single-digit base of paying customers, including names such as Chemvera Specialty Chemicals, Manipal Specialty Chemicals and Primacy Industries.

Beyond Discovery: Novyte is now moving toward building Psi, a discovery platform, and a broader “synthesis layer” that turns AI-generated candidates into manufacturable products. With the global AI-powered materials discovery market projected to become a $5.5 Bn opportunity by 2034, can Novyte turn scientific ideas into scalable industrial materials?

Infographic Of The Day

Nine out of 11 listed Indian ecommerce startups ended FY26 with a profit. But the gap between chasing growth and building a profitable business has never been wider. Here is how every listed ecommerce platform performed on the financial front in FY26…

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