Runtime | Indian Tech News | Wednesday, September 3rd, 2025

Welcome to Runtime’s daily Indian tech news roundup, hosted by Caleb Friesen. Today, Puch AI buys India’s most expensive phone number and takes aim at OpenAI, Meta, and Google, Swaayatt Robots shows off Level-5 autonomous driving in Indian traffic, Ola Krutrim lays off 50 more employees, Offgrid Energy Labs raises $15 million for ZincGel batteries, OpenAI billboards appear across India, Tesla struggles with just 600 car orders, and Apple opens its new Bengaluru store.

0:00 Puch AI Buys India's Most Expensive Number
3:15 Swaayatt Robots Autonomous Vehicle Demo
4:15 Ola Krutrim Lays Off 50 People
4:41 Offgrid Energy Labs Raises $15M for ZincGel Batteries
5:21 OpenAI India Billboards Are Everywhere
5:49 Tesla India Only Got 600 Orders
6:09 Apple India Opens Bengaluru Store

Puch AI Buys India's Most Expensive Number

Puch AI has acquired what they are calling India’s most expensive phone number: 9090909090. When you call this number, you can speak to an AI agent with the voice and personality of a famous Indian person. Early callers have been connected to Virat Kohli, Navjot Singh Sidhu, and Karina Kapoor. This free AI chat service is designed to make AI accessible to Indian users, especially those who have never interacted with AI before. Puch AI is also offering video generation directly through WhatsApp. Co-founder Siddharth Bhatia has said that Puch AI wants to compete with OpenAI, Meta, and Google, and he has made bold claims about rejecting acquisition offers. Puch AI wants to become India’s most accessible AI platform for chat, voice, image, and video generation.

Swaayatt Robots Autonomous Vehicle Demo

Swaayatt Robots recently held a demo with representatives from Suzuki. The autonomous vehicle successfully navigated motorcycles, cones, wrong-side drivers, bicycles cutting in front, and unexpected pedestrians. According to Swaayatt Robots, their frameworks are being scaled to achieve Level-4 and Level-5 autonomous driving in Indian traffic conditions. Level-5 is the highest level of autonomous driving, where a vehicle can handle every driving task without human input.

Ola Krutrim Lays Off 50 People

Ola Krutrim has laid off another 50 employees in its linguistics team, including team leads and transcribers for languages such as Bengali, Malayalam, and Punjabi. Ola Krutrim stated that the data annotation project these employees were working on has been completed. This marks the third round of layoffs at Ola Krutrim in 2025, bringing the total number of layoffs to around 200 so far this year.

Offgrid Energy Labs Raises $15M for ZincGel Batteries

Offgrid Energy Labs has raised a $15 million Series A round led by Archean Chemicals Industries with participation from Ankur Capital. Offgrid Energy Labs develops ZincGel batteries, which use zinc-bromide chemistry that is cheaper than lithium-ion and relies on common and recycled materials. Founded in 2018, Offgrid Energy Labs has offices in Gurugram, Kent, and San Francisco. The company plans to use the funding for a demo manufacturing unit in the UK and a gigawatt-scale plant in India. Offgrid Energy Labs currently holds 25 patents related to electrodes, electrolytes, and battery design.

OpenAI India Billboards Are Everywhere

OpenAI billboards have started appearing across India, including in Jaipur, Bengaluru’s JP Nagar, and Pune. This is part of a campaign led by Sheeladitya Mohanty, OpenAI’s new India marketing lead. OpenAI is also preparing to build a large India data center with a capacity of at least 1 gigawatt and is actively looking for local partners. OpenAI’s push into India is part of its broader strategy to expand its AI presence globally.

Tesla India Only Got 600 Orders

Tesla has received 600 orders for its electric cars in India since July 15, according to Bloomberg. This figure is lower than what Tesla was expecting. Tesla cars are priced around ₹60 lakh in India, much higher than the roughly ₹35 lakh value in other markets, which may be limiting demand. Tesla’s India entry highlights both interest in EVs and challenges in pricing strategy.

Apple India Opens Bengaluru Store

Apple has officially opened a new Apple Store in Bengaluru. This marks another step in Apple’s India retail expansion and reflects the company’s growing focus on India as a key market.