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YOU WONT BELIEVE: Urban company - What They Never Told You

Fable 5 wake-up call; Indians chase SpaceX jackpot

Happy Monday! The Fable 5 disruption has triggered fresh calls for India to build its own AI muscle. This and more in today’s ETtech Morning Dispatch.

The Economic Times

Instant househelp startups burn $14-15 million in May as discounts heat up

Instant home services platforms like Urban Company, Snabbit, and Pronto are aggressively spending millions on discounts again to capture market share. Despite increased cash burn, order growth is modest, indicating a fierce customer acquisition battle. Companies are prioritising scale over immediate profits in this competitive landscape.

The Economic Times

Urban Company winds down Saudi Arabia subsidiary, operations to continue through joint venture

Home services giant Urban Company has ceased its operations in Saudi Arabia following the cancellation of its subsidiary's commercial registration. This voluntary winding-up process, initiated in late 2025, marks a strategic shift for the company as it prioritises profitability over expansion. The firm recently reported a significant increase in net…

The Economic Times

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ETtech Explainer: What Pronto’s new video recording feature means for your privacy

Pronto's service professionals — who provide cleaning, washing, and meal preparation services — record their activities, generating videos that can help train physical AI systems. Following privacy concerns, the founders of rival platforms Urban Company and Snabbit clarified that they do not engage in such practices and have no plans…

The Economic Times

Of kitchens & cosmetics: Snabbit forays into beauty services after home cooks

Instant house help platform Snabbit has launched a salon-at-home offering, connecting customers with beauty professionals within minutes. Piloted successfully in Bengaluru, the service aims to provide convenience and speed, competing with established players like Urban Company. This expansion follows a recent $56 million funding round.

The Economic Times

Instant househelp orders jump; Agnikul eyes new funding

Happy Monday! Instant house help startups collectively reached three million monthly bookings in April. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch.

The Economic Times

Instant house help startups see bookings top three million in April amid labour shortage

As platforms raise prices and battle for workers, questions are emerging around the long-term size and profitability of the 10-minute househelp market. Companies are now expanding into adjacent categories such as cooking and car washing to deepen engagement and drive growth.

The Economic Times

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Optimising to win, capture market share in InstaHelp: Urban Company CEO Bhal as firm reports 57x jump in net loss

Home services platform Urban Company reported a 57-fold jump in net loss to Rs 161 crore in the March quarter of FY26, primarily due to increased spending on its InstaHelp segment. The company is prioritizing market share over short-term profitability in this competitive on-demand domestic help market.

The Economic Times

Long hours, low earnings, paying to work: The brutal life of an Urban Company beautician

Nisha Panwar gets up by 5.30 am, prepares breakfast for her children, gets them ready for school, and drops them on her way to work, either by Scooty or by auto. She’s on her phone most of the time, coordinating bookings that she has lined up. Some bookings start by…

Newslaundry

India’s gig workers remain undocumented, unprotected

Savita* was shocked to discover that her Urban Company ID had been blocked in February 2023 because she did not meet the monthly target of 40 clients. “My mother-in-law passed away and I took a break of one month from work. I was left without any means of income,” the…

Newslaundry

‘Destruction of jobs’: India election turns spotlight on a dream gone sour

India’s workforce is becoming more informalised and the quality of employment has suffered since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Al Jazeera

India’s Urban Company revolutionised gig work for women. Then it bled them

Multiple costs to qualify for work leads, forced product purchases, high rate of blockings have stripped their earnings.

Al Jazeera

Only three e-commerce platforms have minimum wage policy: study

Grim working conditions for India's gig workers revealed by Fairwork India's fifth annual study across 12 e-commerce platforms. Only three platforms had minimum wage policy, two had external audits to check for biases, and none provided living wage. Five Fairwork principles examined, with two platforms not receiving any points. No…

The Hindu

Morning Digest | Over 400 arrested in various States for violent protests against Prophet remarks, Rahul Gandhi to appear before ED in National Herald case today, and more

A select list of stories to read before you start your day

The Hindu

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The Hindu

Women who protested against Urban Company denied jobs

They claim they are facing ‘targeted’ action by either having their accounts ‘shadow-blocked’ or deactivated

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