Weeks after the Tata Sons boardroom dispute put questions of succession, shareholder power, and board authority in focus, another family-linked corporate contest is heading to a key vote.

Hikal shareholders will vote on Wednesday on Sameer Hiremath’s five-year term as chairman and managing director, with the Hiremath and Kalyani sides holding near-identical stakes of about 34% each. The vote comes amid a decades-old ownership dispute, while proxy advisers are split on his elevation.

Meanwhile, India’s startup IPO pipeline is getting busier, and ecommerce and mobility are joining the party. Snapdeal parent AceVector is set to hit the public markets this week, while used-car marketplace Spinny has filed confidential IPO papers, reportedly looking to raise up to Rs 3,000 crore. Two very different consumer businesses, but both signal how India’s startup story is moving deeper into the public markets.

The expansion story is playing out overseas too. PhonePe is taking its payments overseas by securing in-principle approval from the UAE central bank for two payment licences. The fintech plans to integrate with the UAE’s Aani and Jaywan payment rails once it receives final regulatory approval.

And then there’s AI, where the debate is getting louder. DeepSeek is set to brief the UN Security Council this week on AI risks as world leaders gather in New York for the UN General Assembly. The meeting comes amid growing calls from AI leaders for a coordinated slowdown in developing increasingly powerful systems over concerns about human control. 

But not everyone sees a doomsday scenario.

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