The Signal Brief

Note: No new episode next week. We’ll be back on October 30! Many Indians are now buying their meat online. But running such a business is very challenging.   So has online meat delivery changed how India buys meat? To find out, tune in to the latest episode of The Signal Brief . The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get your favourite podcasts.  The Core and The Signal Brief...

Estimates show that people are putting anywhere from 1500-2000 crore a month in corporate bonds. But although it's much easier to buy bonds, do investors really know what they're getting into?  To hear from experts and retail investors on this, tune into the latest episode of The Signal Brief.  The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get your favorite podcasts. The Core...

A PIL in the Supreme Court argues that airfares in India have become too high and too unpredictable. It asks for more government oversight.  So what's going on? Why are flight prices so high?  And what, if anything, can the government do about it? Tune in to the latest episode of The Signal Brief to learn more.  The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get your favourite podc...

We'll be pausing the Tuesday episodes from now, but do tune in to our Friday episodes, which you can find on all streaming platforms. Today's guest is Sooraj Nair, Director, Safety Operations at Uber.  We spoke about the challenge of women's safety in cabs and what Uber is doing to fix them.  The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get your favourite podcasts.  The C...

A few weeks ago, Apple launched its foldable phone: the iPhone Duo. It costs almost three lakh in India. But, foldables have been around for years. The ones by Samsung, Google and Motorola are expensive too. So why buy a foldable? What do you really get for that money? And what are its downsides?  The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get your favourite podcasts.  The Core and...

In The Signal Brief’s Tuesday special, we feature insider interviews with leaders shaping modern consumption. Today’s guest is Neha Kirpal. Neha is the co-founder of Amaha and IMHA or the India Mental Health Alliance. Neha and I spoke about the challenges that women face in accessing mental health care in India today. The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get your favourite po...

Every year, thousands of Indian nurses leave the country to go abroad. That's at a time when India needs more nurses. Healthcare is expanding and the country is ageing.  So why are young nurses leaving, and what can India do to get them to stay?   To learn more and to hear from experts, tune into the latest episode of The Signal Brief.  The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever yo...

In The Signal Brief’s Tuesday special, we feature insider interviews with leaders shaping modern consumption. Today’s guest is Srivatsan Sridhar, founder and CEO of Skydo. Skydo's mission is to make global transactions as seamless as local ones. We spoke about why cross-border payments are so hard and how Skydo is innovating in that space.  The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us whereve...

For years, health advocates have been advocating for the FSSAI to help make labels simpler.  And now, after the Supreme Court directed it, the food regulator has acted.  It has proposed front-of-the-pack warning labels for foods that are high in sugar, salt or fat.  So can these labels really have an impact?  Tune in to find out. The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get your...

In The Signal Brief’s Tuesday special, we feature insider interviews with leaders shaping modern consumption. Today’s guest is Surya Khurana. He’s the MD of FlixBus India, a travel tech company. We spoke about FlixBus’s USP in the Indian bus market and how it is trying to make bus travel a more attractive option for Indian consumers. The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get y...

 India is a country of walkers. In many major cities, over 30% of people travel by foot. In Mumbai, that number is above 50%.  And yet, our footpaths are unusable.  And now the Supreme Court has intervened. In June, it said that the right to walk is a fundamental right.  So what's it gonna take for India's footpaths to become usable?  Tune into the latest episode of The Signal Brief to fin...

You're listening to The Signal Brief's Tuesday special, where we feature insider interviews with leaders shaping modern consumption.  Today's guest is Vinay Kumar Swamy. He’s the country head at Pearson India.  We spoke about how AI is changing entry-level jobs and how freshers could distinguish themselves. The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get your favourite p...

 Last month, people from around the country participated in the Cockroach Janata Party-led protests. But as we all discussed paper leaks, we missed one thing: coaching. In India, this market is worth 14.8 billion dollars. Several NEET aspirants say they couldn't have cracked NEET without coaching.  But coaching comes with costs. So what happens when an industry builds around exams?  The Core produ...

In  The Signal Brief's  Tuesday special, we interview experts from across industries. Today's guest is Richa Dwivedi Saklani. She just published a book titled ‘Jobs 2.0: The Ultimate Guide To AI Proof Your Career’. Richa and I spoke about how AI is changing careers and what young people should do to stay ahead of the curve. The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get you...

Nearly two-thirds of Indian consumers now use AI as a part of their shopping journey, according to Boston Consulting Group.  It saves time, the results are more personalised, and you could potentially find a better deal.  But there are trade-offs. Tune in to the latest episode of The Signal Brief to find out. AI Agents episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3ioqCokpJy6WP8X7fFk1Gl The Core produ...

In The Signal Brief's Tuesday special, I sit down with an expert from across industries. Today's guest is Ameera Shah. She’s the executive chairperson at Metropolis Healthcare, a leading diagnostic chain with presence in India and Africa. We spoke about the massive rise in preventative testing that India is currently seeing.  The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get y...

Today, 'energy drinks' are everywhere--at paan shops, kiranas, and even at college canteens. But now, India's food regulator is cracking down.  In July, the FSSAI asked six brands to remove the term ‘energy drink’ from their label.  Why? And what's really in these so-called ‘energy drinks’?   To find out, tune in to the latest episode of The Signal Brief. The Core produces The Sign...

In The Signal Brief's Tuesday special, I sit down with an expert from across industries. Today's guest is Sneha Singh. She's the managing director at The Good Food Institute India.  Sneha and I spoke about a recent research paper by The Good Food Institute India on the importance of doing more R&D on smart proteins and indigenous crops to fulfil India's unmet nutritional needs....

 This year has been brutal for many credit card users.  Banks have been announcing devaluations one after another.  For instance, American Express raised its spending threshold required to unlock its special Taj voucher. SBI cuts its cashback limits.  So what's going on here?  To learn more and to hear from consumers and experts, tune into the latest episode of The Signal Brief.  The Core produces...

In The Signal Brief's Tuesday special, I sit down with an expert from across industries. Our focus remains the same: helping you understand the trends shaping India. We're simply bringing you more of the conversations behind those stories. Today's guest is Kanchi Gandhi, the MD of Kotak Mahindra Trusteeship Limited. We spoke about gray divorces, meaning couples over 50 who are splittin...

Hiring a caregiver in India can feel like a leap of faith. There's little standardisation and limited regulation. Prices can vary wildly, and from the caregiver's perspective, conditions can be less than ideal, too.  India needs caregiving--our population is getting older. By 2036, people over 60 could number over 230 million. So what's it gonna take to build a caregiving workforce to take care of...

Starting today, July 28th, The Signal Brief is introducing a new weekly segment. Every Tuesday, I'll sit down with a leader or expert from across industries. Our focus remains the same: helping you understand the ideas and trends shaping India. We're simply bringing you more of the conversations behind those stories. Today's guest is Aakash Kandoi, the MD of Jagdish Farsan, an 87-year-old farsan b...

 About a year ago, Sourya got a blood test.  It showed low vitamin D. He took supplements, felt better, but soon started getting tested every couple months. Just for the sake of it. Many more people are getting tested now, even when their doctors didn't ask them to.  India's diagnostics industry is already worth over one lakh crore rupees and is growing at around 12% annually. So what's behind thi...

Most people buy a car and then think about accessories. But Ravi refused to drive his brand-new vehicle until installing a dashcam. In fact, more and more Indians are now treating dashcams as essential. This sector is zooming at a CAGR of 21%. Why? For starters, driving on Indian roads is risky. For drivers, dashcams provide a sense of security. But, do dashcams really help when you’re in trouble?...

A, a 25, has an elaborate AI system to apply to jobs. One AI agent finds openings. The other rewrites her resume. And a third writes her cover letters. Now, candidates like A are not the only ones using AI. Recruiters are using it too. To go through applications, to rank candidates as well as to conduct interviews using AI avatars. So, if both recruiters and candidates are using AI, how has that c...