Quick Summary
Inshorts Founder Azhar Iqubal has reshaped news consumption in today’s fast-paced digital era, where shrinking attention spans demand quick and concise updates. By harnessing the power of AI and machine learning, Inshorts curates news into bite-sized 60-word summaries optimized for mobile-first users, using smart algorithms to personalize content and ease information overload. As the visionary CEO, Azhar Iqubal played a key role in disrupting traditional news models, building a company now valued at hundreds of millions. This businessman article highlights how the combination of cutting-edge AI technology and strong leadership helped create a groundbreaking news platform. The story of Inshorts and its company valued status offers valuable insights for entrepreneurs on transforming industries and adapting to evolving user needs.
Inshorts is a mobile news app that delivers the latest news in crisp, 60-word summaries. It condenses important headlines and stories into quick reads, making it easy for users to stay informed without spending much time.
The journey of Inshorts founder and his team is marked by bold vision, deep understanding of user needs, and relentless execution. What started as a simple dorm room project has evolved into one of India’s most innovative and widely used digital media platforms, transforming how millions consume news. Central to this success are the three visionary entrepreneurs—Azhar Iqubal, Deepit Purkayastha, and Anunay Arunav—who honed their problem-solving skills at the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT).
Identifying the Problem: Too Much Information, Too Little Time
In 2013, while still in college, the trio observed a striking pattern: students and young professionals were interested in staying updated but found traditional news formats too long, cluttered, and time-consuming. Social media was becoming the go-to source for quick updates, but it lacked credibility and depth.
They recognized a critical gap: the need for trustworthy news that was also concise, accessible, and time-efficient.
The Initial Solution: “News in Shorts”
To test their hypothesis, they created a simple Facebook page called “News in Shorts.” Each post summarized major news stories in just 60 words short enough to read in seconds, yet detailed enough to stay informed.
The response was instant and overwhelming. The page quickly went viral among college students, professionals, and digital natives who appreciated the fresh, no-nonsense approach to news. This traction was a clear signal they had found product-market fit, even before building a product.
The Official Launch: Inshorts App (2014)
Fuelled by early success, the team transitioned from Facebook to a standalone mobile application in 2014. Thus, Inshorts was born a sleek, purpose-built app that delivered short news summaries with a swipe interface tailored for mobile users.
User Experience Focus: Simplicity Meets Substance
The app was minimalist in design but powerful in utility. Each article was algorithmically or manually condensed to 60 words or less, with links to full sources for those who wanted more depth.
Features like personalized news feeds, clean typography, swipe navigation, and push notifications made it not just a tool, but a daily habit for users.
Technology Integration: AI + Editorial
Leveraging their strong engineering backgrounds, the founders implemented AI and machine learning to power content recommendations. The result? A highly personalized experience that evolved with the user, improving engagement and retention.
Scalable Infrastructure
Anticipating rapid growth, Anunay led the team in building a scalable and resilient backend. This ensured that the platform could support millions of users without compromising performance an essential factor in their continued success.
CEO and Strategic Architect
Azhar Iqubal quickly emerged as the public face of the company. As CEO, he not only drove the company’s product vision and strategic roadmap but also led multiple successful funding rounds. His clear thinking and focus helped guide Inshorts through various growth phases—from startup to scaleup.
Media Personality and Brand Builder
Azhar’s recent role as a Shark on Shark Tank India further elevated his profile, making him a household name in India’s startup ecosystem. His calm, analytical demeanor and deep understanding of business and tech made him a favorite among viewers and investors alike.
Influence on Brand Trust
His visibility and reputation lent Inshorts credibility in a cluttered news market, especially at a time when users were increasingly skeptical of digital news sources.
The strength of Inshorts lies not just in its product, but in the complementary strengths of its founders:
Their combined skillsets made Inshorts a rare blend of content quality, technological innovation, and business acumen.
Product Iteration and User Feedback
Starting with a minimal viable product (MVP), the team consistently iterated based on real-time user feedback. New features were tested, refined, or discarded based on performance—agility that kept the platform user-centric and ahead of the curve.
Funding Milestones
Their potential was recognized by global investors early on. They raised funding from major venture capital firms such as:
This capital helped expand the team, enhance technology, diversify content offerings, and accelerate user acquisition.
User Growth and Market Impact
Today, Inshorts boasts tens of millions of downloads and a highly active daily user base. With a valuation reaching into the hundreds of millions of dollars, it is now one of the most successful digital media platforms in India.
Broader Impact and Legacy
Key Takeaways for Aspiring Entrepreneurs
2013: Inshorts began as a Facebook page named “News in Shorts.” The founders Deepit Purkayastha, Azhar Iqubal, and Anunay Arunav started by posting concise news summaries catering to busy mobile users. The page quickly gained traction, proving the demand for bite-sized news content.
2014: Encouraged by growing user interest, the team decided to develop a dedicated mobile app. This transition marked Inshorts’ evolution from a social media experiment to a full-fledged digital news platform tailored for smartphones.
2015: Inshorts secured its seed funding round from prominent investors, enabling the team to scale operations, improve technology infrastructure, and hire key talent. This financial boost accelerated product development and user acquisition.
2016-2017: The startup raised its Series A funding, which supported expansion into new content verticals and enhanced app features like personalized news feeds. User numbers surged during this period, with millions downloading the app.
2018-2019: Further investment rounds increased the company valued significantly, validating its innovative business model and market leadership.
2020-Present: Inshorts now boasts a substantial daily active user base and is valued at several hundred million dollars. The app continues to innovate with new offerings and plans for regional and global expansion, cementing its role as a market leader.
Inshorts has garnered significant attention from top-tier venture capital firms, with investors like Tiger Global and Rebright Partners playing a pivotal role in its funding journey. These investors recognized early on the disruptive potential of Inshorts in transforming news consumption for mobile users. Their financial backing has not only provided capital but also strategic guidance, helping Inshorts navigate competitive market dynamics and scale rapidly.
Alongside these big names, several angel investors and early-stage funds contributed to laying the foundation of the company. This diverse investor base reflects strong confidence in Inshorts’ unique approach to news delivery and its potential to dominate the digital news space in India and beyond.
The initial seed funding round was crucial for Inshorts, enabling the founding team to transition from a basic prototype to a fully functional app. Seed investors provided the necessary capital to build core features, develop a user-friendly interface, and launch a marketing campaign aimed at acquiring early adopters.
Following this, Inshorts successfully closed multiple rounds of funding, including Series A and subsequent stages. Each round brought in larger investments, which significantly increased the company’s valuation. These rounds helped Inshorts invest in technology enhancements, expand its content team, and optimize its algorithms for personalized news delivery.
The infusion of capital through these rounds was a clear signal of investor faith, validating the startup’s growth trajectory and business model.
Strategic funding allowed Inshorts to accelerate its growth beyond just increasing user numbers. The capital was allocated to key areas such as product innovation, including the use of AI for better news curation and personalization. Market expansion initiatives also benefitted, allowing Inshorts to increase its presence across different Indian cities and demographic segments.
Moreover, investment helped boost marketing efforts and partnerships with brands, which later became a vital revenue stream. The backing of seasoned investors provided not just funds but valuable insights, networks, and mentorship, which contributed to Inshorts’ strong positioning in a competitive media landscape.
Azhar Iqubal, as the founder CEO of Inshorts and a judge on Shark Tank India, has become an influential figure in the Indian startup ecosystem. His increasing visibility through the popular TV show has enhanced his profile, attracting further investment opportunities and collaborations.
His diverse investment portfolio includes stakes in high-potential startups across technology, fintech, and digital media. This reflects his strong ability to identify innovative, scalable ventures a skill that has also contributed to building a highly valued company like Inshorts.
Azhar’s dual role as entrepreneur and investor, supported by a strong investment portfolio, enables him to back startups financially and strategically. His expertise has also helped build Inshorts into a company valued highly in digital media.
Azhar’s presence on Shark Tank India has amplified the brand value of Inshorts and his personal investment activities. The show serves as a platform to showcase his business acumen and investment philosophy, inspiring confidence among other investors and startup founders.
This visibility has paved the way for new collaborations and funding opportunities, with startups supported by Azhar often gaining added credibility. It also reinforces Inshorts’ position in the dynamic media space, while strengthening the Inshorts founder’s growing investment portfolio tied to innovation and entrepreneurship.
His involvement in Shark Tank India has strengthened the synergy between his role as a founder CEO and his growing investment portfolio.
Advertising Revenue Through Native and Sponsored Content
Monetization Plans and Future Revenue Models
Comparison with Franchise-Style Business Models
Role of Technology and AI in Monetization
Insights into Bootstrapping and Early-Stage Growth Strategies
Importance of Market Timing, Simplicity, and Solving Real User Problems
Turning a Modest Idea into a Scalable and Valued Business
Azhar Iqubal’s Advice for Entrepreneurs
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Shark Tank India Judges: Meet the Titans of Business in 2025
Expansion with the Public App
Following the success of Inshorts, the Inshorts founder and his team launched the Public app to expand their presence in the digital news and social media space. This new platform focuses on community engagement and real-time content sharing, enabling users to interact more deeply with news and social conversations. By leveraging innovative AI technology, the Inshorts founder aims to deliver personalized experiences that increase user engagement. This strategic move helps diversify their offerings and reach a broader audience beyond just bite-sized news, further strengthening the company’s position in the digital media landscape.
Enhancing Content with Video and AI Personalization
Inshorts, under the leadership of its founder CEO, is enhancing its video content strategy to meet the rising demand for visual and interactive news formats. The company also plans to utilize AI-powered personalization to deliver tailored news feeds, boosting user engagement and attracting advertisers. These innovations aim to keep Inshorts competitive in the rapidly evolving digital media space.
Regional and Global Growth Prospects
With a strong foothold in India, Inshorts is exploring opportunities for regional expansion into other emerging markets where mobile-first news consumption is on the rise. The founders envision scaling the platform internationally by adapting content strategies to local cultures and languages, tapping into new user bases, and forming strategic partnerships. This ambitious growth outlook reflects the company’s confidence in its scalable business model.
Leadership and Innovation Under Azhar Iqubal
As the visionary founder CEO of Inshorts and a well-known Shark Tank judge, Azhar Iqubal has been instrumental in driving innovation within the company and beyond. The Inshorts founder’s ability to balance entrepreneurship and investment—right from securing early seed funding—has made him a key figure in India’s digital media and startup landscape.
Inshorts founder and founder CEO Azhar Iqubal demonstrates how visionary leadership combined with innovative AI technology can revolutionize traditional industries. By providing concise, personalized news tailored for mobile users, the platform addresses modern needs while navigating challenges through seed funding and ongoing innovation. Under the guidance of the Inshorts founder, the company has disrupted news consumption in India and built a company valued highly in the digital media space. Azhar’s strong investment portfolio and strategic vision have laid a solid foundation for regional and global expansion, offering key insights for aspiring entrepreneurs.
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As of 2025, Inshorts is valued at approximately ₹3,700 crore (around $550 million), based on its latest funding rounds and market position.
Inshorts earns revenue primarily through advertising, offering brands sponsored content and native ads within its app, targeting a young, digital-savvy audience.
Inshorts is headquartered in Gurugram, Haryana, India, and operates under a Singapore-based parent company.
Azhar Iqubal is best known for co-founding Inshorts, a popular news aggregation app, and later launching the Public App, a location-based social networking platform.
Azhar Iqubal hails from the city of Patna, Bihar.
Azhar Iqubal has received several accolades, including Forbes India 30 Under 30 (2018), BusinessWorld 40 Under 40 (2018), and the Entrepreneur of the Year 2022 award.
Authored by, Amay Mathur | Senior Editor
Amay Mathur is a business news reporter at Chegg.com. He previously worked for PCMag, Business Insider, The Messenger, and ZDNET as a reporter and copyeditor. His areas of coverage encompass tech, business, strategy, finance, and even space. He is a Columbia University graduate.
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Chegg India does not ask for money to offer any opportunity with the company. We request you to be vigilant before sharing your personal and financial information with any third party. Beware of fraudulent activities claiming affiliation with our company and promising monetary rewards or benefits. Chegg India shall not be responsible for any losses resulting from such activities.
