Success Story Dailyhunt: “Made In India” App For Daily News Updates

We no longer have to wait till we get home and turn on the TV to learn the most recent news, nor do we have to wait for the newspaper to arrive. With mobile phones, fast and cheap internet services, and online news aggregators accessing news, the latest information and updates about what’s happening around the world are now a breeze. However, getting local news updates every day in regional languages was still far from the reality in India until 2010 when Dailyhunt was launched.

In this blog, we will tell you about the entire journey of Dailyhunt and its founders.

How Did It Begin ? 

Dailyhunt, earlier known as Newshunt, was initially started by two former Nokia employees, Umesh Kulkarni and Chandrashekhar Sohoni back in 2009. However, it was soon taken over by Virendra Gupta, the founder of Verse, a value-added service company. Virender started his firm in 2007. But even after the success of his new tech-based startup, something was missing in his innovation. Gupta believed that his company will not maintain its shine in the market for a longer period of time and so he decided to purchase a local news and content aggregator app.

Virendra had an aim to create a platform that provides content in vernacular languages. He believed that 70% of the Indian population consists of non-English speakers and that was the target audience for Dailyhunt. Hence, after taking over the Newshunt (now Dailyhunt) and with the introduction of better facilities, the brand kept on becoming a larger platform and giving tough competition to other non-Indian platforms.

Growth Of Dailyhunt

Dailyhunt was one of the unique platforms that gained popularity in no time despite the risks present in the market. Since its inception in the market, Dailyhunt has seen tremendous growth in the news aggregator industry and through its unique approach to providing content in different languages, the company was able to stand out from its competitors. In 2020, Dailyhunt had also joined the much-envied unicorn club of India. The company has received a total funding of around USD 540 million and the most recent funding was USD 207 million which was through Series H funding.

As of January 2022, Dailyhunt has grown on to serve more than 350 million users on a monthly basis and its short video platform, Josh, has recorded the monthly active users (MAUs) at 139 million.  

What Makes Dailyhunt Different From Others?

Dailyhunt’s business model is very unique compared to other platforms because it provides various content in more than 14 different regional languages. Another factor which drives the growth of Dailyhunt is its effective marketing strategy. The marketing strategy of this platform is one of the main instigators for its growing popularity in India. It has now become the largest e news provider in regional languages in India. The company mainly focuses on the millennial group of people who are aged between 25-34 years old and with its vast content curation in a maximum number of regional languages, the platform is also targeting rural areas of the country as well.