12 oct 2025,

Arattai vs WhatsApp: The answer to Western Big Tech is not Indian Big Tech

The internet is abuzz with talk about moving, in India, from Meta-owned WhatsApp to Zoho-owned Arattai. Arattai is “an easy-to-use, instant messaging app”. A lot of the discourse seems to revolve around moving away from a US/West-owned platform to an Indian-created/owned platform.

Amongst the technology-aware, the conversation seems to centre around the fact that text messaging on Arattai is not end-to-end encrypted, unlike WhatsApp. WhatsApp is one of the chat applications I use, alongside Telegram, Element, Quicksy, and Signal.

Every time I come across a message about moving from WhatsApp to Arattai, I wonder if the person is cognisant of the fact that they’re moving from one walled garden to another. I am saddened by their lack of awareness and disappointed by the lack of fruitful advocacy from the Indian Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) community.

12 oct 2025

GPay, Paytm और PhonePe को टक्कर देगा Zoho, पेमेंट हार्डवेयर के साथ साउंडबॉक्स लॉन्च

Zoho के POS डिवाइस में प्रिंट का भी ऑप्शन होगा जिससे हाथों हाथ कस्टमर्स को रिसीट मिल जाएगी. भारत में फिलहाल Paytm और PhonePe जैसी कंपनियों के POS ज्यादा पॉपुलर हैं.

स्वदेशी कंपनी Zoho इन दिनों सुर्खियों में है. हाल ही में कंपनी का इंस्टैंट मैसेजिंग ऐप Arattai काफी पॉपुलर हुआ है और सरकार भी इसे प्रोमोट कर रही है. अब कंपनी हार्डवेयर स्पेस के लिए बड़ी तैयारी में दिख रही है. Zoho ने अब पॉइंट ऑफ सेल डिवाइसेज यानी POS मशीन बेचना शुरू कर दिया है. इसमें इंटीग्रेटेड QR डिवाइसेज और साउंड बॉक्स शामिल हैं.

भारत में फिलहाल Paytm और PhonePay के POS डिवाइसेज पॉपुलर हैं और ज्यादातर रिटेल स्टोर्स पर यही पेमेंट ऑप्शन देखने को मिलता है. Zoho Payments के तहत लॉन्च किया गया यह POS डिवाइस पेटीएम और फोनपे सहित गूगल पे को कड़ी टक्कर दे सकता है. कंपनी के स्मार्ट POS डिवाइस में टच स्क्रीन इंटरफेस के साथ इनबिल्ट प्रिंटर भी है जो तुरंत रीसीट को प्रिंट कर देता है.

Zoho का पेमेंट टर्मिनल 4G, WiFi और ब्लूटूथ सपोर्ट करता है. इस मशीन के जरिए मर्चेंट्स चिप कार्ड्स, UPI और QR कोड से पेमेंट ले सकते हैं.

Zoho Payments के सीईओ ने कहा है कि यह कंपनी का नेचुरल एक्सपैंशन है जो 2024 में शुरू किया गया था. हालांकि तब सॉफ्टवेयर बेस्ड पेमेंट सोल्यूशन था. कंपनी तब से किसी भी डिवाइस में ऑनलाइन पेमेंट सपोर्ट देती थी. अब कंपनी ने हार्डवेयर भी पेश कर दिया है.

चूंकि Zoho के पास छोटे बिजनेस मैनेज करने के सभी टूल्स हैं, इसलिए पेमेंट टर्मिनल में भी उनका सपोर्ट देखने को मिलेगा. यानी मर्चेंट्स रियल टाइम पेमेंट ट्रैकिंग से लेकर पूरा लेखा-जोखा एक जगह पर पा सकेंगे.

बिजनेस के लिए युनिफाइड डैशबोर्ड भी है जहां से पेमेंट्स और बिलिंग की तमाम जानकारी रिटेलर्स और मर्चेंट्स को आसानी से मिल सकेगी. एडवांस्ड सिक्योरिटी के लिए Zoho ने PCI DSS सर्टिफाइड रखा है.

I Love ❤️ CareerBro — Not Because I Founded It, But for Its Purpose with Profit and Impact

I love CareerBro not because I founded it, but because of its purpose — a purpose that combines profit with impact. Both CareerBro and JobProxy by CareerBro are transforming lives through career guidance and clarity. Career Guidance Changes Lives.

At Talk with A2Z Startups Story — Arvind Upadhyay

Arvind Upadhyay shared that his life was once all about becoming a doctor — his top priority was to make a difference, earn well, and live with purpose. That was his only goal. But after completing 10th grade, he had no idea where to go, what subjects to choose, or what career to pursue. Coming from a small village in Uttar Pradesh, it was difficult to access reliable guidance or resources beyond outdated local books.

“When teachers asked us about our future goals,” Arvind recalls, “I often stayed silent because I was unclear about everything.” Later, he decided to pursue medicine — not out of deep passion, but because it seemed like a respected choice. After 10th, he moved to Nashik and took admission in 11th grade with PCMB (Physics, Chemistry, Math, Biology). “That was a bad decision,” he admits now.

He was a good student until 10th, but after moving, language barriers and new subjects made studies challenging. Despite his efforts, his results weren’t what he hoped for. During this time, he started dreaming of creating something of his own — but with no money and no support, the path was tough.

Arvind began learning from YouTube and the internet — a resourceful yet often distracting journey. He appeared for the NEET exam and scored 290 marks. “Being a Brahmin, I knew I couldn’t secure a seat,” he said, “so I decided to quit and take a two-year break.”

During that break, he built A2Z Startups Story — the very platform where this story is being read today. His personal struggles with career confusion made him realize that millions of students across India face the same challenge. That realization became the foundation of CareerBro.

The Birth of CareerBro

Today, CareerBro stands as India’s most affordable, sustainable, and impactful career guidance brand. It provides Career Guidance, Career Assessments, Career Support, and Job Support — all in one place.

CareerBro isn’t just a company — it’s a movement to help students and professionals find clarity, direction, and confidence in their careers.