iWorld
Digital video network Culture Machine raises $18 million
MUMBAI: Culture Machine, a digital video network, has raised $18 million in series B funding led by Tiger Global, Zodius Capital and Times Internet. The company had previously raised $3.5 million in series A funding from Zodius Capital and Times Internet.
Culture Machine, co-founded by Sameer Pitalwalla and Venkat Prasad, former Disney and Youtube executives, creates digital video entertainment for the internet generation by combining cutting edge technology with great content.
“In a multi-screen, multi-platform world where content is personalised and social is the new distribution, creating targeted content for global communities at scale is a challenge. These digital video platforms are the next generation of distribution, and we are building a next generation media company that uses our proprietary technology platforms, to know what content to create and create that content at scale,” said Pitalwalla and Prasad in a joint statement.
Tiger Global Management partner Lee Fixel added, “Culture Machine Media has built a world-class technology platform and the largest creator network in the country. We’re excited to support the company as it innovates digital content for a rapidly growing audience.”
“Culture Machine is uniquely positioned to build “the” leading media company for the internet generation. We are very supportive of Sameer, Venkat and the team given their ability to produce and curate world class content using a cutting edge intelligence platform that uses big data to help understand, identify and monetise what content resonates with which audiences across multiple video platforms,” said Zodius Capital managing director Gautam Patel.
Chris LaRosa, former product head of YouTube Music, has joined the Culture Machine’s advisory board. At YouTube Music, LaRosa was responsible to build the vision, strategy, and the products that turned YouTube into the most popular music service on the internet and a $1 billion business for artists and labels.
Culture Machine has offices and studio facilities in Mumbai, Delhi, Pune and Chennai and is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Aleph Group, Singapore.
Culture Machine has offices and studio facilities in Mumbai, Delhi, Pune and Chennai and is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Aleph Group, Singapore.
iWorld
X launches XChat messaging app on iOS with calls and encryption
Standalone app marks shift from “everything app” vision, adds E2E messaging.
MUMBAI: From one big app to many small chats, X seems to be splitting its ambitions. X has rolled out its standalone messaging app, XChat, to iOS users, opening up a new front in its evolving product strategy. The app allows users to connect with existing X contacts through private and group messages, file sharing, as well as audio and video calls. The launch follows a limited beta phase, where the platform tested the product with a smaller user base to refine the experience. Now available publicly, XChat marks a notable pivot from earlier ambitions championed by Elon Musk to turn X into a single “everything app” combining messaging, payments, commerce and more.
Instead, the company under xAI ownership and backed by SpaceX appears to be building a suite of standalone applications, each targeting specific use cases while expanding its broader ecosystem.
At launch, XChat includes end-to-end encrypted messaging, PIN-based access, disappearing messages, and features such as message editing, deletion for all participants, and screenshot blocking. The company has also said the app is free from advertisements and tracking mechanisms, positioning it as a privacy-first alternative in a crowded messaging space.
However, security claims around the platform are likely to face scrutiny. Earlier iterations of XChat drew criticism from experts who argued it fell short of established encrypted platforms like Signal. With the wider rollout, the app is expected to undergo fresh evaluation to assess whether those concerns have been addressed.
Beyond messaging, XChat will also house X’s Communities feature, which is being discontinued on the main platform due to low usage and spam concerns. Migrating these users could provide an early boost to adoption, effectively turning XChat into both a communication and community hub.
The move underscores a broader recalibration at X less about cramming everything into one app, and more about spreading bets across multiple touchpoints, one message at a time.
