Daybreak
Business news is complex and overwhelming. It doesn’t have to be. Every day of the week, from Monday to Friday, Daybreak tells one business story that’s significant, simple and powerful. Hosted from The Ken’s newsroom by Snigdha Sharma and Rachel Varghese, Daybreak relies on years of original reporting and analysis by some of India’s most experienced and talented business journalists.
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Is banning social media for children a cure or a cop-out?
<p>This week, Goa said it is actively considering a ban on social media for children under 16, inspired by Australia’s new law. Andhra Pradesh has also set up a panel to examine whether similar restrictions could work there. The push reflects rising anxiety around teen mental health, cyberbullying, and exposure to harmful online content. </p><p>Supporters argue platforms are unsafe by design and impossible to regulate through guardrails alone. Critics question whether bans can keep up with technology or address deeper social issues. </p><p>In this episode, hosts Snigdha Sharma and Rachel Varghese step back from the rh...
The "mother of all trade deals" promises cheaper imports. Prices are another story
<p>This week, India and the European Union signed a sweeping trade deal that cuts or removes tariffs on over 90% of goods traded between them. The headlines quickly focused on what might get cheaper, from wine and cheese to cars and chocolates. </p><p>But trade deals do not change prices overnight. Tariff cuts roll out over time and work their way through importers, distributors, taxes, and markets before they ever reach consumers. </p><p>In this episode, we look at what past trade deals show about everything between a trade deal being signed and actual prices changing for a...
Why Gita Gopinath says pollution hurts more than tariffs
<p>Every winter, Delhi chokes. Masks become mandatory, air purifiers work overtime, and life somehow goes on. But beyond the health crisis lies an economic catastrophe most people ignore—until now.</p><p>Gita Gopinath's recent warning at Davos sparked controversy, but the numbers don't lie: pollution is costing India 1.67 million lives and nearly 3% of GDP annually. Meanwhile, China turned its pollution crisis around in just a few years with ruthless accountability.</p><p>India has the knowledge and technology. What it lacks is political will. And every year of delay continues to put lives at risk and pushes the $5 tr...
India’s data law is giving rise to a new consent economy for banks
<p>India’s new data protection law is reshaping how companies talk to customers on WhatsApp. Messages that once felt routine now carry legal weight and are tied to consent, security, and user rights. Since the Digital Personal Data Protection Act became operational, businesses have begun reworking how they collect and manage personal data. That shift has created a fast-growing market for compliance tools, drawing startups and established firms into the same space. </p><p>As companies rush to avoid heavy penalties, disagreements are emerging over who should manage consent and how independent they need to be. </p><p>The bi...
The rivalry between hospitals and insurers will always be heated
<p>When your insurance card suddenly stops working, it is not just a glitch. It is the symptom of a deeper crisis in Indian healthcare.</p><p>Hospitals say insurers have failed to update reimbursement rates despite medical inflation. Insurers say hospitals are inflating bills and resisting standardization.</p><p>Millions of policyholders are caught between them, forced to pay out of pocket for care they thought was covered.</p><p>How did India’s healthcare system end up in this deadlock. And who really decides what your treatment is worth?</p><p>Tune in.</p><p>*This episode was or...
Your E-Bus Will Be Fixed. Eventually. Probably.
<p>When a public electric bus breaks down in India, three agencies get notified. </p><p>None of them can actually fix it. </p><p>The buses don't belong to the cities that run them. The contracts sit with central agencies. The warranties belong to manufacturers. </p><p>When a four-year-old bus stalls because its battery management system glitched, the city logs a complaint, calculates a fine for the manufacturers, and takes the bus off the route. Commuters are left slim pickings. </p><p>And India's about to deploy thousands more using the same model.</p><p>Daybreak is produced...
Why India’s data centre boom is heading for water bankruptcy
<p>India is building data centres at unprecedented speed to support cloud services, AI, and digital growth. At the same time, cities across the country are struggling with water shortages and repeated contamination of drinking-water supplies. </p><p>A new United Nations report describes this condition as water bankruptcy. It is the stage where water systems continue to function, but only by drawing down reserves that cannot recover fast enough.</p><p>In this episode, host Snigdha Sharma looks at how India’s data centre push fits into that reality, drawing lessons from cities abroad where similar tensions have already sur...
Sam Altman said ads were a "last resort." Welcome to last resort
<p>Sam Altman called ads a "last resort" in late 2024. That day has arrived. </p><p>OpenAI just announced ChatGPT is running ads—personalised ones based on your conversations. The company spent $8 billion in 2025 alone with zero profit, and an essay predicted they'll burn through cash by 2027. </p><p>Meanwhile, Google's Gemini is betting on staying ad-free, preserving user trust while ChatGPT strains it. </p><p>We break down the enshittification playbook, why OpenAI's "code red" memo signals desperation, and whether ads can actually save a company hemorrhaging billions.</p><p>Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, In...
Make in India pushed electronics to deliver volume. Depth is still loading
<p>India has become one of the world’s largest electronics manufacturers, powered by scale, assembly lines, and global contracts. But much of the design, components, and technology still sit elsewhere. </p><p>In this episode, we look at why the government is now backing electronics components, what India’s EMS firms built first, and what they postponed. </p><p>As India pushes deeper into the supply chain, the question shifts from volume to ownership. What does it take to move from assembling electronics to truly building them? Also, how did China get it right?</p><p>Tune in.</p><p>Da...
Gandhinagar vs Delaware: Are India's next 1,000 startups ready to live in Gift City?
<p>For over a decade, Indian startups have chosen to be incorporated in Delaware and Singapore when raising venture capital. </p><p>Now India wants to change that with Gift City—a financial enclave designed to compete globally. But can it? </p><p>We explore why founders still choose Delaware's speed and legal certainty, what Gift City offers to funds but not startups, and the structural gaps that need fixing.</p><p>Tune in.</p><p>Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India’s first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stor...
