In a major move to cement its technological leadership, Indian e-commerce giant Flipkart has announced the acquisition of a majority stake in Bengaluru-based AI startup Minivet AI. Announced on December 19, 2025, this marks Flipkart’s first major acquisition in the AI/ML space and is a direct response to the industry’s accelerating shift towards video-led, conversational, and AI-driven shopping experiences. This strategic investment is designed to supercharge Flipkart’s generative AI (GenAI) capabilities, transforming static product listings into dynamic, engaging content for millions of users.
Why Minivet AI? The Core of the Deal
Minivet AI, founded in 2024, specializes in a game-changing technology for e-commerce: generative video. Its platform can automatically convert traditional, static product catalogue images and descriptions into rich, engaging video content at a massive scale. For a platform like Flipkart, which hosts over 150 million products across 80+ categories from more than 1.4 million sellers, this capability is transformative.
The table below summarizes the key facts of the acquisition and Minivet AI’s core offerings:
Beyond video, Minivet AI positions itself as a “full-stack AI partner” for retail, with expertise in semantic search and conversational interfaces. This makes it a foundational asset for Flipkart’s long-term GenAI roadmap.
The Strategic Vision: Building an Immersive Shopping Future
For Flipkart, this acquisition is far more than a talent or technology buy. It’s a calculated move to redefine the online shopping experience and secure a competitive edge in a rapidly evolving market.
- Winning in Video-First Commerce: The e-commerce industry is pivoting decisively towards visual and video-led discovery. Flipkart executives have stated that Minivet’s technology is critical for addressing this “visual-first and video-first commerce” trend, which directly drives higher customer engagement and conversions.
- Enhancing the Entire Flipkart Ecosystem: The capabilities gained are not limited to the main Flipkart marketplace. The technology is expected to be deployed across the wider Flipkart Group, which includes Myntra, Flipkart Wholesale, Cleartrip, and super.money, creating a unified, advanced shopping experience.
- A Step Towards an AI-First Company: This acquisition aligns with Flipkart’s broader vision of using AI as a core capability to drive growth. As Sandhya Kapoor, Senior Vice President at Flipkart, has highlighted, AI is central to personalizing shopping, empowering sellers, and improving efficiency across their ecosystem.
The Bigger Picture: Context and Implications
This deal does not exist in a vacuum. It is part of a series of strategic plays by Flipkart, coming just months after its majority stake acquisition in digital media platform Pinkvilla. This pattern shows a clear focus on acquiring assets that boost content engagement and technological depth, particularly to attract younger shoppers.
Furthermore, the acquisition coincides with a significant corporate milestone for Flipkart: receiving approval to shift its legal domicile from Singapore to India. This move is widely seen as a precursor to a potential domestic stock market listing (IPO), and strengthening its in-house, cutting-edge AI capabilities would make the company a more attractive prospect to investors.
Conclusion: A New Chapter for Indian E-Commerce
Flipkart’s acquisition of Minivet AI is a landmark moment that signals the next frontier of competition in Indian e-commerce. It moves the battleground beyond logistics and discounts into the realm of AI-driven, immersive customer experience. By bringing advanced GenAI for video and search in-house, Flipkart is not just keeping pace with global trends but is aiming to set the standard for the future of retail in India and beyond.
For sellers on the platform, this promises tools to create stunning product presentations effortlessly. For hundreds of millions of customers, it heralds a more intuitive, interactive, and engaging way to shop online. As the deal closes and integration begins, the Indian e-commerce landscape watches closely, anticipating the new, AI-powered shopping reality that Flipkart is now building.
