According to reports, Delta Electronics, a Taiwanese power and energy management company, is spending $500 million to increase its footprint in India. According to a top official who spoke with a media agency, the investment, which was made public in 2015 as part of the “Make in India” campaign, intends to increase the company’s operations and manufacturing in the nation.
Benjamin Lin, president of Delta Electronics India, stated at Elecrama 2025 that the company has made large investments through its local division since entering the Indian market in 2003. He went on to say that India is a significant market for Delta and that we are dedicated to using our cutting-edge solutions to propel its industrial and energy revolution. The company’s strategic investment in the Krishnagiri facility demonstrates its commitment to sustainability, superior production, and local innovation.
Delta’s Expansion Plan
Lin noted that Delta Electronics is now spending $500 million in India, which includes expanding its Krishnagiri facility. He emphasised that while upholding international industry norms, the investment seeks to increase India’s independence in smart manufacturing and energy infrastructure. Additionally, he stated that by the end of 2025, a portion of this expansion should be operational. It’s important to remember that the 125-acre Krishnagiri project, which included a special economic zone (SEZ), was supposed to be completed in five stages.
At its Krishnagiri location, roughly 90 kilometres from Bengaluru, Delta Electronics produces solutions for telecom, data centre energy efficiency, and electric mobility. Since 2003, Delta Electronics India, a division of Delta Group, has been a prominent player in the power and energy management industry. It leads the market in telecom power, EV charging, and display solutions and specialises in power electronics, automation, and infrastructure. In addition, the company provides energy storage systems, rail transportation, UPS and data centre solutions, and industrial automation. With two R&D centres (Gurugram, Bengaluru), three manufacturing plants (Rudrapur, Gurugram, Krishnagiri), and sixteen regional offices, Delta has a significant national footprint.
India’s EV Sector
India has seen a tremendous increase in EV adoption due to government regulations and startups that prioritise sustainability. The market is expanding quickly despite its late start thanks to the creative solutions provided by companies like Ather Energy, Altigreen, BluSmart, and Exponent Energy. By 2029, the Indian EV market is expected to grow to a value of $110.74 billion. Indian EV entrepreneurs are lowering carbon emissions, providing affordable fossil fuel substitutes, and advancing sustainable mobility, energy infrastructure, and battery management solutions.
The move coincides with the Indian government’s intention to restrict the amount of money that international manufacturers may spend on charging infrastructure to 5% of their overall investment. The purpose of this clause is to guarantee that EV producers concentrate more on making vehicles than on building charging stations. Their pledged commitment in the nation will not include any investments made above the 5% criterion. A few thousand electric vehicles will reportedly be shipped to a port close to Mumbai in the upcoming months by Elon Musk’s Tesla, which is getting ready to enter the Indian market. As part of its expansion strategy in India, the EV giant has also decided on two locations for its showrooms: Delhi and Mumbai.
E-two-wheeler retail sales reached their second-best monthly performance, only missing March’s 140,333 units, thanks to festive season demand and alluring OEM discounts. While Ola has recovered to levels above 41,000, TVS and Bajaj are still engaged in a fierce war.
This segment all set to reach a million sales for the first time in a calendar year in November, as the top six OEMs each surpass their CY2023 retails in the first 10 months of 2024.
What Spiked the Sales of EV 2Wheeler?
In spite of the reduced subsidy, the buyer-friendly festive season schemes, attractive deals offered by e-two-wheeler OEMs, and the availability of customised financing, retail sales were the second-highest in this calendar year to date, following the FAME II subsidy-ending month of March 2024 (140,333 units). The new PM E-Drive Scheme went into effect on October 1. The PM E-Drive Scheme aims to assist 24.79 lakh e-two-wheelers, 316,000 e-three-wheelers, and 14,028 electric buses with an expenditure of INR 10,900 crore over two years and subsidy/demand incentives of INR 3,679 crore. The PM E-Drive Scheme, which runs from October 1, 2024, to March 31, 2026, does not apply to passenger cars.
The largest volume driver of the Indian EV market is the electric two-wheeler market. According to the most recent data accessible on the Vahan websites of the Indian government, it made up 64% of India EV Inc.’s total volumes of 217,621 units in October.
Ola Electric Back in Form
Ola Electric will be relieved that it sold 41,605 units in October 2024, following two turbulent months of low sales of fewer than 28,000 units (August: 27,615 and September: 24,716), which caused the company’s market share to drop to less than 30%. This represents a 74% YoY gain and a 68% month-over-month increase. Additionally, the company has sold an additional 96,885 units through the end of October, surpassing its total CY2024 retail sales of 267,376 units.
Ola experienced a strong month-over-month growth from April through July until the steep decline in August and September. The company had started CY2024 with 32,424 units (up 77%) in January and reached a peak of 53,640 units (up 150%) in March. Numerous complaints from customers regarding poor service were blamed for Ola’s August and September sales drop. However, sales have increased in October after the recently listed business promised that it has satisfactorily resolved 99.1% of consumer concerns through its redressal procedure.
TVS Regaining its Spot by Taking Over Bajaj
In October, TVS Motor Co. reclaimed the second position on the e-two-wheeler podium after being hurt by Bajaj Auto’s September takeover. The iQube producer saw a robust 81% YoY rise with retail sales of 29,890 units (October 2023: 16,507 units), and last month’s market share was 21%. TVS’s market share for the first ten months of this year is 18.41%.
The effort paid off, as TVS Motor’s October retails are its greatest monthly numbers to date. Like Bajaj Auto, TVS Motor sent the most iQubes to its dealers in October, totalling 28,564 units.
These two legacy OEMs are still engaged in a fierce struggle; in CY2023, TVS sold 166,581 iQubes, which was 94,641 more than Bajaj Auto’s 71,940 Chetaks. In the current calendar year, such an enormous disparity has significantly decreased to 27,164 units.
Three battery options are available for the TVS iQube: 2.2 kWh, 3.4 kWh, and 5.1 kWh. The business reports that the market is responding favourably to the complete portfolio. With a 2.2kWh battery, the standard model can travel 75km in real life and takes two hours to fully charge using a 950W charger. At INR 94,999, this base version of iQube is now the most economical. This model comes with a 5-inch TFT display, turn-by-turn navigation, and theft and tow alarms, along with the 3.4 kWh iQube.
As we all know, two-wheelers constitute a considerable part of the Indian motor vehicle ecosystem and are an integral mode of transportation in some regions. Though two-wheelers have been around since the early 20th century, it is only a decade old that they have started to make their way into the daily lives of millions of Indians.
The number and types of two-wheelers available in India have expanded to include scooters, motorcycles, mopeds, and motorcycles that are mostly fuel-driven. On the other hand, there is a relatively small but fast-growing segment of electric two-wheelers, also known as e-two-wheelers.
These are gaining popularity and have been making headlines due to the apparent benefits they bring with them. But how long will these e-two-wheeler companies sustain? Well, this must be a question that every potential buyer has in his mind when he or she decides to buy one.
In the recent past, though, India has made it clear that they want nothing less than 7 million EVs on their roads by 2030. This seems like a tall order, and India will have to exert a lot of effort towards making it possible. Let’s check out what Indian Electric Two-Wheeler Industry looks like and is it able to survive;
The electric two-wheeler industry has been growing steadily over the last few years, but it still remains a niche market. The first electric scooter was introduced in 2013 by a startup called Ather Energy, and since then, there has been no looking back.
The company sold 1,000 units of its Thunderbird in 2016 and manufactured over 3,000 units of this model in 2017. The company also plans to launch an electric motorcycle in the next couple of years and plans to sell around 100,000 units of this model. This is just one of many brands that have begun manufacturing electric two-wheelers in India.
The electric two-wheeler industry is at its nascent stage in India. The Government has recently announced a plan to make all vehicles driven by electricity by 2030.
Support by the Government
The electric two-wheeler industry has been the center of attention for quite some time. The main reason for this is the rising pollution and the need to reduce it. The move toward electric vehicles is a step in the right direction. However, many factors need to be taken into account before making a decision on which vehicle to buy.
It has been announced that the Indian Government will invest $60 billion in electric vehicle production by 2025 as part of their “Make in India” campaign. This is expected to boost sales by 50% over the next five years.
The number of electric two-wheelers sold per month has steadily increased since 2013, when they first hit the market, with only 1,000 units being sold that year. Still, this figure has now climbed to over 20,000 units per month, according to recent reports published by SIAM (Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers).
The Indian Government aggressively pushes the electric vehicle (EV) agenda to reduce pollution and boost green energy. It plans to achieve the target of 100% electric mobility by 2030. The Government has also announced several incentives, such as reduced GST and better infrastructure for EVs, among others.
The industry is still at its nascent stage in India, and the demand for electric two-wheelers is mainly driven by e-commerce companies like Flipkart, Amazon, etc. However, growth in demand for electric vehicles has been slow due to poor infrastructure, lack of awareness, high cost, and customer preference toward conventional bikes over electric bikes.
Growth of Electric Two-Wheeler Companies in India
Electric two-wheelers are gaining momentum in the Indian market. Several companies have entered the electric two-wheeler segment in the last two years. These include Hero Electric, Ather Energy, Zoomcar, Ola Electric and TVS Motor Company.
Some of these companies have already launched their products, and some others are about to launch them soon. This has led to increased competition in the industry which will benefit customers in terms of better products at lower prices. However, there are still some challenges that these companies need to overcome before they become profitable entities.
What Is Propelling the Growth of Electric Two-Wheelers?
Electric two-wheelers are a relatively new concept in India. The idea is not new, though, with countries like China have been using electric scooters and bikes for a few years now. Indian cities have been witnessing a surge in the number of people opting for public transport due to traffic congestion and pollution levels, which has led to the increased usage of electric vehicles.
The need for an alternative method of transportation has gained more importance than ever before. The number of people opting for electric two-wheelers as their primary mode of commute has grown manifold over the past few months, especially after the Delhi government announced its plan to buy 10,000 battery-operated bikes from BSF to be used by its security personnel.
The major factors driving this growth are:
Increase in disposable income
Government support and subsidies
Increasing awareness about pollution and climate change.
What Is Restricting the Growth of the Electric Two-Wheelers?
Electric two-wheelers are gaining popularity in India. The electric two-wheeler industry is anticipated to grow at a healthy pace in India and is expected to become a USD 3 billion market by 2025. However, some factors are restricting the growth of the industry in India:
High Manufacturing Cost
The manufacturing cost of an electric two-wheeler is high compared to conventional bikes due to the use of expensive lithium-ion batteries and other electronic components. The cost of manufacturing an electric scooter or bike is around USD 1,600 while manufacturing a conventional motorbike is around USD 500-600.
Experts believe that if the cost of raw materials used in making electric bikes comes down, then it can help reduce the overall manufacturing cost significantly.
Limited Availability of Charging Infrastructure
There is limited availability of charging stations for electric two-wheelers in India which will restrict their growth in the next few years unless considerable investments are made by manufacturers and government bodies to build charging infrastructure across cities and towns across India.
There were only about 1,000 charging points across India as of December 2018, which means that there is only one charging point per every 100 km, making it difficult for users to charge their batteries while commuting between cities or towns.
Low Battery Life
Another challenge facing this industry is that its batteries do not last long enough before they need charging again; often, they only last 10 kilometres or less before needing recharging again.
The Hype Surrounding the Two-Wheeler Industry
The hype surrounding the industry is more than just a marketing gimmick. The Government has been actively promoting the use of electric vehicles in India. The Government believes that if many commuters adopt these vehicles, it will help reduce pollution. It also hopes that this will lead to economic benefits by reducing fuel imports and improving job creation.
The Government has set up several incentives for such purchases to encourage people to make this switch. For example, buyers get an additional income tax deduction under Section 80EE of the Income Tax Act.
This gives them a deduction of Rs 1 lakh on an electric car and Rs 50,000 on an electric scooter or motorcycle. Thus, if you bought a new two-wheeler that costs over Rs 2 lakhs after March 31st, 2022, you can claim as much as Rs 50,000 as a deduction from your taxable income for each vehicle purchased during the financial year 2021-2022; this is double what you could claim in FY2020-2021.
Future Trends of the Two-Wheeler Industry
The electric two-wheeler industry is growing at a fast pace. Many companies are trying to come up with new products and services. The future trend of the electric two-wheeler industry is that it will continue to grow and become more popular in the future.
The following are some of the promising trends that can be expected in the next few years:
Increase in the Number of Electric Bikes
The number of electric bikes and scooters will increase in the coming years as more people are interested in them because they want to save money on fuel, reduce pollution, and many other reasons.
More People Will Use Electric Scooters or Bikes for Commuting Purposes
Commuting is one of the major drivers of why people are using electric scooters instead of cars or public transportation. They do not have to worry about intense traffic jams or finding parking spaces when they commute using an electric bike.
Increasing R&D Investments
The major players across the globe are investing millions of dollars in R&D activities to develop new technologies and improve existing ones. For instance, Shimano Inc., a Japan-based company, has focused on developing new products such as electronic shifting systems, road bikes, and mountain bikes since 1984. It also acquired Cannondale Bicycle Corporation in 1988, which provided it with an opportunity to strengthen its position as a leading player within the biking industry.
Steps That Should Be Taken to Sustain the Growth of the Two-Wheeler Industry
The Indian two-wheeler industry has been expanding at a healthy rate of around 20% year over year. This growth has been supported by increasing urbanization and increasing disposable income. A rising preference for automobile ownership is also driving the demand for two-wheelers. However, this growth may not be sustained in the long run if we do not take certain steps immediately.
The first step would be to improve the infrastructure of roads, highways, and other modes of transportation in India. As a result, this will significantly improve the movement of goods and people across cities and states, thereby creating job opportunities for millions of people.
The second step would be to create an environment conducive to innovation and research & development. This will ensure that new technologies are developed to help reduce pollution levels in our cities and towns.
Thirdly, we need to encourage the use of electric vehicles (EVs) as they can play an important role in reducing pollution levels in our cities and towns, as well as bring down costs associated with transportation systems due to reduced maintenance costs on EVs compared with conventional internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs).
India needs to focus its attention on developing a strong manufacturing base for electric two-wheelers. If we develop that, then the market will indeed thrive…
The electric two-wheeler industry has a realistic chance for growth in India. The Government needs to foster the market through reduced taxes and incentives for manufacturers and suppliers of electric two-wheelers. This will allow more competition among manufacturers and easier access to parts by consumers. The Government should also focus on minimizing the cost of creating infrastructure that can support electric two-wheeled vehicles (i.e., charging stations, electricity reinforcement, etc.), as it will significantly impact the demand for such vehicles.
The market will quickly pick up, with the launch of new manufacturing facilities accelerating the transition from fossil fuels. One day, soon, we will see the day when switching to an e-bike or a car powered by electricity will be an easy choice for people in India and around the world.
FAQs
How many electric two-wheelers are there in India?
In 2021 there were nearly 1.4 lakh two-wheeler units were sold in India.
Which is the best electric two-wheeler in India?
Ola S1, Bajaj Chetak, TVS iQube, and Okinawa iPraise are some of the leading electric two-wheeler brands in India.
Which is the largest selling electric scooter in India?
Hero Electric is the largest selling scooter brand in India.
Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by Autobot India.
Autobot India has been established with a vision to create a holistic platform that supports the EV industry. The platform has been built to provide superior technology-driven learning outcomes and constant enhancement of the learning experience through R&D. It has built 5 plus learning and development products and over 10 domain specialized programs in EV technology. The team has done this over a period through extensive research, testing, validation, and refinement.
Autobot also has the first-mover advantage as far as the Indian market is concerned. It is the first in India to introduce specialized certifications in EV technology learning. StartupTalky interviewed Ashwini Tiwari (Co-founder & CEO, Autobot India) to get insights on the startup story and the roadmap of the organization.
Autobot India has been established with a vision to create a holistic platform that supports the EV industry. It envisions becoming a single solution platform for the global market offering turnkey solutions for testing, learning and development, manpower, and technology support. Autobot aims to benefit OEMs, institutions, and all other stakeholders. The company is constantly innovating and enhancing the technologies available.
The core vision of the company is to solve a fundamental problem and contribute to the betterment of society, the people, and the country. Autobot aims to bring in change by its innovative model of learning and development. The biggest challenge with the current model of engineering education is that there is too much focus on aspirations, but very little on execution. This company is building a structured thought process focused on the industry exposure of learners that will offer clarity and awareness to enable smoother execution. “EVs are the future of mobility, and Autobot’s goal is to make India an EV nation”
In the short term, Autobot India is developing a holistic learning and development platform for Indian EV market stakeholders such as OEMs, startups, and individual aspirants. The platform will be a point of convergence for the entire industry to join hands and enhance its technology and manpower capabilities and for the individual to enhance their employability.
The Indian automotive sector is a mega-market with multiple streams. The overall market generates nearly 7 crore direct and indirect jobs. While EVs are currently a small chunk of the market, they will become a dominant sector in the next few years. The team at Autobot foresee almost 30% of the automotive market directly turning into an EV-oriented sector in the years ahead. That will be a 2.15 crore plus workforce and that’s what they are aiming to capture in the long run. Initially, Autobot’s target is to acquire about 5% of this segment which will be a huge market of over 1 million people to train.
The EV industry is set to grow big, and Tesla has spearheaded the global evolution of the sector. EVs are the most fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly vehicle technology. Earlier, conventional car companies had considered EVs to be inefficient, but Tesla has proved that with the innovation they can be as efficient and effective as Internal Combustion Engine vehicles or even better. With the rise in global per capita incomes and awareness about environmental pollution, car buyers globally are looking at options that are greener and safer. This lifestyle enhancement and safety aspiration are going to be fulfilled by the EVs. The Government of India plans to take the current 1% market share of EV to 10% of all vehicle registrations by 2025 and turn 30% of on-road vehicles to electric by 2030. This is in line with India’s commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations. If we look at the existing number of vehicles on the road and the projections, this 10% market size in itself will be about 1 crore EVs on roads by 2025 and that’s a massive market to capture.
Autobot – Founders and Team
Autobot was founded by Ashwini Tiwari and his brother
Ashwini Tiwari – Autobot India Co-founder
About Ashwini Tiwari
Ashwini comes from a marketing & finance background with extensive experience of working with MNCs such as Alibaba as well as a few leading startups. His forte is marketing collaboration, networking, and business development. He has closely worked in the product development segment as well. His experience also includes working with motorsports events for 3 years, where Ashwini was handling pan India’s responsibility of technical education and training that turned his entire perspective towards the Automotive and EV industry specifically.
Autobot India Team
The duo spent two years on planning, modeling, product development, and other aspects before they decided to enter the market. Subsequently, they hired a couple of team members who had assisted them in the planning and development of the content. Today, Autobot India has a strong team of 15, working in areas such as operations, community development, R&D, and technology.It also has a team of nearly 50 plus experts and instructors for its education business and another 20 advisors from the industry. Right from the outset, the founders have strategically brought in industry experts and professionals to offer industry-oriented and practical exposure rather than academia-focused exposure. and not hired professors from institutions. They are aiming to double the core team of 30 soon and in the next three years, the plan is to add another 100 members to the team.
Work culture @ Autobot India
Throughout Ashwini’s career journey, as he worked with companies ranging from large MNCs to interesting startups and in profiles ranging from entry-level jobs to leadership roles, he had always wanted to launch an entrepreneurial venture. When he founded Autobot, he was clear in his mind that he will have a company culture that is vibrant and result-oriented but like a family.
“We share each other’s achievements and failures, successes, and struggles together. We have been a people-centric organization” Ashwini added.
Earlier the company did annual appraisals as per the industry practice, but now it is doing half-yearly appraisals. The idea is to reward the performers and encourage others to work better. Ashwini’s wish is to fast-track the careers of the employees and to empower the doers with greater remuneration and job profile-related opportunities. Despite Saturdays being official workdays, they don’t work beyond essential tasks on the day and spend time networking, informally engaging in discussions, and even in group outings wherever possible. While hiring talent, his biggest criteria are to choose people who have passion for the job and enjoy doing their work. The best thing for any organization is to see its employees take pride in the work that they do for the company even after they move on to other jobs. This is the mindset that is cultivated at Autobot.
This has been a long process that is now coming to fruition. The founders first started connecting the dots in the year 2015 and charted the course for building a value-driven model. The next 3-4 years were spent on understanding the complex nature of the challenge and how to solve the problems through technology. In between, they dealt with the demonetization and the pandemic outbreak, but their idea was clear that they’d use innovation and technology to address the challenges.
They steadily grew during the lockdown and focused on fine-tuning the solutions even during the lockdown. Ashwini had extensive experience working in the conventional automobile sector and he knew that a huge knowledge and awareness gap existed as far as EVs were concerned. It was only in 2018 or so that the EV discussions in India really gathered momentum.
The founders decided to create a technology-driven experiential platform that will spread awareness and empower the automobile sector with the information that is needed. The Autobot India platform will serve as a gateway for people entering the industry and offer them the right thought structure and technology competence to manage the challenges. After a lot of thought, they founded the company in June 2017. Since then, until now, Autobot India has been developing, researching, and fine-tuning the Autobot India platform.
Autobot – Name, Tagline & Logo
The story behind the naming of the brand is an interesting one. The founders had been doing a lot of brainstorming to decide on a name that would define the purpose of the company.
Ashwini is a big Transformers’ movie franchise fan, and one night, while he was taking a walk on the Lajpat Nagar road in Delhi, the idea struck him. Since their business is a merger of automobile expertise with cutting-edge automation technology, that is, robotics, the term ‘Autobot’ clearly defines it as it means autonomous & robot.
The future is going to belong to electric and autonomous vehicles and there couldn’t have been a better title for the business. As for the logo, it has a very special story behind it which will be revealed at the right time. As of now, the team is keeping the grand secret under wraps. It will be something with the colors of the Indian national flag, that is, orange, green and white, which in short conveys that this is a made in India product.
Autobot India Logo
Autobot – Product and USP
At present, Autobot India is a Platform as a service (Paas) company with a blended platform offering services and innovative solutions built with the aim of technology experience in training and development. The team might build physical products in the years to come as that’s a part of the plan, but presently they are only into offering consulting, learning & development solutions.
Autobot has built 5 plus learning and development products and over 10 domain specialized programs in EV technology. The team has done this over a period through extensive research, testing, validation, and refinement. They have built an excellent learning product that will serve as the ‘go-to’ platform for everyone aiming to join the EV sector. Autobot’s products are equally beneficial for a fresher, as they will be for someone with several decades of industry experience. It is providing specific and innovative technology and learning experience to people through its blended model.
The whole program has been developed as per the founders’ own unique methodology known as PLA (Practical Learning Approach). There is industry-centric exposure, and they also do validation from the government sector as well as the industry experts. The Autobot platform has been built to provide superior technology-driven learning outcomes and constant enhancement of the learning experience through R&D. They have met EV experts & MSME leaders and even Niti Aayog as well as other government officials, investors and everyone has praised their ideas and the feasibility of the same.
USPs are methodology and expertise, consistent technology-driven learning with innovation. The team has constantly endeavored to set itself apart from a conventional learning platform. It is their innovation-based learning that is the biggest differentiator. The approach is going to revolutionize all aspects of automobile training and the higher education ecosystem in India. Autobot is using a lot of technology and honing them to achieve the goal of the technology learning experience. Not only that, but they are also keeping the mass benefit in view. The learners will gettechnology specialized premium learning experience at affordable rates. This is going to be one of its core USPs.
Autobot also has the first-mover advantage as far as the Indian market is concerned. It is the first in India to introduce specialized certifications in EV technology learning. It has been providing offline learning options since its early days but, it was in 2020 that the company launched its virtual learning platform. This has completed the framework and it now has a blended online and offline model which is scalable and sustainable.
“We don’t want to be a learning institution but rather use tech innovation-based learning. All our efforts and plans are aimed at it. This is the very base model that we are launching now. This will revolutionize learning in higher education in India as an automobile learning and development platform. We are working on a lot of technologies that will be adopted to achieve the goal of the tech learning experience at Autobot India. It will be an affordable learning model that will deliver premium learning for all. This is what Autobot Academy will be.” says Ashwini Tiwari, Co-founder, Autobot India.
Autobot – Business Model & Revenue Model
Autobot currently has a subscription-based model of revenue generation. However, the platform is multi-faceted, and in the times to come, it will be generating revenues through certification courses and EV lab solutions. Until now, the organization has been in a validation phase with no emphasis on driving revenues beyond the limited range necessary for validation.
Autobot – Startup Launch Strategies
Customer acquisition wasn’t the bigger challenge for the team in this early stage as EV is the current global trending and booming industry. Being the first mover and India’s only EV tech specialized platform, people started interacting with the launch of Autobot’s programs early on.
Ashwini had a database of over 100 institutions with which he was directly in contact. He reached out to them, and they trusted them and agreed to participate in the program. Ashwini is a digital marketer, so he also leveraged the digital marketing channels to acquire customers.
Further, the team had deliberately kept their customer numbers low since they were in the testing phase. Autobot only needed the right number of clients to test and validate the technology built by the team. The company also has a referral system with more than 3000 network members who helped it receive a lot of incoming queries. Today, 15%-20% of its registrations come from referrals, up to 30% from the traffic they receive on the website, and the remaining through its digital marketing initiatives as well as word of mouth. Autobot has an excellent customer retention rate.
In one of the big moves, Autobot India tied up with MG Motors to provide a specialized training program in AI and EV which is aimed at providing skilled manpower for the automobile industry.
The founders haven’t faced any challenges typical of conventional industries since they are building an entirely new and expansive ecosystem. However, they had some initial struggles with platform building, maintaining the startup during the pandemic, and retaining the talent that they have.
Autobot is a bootstrapped company, so the founders had to face funding challenges too. However, they believed in the idea and have managed to steadily generate enough revenue to fund its operations, paying the salaries and building more capacity. Today, Autobot has facilities in Bangalore, Delhi, and Pune, and all operations are being self-sustained through internal revenue generation.
Autobot – Funding
Until now, Autobot has been a bootstrapped company with the founders providing the initial capital. Currently, the operations are self-sustained.
As of now, Autobot is a PaaS operating in Indian markets, however, going forward, the team aims to introduce physical products and in two years from now, they aim to enter the international markets.
Autobot’s Founder Advice
Ashwini Tiwari says –
I wanted to be an entrepreneur from a young age and always experimented with something new. My first official startup venture was in 2013, Autobot is my second venture. But in my journey as an entrepreneur, these are the learnings i would like to share –
Have a clear plan of action – Don’t start anything on a whim. Have a thorough understanding of the business and what you have to offer
Understand the market – Do proper research and study of the industry, competitors, market potential, what you have to offer, etc.
Planning operation & Finance – Understand where you stand, how you will arrange the finances and operations. If something happens, would you have the capacity to sustain, ask this question, Also spend sparingly, till your business is not sustainable, don’t make heavy investments.
Network Building – Build connections, keep networking with the right people, sharing value, and taking inputs from them.
To my 15-year self, I would say, “Dream Big” don’t shy away from dreaming big. My parting remark to everyone aspiring to become successful is if you dream big you will naturally work towards it.
Autobot India is developing a holistic learning and development platform for Indian EV market stakeholders such as OEMs, startups, and individual aspirants. Autobot has built 5 plus learning and development products and over 10 domain specialized programs in EV technology.
Who is the CEO of Autobot?
Ashwini Tiwari is the Co-founder & CEO of Autobot India.
Is Autobot an Indian Company?
Yes. Autobot is an Indian company headquartered in Pune.
Is Autobot funded?
No. Autobot has been a bootstrapped company with the founders providing the initial capital.
What is the business model of Autobot?
Autobot India is a Platform as a service (Paas) company. It currently has a subscription-based model of revenue generation. However, the platform is multi-faceted, and in the times to come, it will be generating revenues through certification courses and EV lab solutions.
Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by Terra Motors.
Founded by Toru Tokushige in April 2010, Terra Motors is a Japanese EV manufacturing corporation. It designs and manufactures IoT-enabled high-quality Battery Operated 2 and 3 wheeler EVs, to replace fuel-run traditional vehicles. The company is working towards creating a clean and sustainable society with the use of EVs and was established with an idea to help in improving the quality of air by reducing emissions with the help of its electric vehicles.
StartupTalky interviewed Mr. Akihiro Ueda (CEO & President, Terra Motors) to get insights on the Journey of Terra Motors and the roadmap of the organization. In this article, you’ll discover how Terra Motors started, know its team, investors, competitors, and more.
Terra Motors is a Japanese EV manufacturing corporation founded in April 2010, it ventured into the Indian markets in 2014, with the idea of creating transportation solutions using Japanese technology. The company is working towards creating a clean and sustainable society with the use of EVs and was established with an idea to help in improving the quality of air by reducing emissions with the help of its electric vehicles. The team is working towards creating an infrastructure for the future of the transportation industry in India with IoT-enabled smart vehicles, charging infrastructure, micro logistics, and much more.
Approximately over 3 million EVs are plying on Indian roads today, and the Indian EV market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 44% during 2020-2027 with the annual sales hitting 63 lakh units by 2027. With the rising prices of fuel and fuel-run vehicles and various government policies to promote the use of EVs over fuel-run vehicles, this prediction is definitely going to surpass. An estimate by MarketWatch report, India mentioned that there will be over 20 lakh EVs on the roads by 2026.
How Terra Motors Started?
Transistor Radio from Sony, Cars from Honda, Japan has been known to bring world-class quality products in various sectors in the market and this is what inspired Toru Tokushige (Founder-Chairperson) to come up with the inception of terra motors. The inspiration was to create a world-class brand in the EV Sector and E-Mobility. They wanted to address the social problem of rising air pollution in the world with their products. Their vision is to create a smart and convenient society by providing a sustainable and clean transport ecosystem.
Terra Motors – Products
Terra Motors design and manufacture IoT – enabled high-quality Battery Operated 2 and 3 wheeler EVs, to replace fuel-run traditional vehicles, they are as robust and reliable as their fuel-run counterparts but provide better mileage and creates zero emissions.
Terra Motors – eBike & eRickshaw
With proper infrastructure, which is still under development, the company can achieve a lot with IoT enabled vehicles, it can help in setting up smart cities, better-charging infrastructure, traffic management, self-driving vehicles, better last-mile delivery, micro logistics, real-time vehicle status, and much more and this is what Terra Motors is planning for the future.
Terra Motors – Founder and Team
Founder of Terra Motors/ Chairperson – Toru Tokushige
Terra Motors Team
Akihiro Ueda | CEO, Terra Motors
Akihiro Ueda joined Sharp Corporation, Japan, in 2008. Three years later he was in the United Arab Emirates, working to expand Sharp’s business in the Middle East and Africa. He joined Terra Motors Corporation in March 2015 as a sales manager and within no time was in charge of 4 Asian Countries, becoming CEO of Terra Motors Corporation in October 2019. He brings over 10 years of professional experience in Sales and Marketing and has a wealth of knowledge in the Asian Electric Vehicle industry, having served markets outside Japan; such as South Africa, India, Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Nepal.
Kosuke Nakagawa | COO, Terra Motors
Kosuke Nakagawa joined Terra Motors Corporation as an intern in 2013 following his dream of creating an innovative social system – which would lead to future global trends. Since 2015 he worked on building a huge sales network in the East India region, which in turn acted as a catalyst to achieve 10x sales in just two years.
Masanori Takahashi | CTO, Terra Motors
Masanori Takahashi joined Terra Motor Corporation in 2014. Initially, he was in charge of field research and development of battery and charger for 3-wheelers; but on arriving in India developed and produced a super hit EV model which took the Indian Market by storm. He was appointed as a CTO in 2018, and also appointed as a Director in 2019.
Electric Vehicles are still very new to the Indian markets and have very low adaptability due to their comparatively high initial cost and lack of charging infrastructure as we know.
For the cost aspect, the Indian government has done a commendable job when it comes to promoting the use of EVs in India, subsidizing taxes on EVs and other benefits to end-users has attracted a lot of buyers to switch to EV cars and 2 wheelers, But for the commercial transport industry, this isn’t enough. An end-user in the commercial market is a Rickshaw driver whose annual income is appx 3 LPA. And the cost of EV is almost half of his annual income, to address this Terra Motors has come up with Terra Finance that allows them to purchase an EV on easy monthly installments at attractively low interest rates.
The company is also in talks with various government and non-government tie-ups for improving the charging infrastructure in India.
Terra Motors – Investors
Terra Motors’ investors include Nobuyuki Idei (Sony), Masaru Murai (Compaq), Koichiro Tsujino (Google), and Kenji Yamamoto (Apple).
Terra Motors has tie-Ups with RevFin, Pooja Finlease, Indusland Bank, and Team Vedika for Terra Finance.
Terra Motors – Competitors
The top competitors of Terra Motors are Mahindra Electric, Tata, Hero Electric, Ampere Vehicles, PIAGGIO, and Okinawa.
Terra Motors – FAQs
What is Terra Motors?
Terra Motors is a Japanese EV manufacturing corporation. It designs and manufactures IoT-enabled high-quality Battery Operated 2 and 3 wheeler EVs, to replace fuel-run traditional vehicles.
Who founded Terra Motors?
Toru Tokushige founded Terra Motors in 2010.
When did Terra Motors venture into the Indian market?
Terra Motors ventured into the Indian Market in 2014.
Since March 24, 2020, the novel coronavirus pandemic has put brakes on India’s manufacturing industries due to the 21-days complete lockdown across the nation. The coronavirus outbreak is having an unanticipated impact on every sector due to disruption in the supply chain and production. Many sectors like Electric Vehicle(EV) Market had planned things once the lockdown would be over.
This week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the extension of lockdown till May 3, 2020. As the extension was announced, things have begun to look sceptical for various companies across industries. Due to lockdown, the manufacturing and mobility services economy has collapsed but there is still a ray of hope for the electric vehicle market in India. EV market is less impacted since the EVs do not have a large audience as compared to the traditional auto industry in India but still it’s going to affect this sector.
The lockdown has forced the people to avoid travel which has consequently hampered people’s appetite for new purchases. Especially costly ones such as a new car. This has resulted into great loss in electric vehicle industry. This impact is going to last for months even after the virus is contained.
At the same time, due to the extension of lockdown, the electric vehicle owners might expect service issues post lockdown and might even have to arrange the charge and discharge of their vehicles. The same goes for petrol and diesel vehicles as well for their lead-acid starter batteries. So, the problems will be on both ends.
At the same time, due to the extension of lockdown, the electric vehicle owners also might expect service issues post lockdown and might even have to arrange the charge and discharge of their vehicles themselves. The same goes for traditional petrol and diesel vehicles as well for their lead-acid starter batteries. Many industry experts suggested that the government should use this extended lockdown period to create an exit plan.
SMEV says Lockdown Extension is the Right Move
Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV) – the registered association representing Indian manufacturers of electric vehicle & its components, said that extension of the lockdown is the right move taken by government. Yet, there will be certainly an adverse impact on the operations of its members for the next 1-2 months.
SMEV Director General – Sohinder Gill describing the situation as a testing time for the whole EV industry. He also said that it is also time for its members to conserve cash, take care of workmen and utilise this time to plan ahead once the lockdown is over. Even though extension of lockdown is going to affect EV market and startups, Gill has expressed confidence that the EV industry will be able to spring back into action to recover the losses due to this shutdown.
Sohinder Gill said in a statement, “Looking at the current situation in the country, the extension of the lockdown is the right move. Though there will be certainly an adverse impact on the operations for the next 1-2 months, I believe that we will be able to save lives of thousands and emerge as a healthier nation. I appeal to all the stakeholders in EV companies to conserve cash, take care of our workmen and utilize this time to plan ahead.”
Most of the Indian electric vehicle (EV) industries are dependent on China for import of cells, battery and other electronic components and sensors used in electric vehicles.The EV companies & startups had initially started feeling the heat when coronavirus broke out in China and they faced component shortages. Now China is reportedly getting back into action, but manufacturing in India is still under lockdown.
What Experts have to Say about this?
Co-founder, CEO, Ather Energy – Tarun Mehta, “The lockdown has certainly disrupted the local supply chains and manufacturing. While demand will come down across all categories, EVs have a smaller audience in India and the impact may be lower than conventional automobile industry. The products and manufacturing aside, financing options for consumers will take precedence to enable new sales in the coming months.”
Recently, research firm Wood Mackenzie has released a report where it predicted a 43 % contraction in the global EV industry by the end of 2020. The EV sector had just building up some serious momentum but the crisis couldn’t have come at a worse time. The big hope now is that government plans will continue to push for more electrification of the transportation sector. According to sources, sales of electric vehicles in 2019 had topped with 2.2 million sales but now this number is expected to drop by 43% to 1.3 million by the end of 2020.
Vikrant K Aggarwal, director at EVI Technologies, also said that the entire auto sector is currently witnessing a 10% slowdown in sales. It has affected the electric vehicle industry the most as its compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is bound to suffer due to slow down in new bookings. Since the market size of electric vehicle in India is very small and thus just 1% of the total motorized vehicles run in India. Hence, EVs sector’s growth require constant nurturing.
Sharing the ground reality of the industry, managing director at Magenta Power – Maxson Lewis said that the demand for electric vehicles is linked to overall auto demand which has been and will continue to be impacted for months. This will push the electric vehicle business investments plans out by months. Further, Lewis said that possibly this extended lockdown could also mean that traditional auto may look towards electric vehicles as the reset plan.
The effect of the outbreak on the world’s biggest EV market -China, are already visible. Electric car sales there fell by 54% by the end of January when the epidemic really took off in the country. February sales figures are expected to be even worse, with a decline of 90%. EV sales in Europe was really an impressive that increased up by 121% on the year in January. Then, due to coronavirus outbreak, it put brakes on this.
People might turn to EVs after the Pandemic
By now, it should be clear to everyone that the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic is killing both the energy and transportation industries all over the world. Now, three months after the COVID-19 originated, China is slowly restarting its economy despite a second wave of infections knocking on its door. Europe, the second biggest market for electric cars, is in the impact of the coronavirus and the countries are seeking ways to restore their economies.
Several Governments are Taking Efforts
Many governments across the globe have already devised plans to grow the EV market once the pandemic is under control. The electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) market is predicted to witness a 10.7% CAGR during the forecast period 2020-2025 to see an increase in its revenue from $1.5 billion in 2019 to $2.7 billion in 2025.
Apart from this, the global market is being positively impacted by the increasing sale of electric vehicles. The investments by manufacturers have increased in last 4-5 years and government support for installing such charging stations has also increased. EV battery costs are expected to be nearly halved by 2025. There are several factors that have contributed to this growth and many EV players believe that these factors will eventually lead to the exponential growth of electric vehicles.
The government of several countries are taking efforts to install EV charging stations. For instance, the South Korean government has targeted the deployment of 10,000 fast chargers by 2022. Similarly, India has plans to install 2,700 charging stations by 2023, in cities with more than 4 million residents. In the same the same way, Canada sanctioned $4.6 million for the installation of 92 DC chargers, while the Californian government has proposed a funding of $900 million for the deployment of 250,000 charging points by 2025.
At present, India is still in the early stages of adoption. According to a report, the electric vehicle adoption rate is less than 1%. However, over the last two years, there has been a significant development in the electric vehicle space in India with both two-wheeler and four-wheeler launches. The government’s target of 30% electric vehicle adoption by 2030 is projected to be powered primarily by electrification of two-wheeler, three-wheeler, and commercial vehicles in India.
Nitin Konde
