ATHER ENERGY Q&A

30,000 units easily. After

fff
Would the increased
capacity translate into
a bigger revenue stream
and will that finally
make you profitable?
Ather will be a global
player, with increased
capacity outside of China.
We will either be the No. 1
or the No. 2 two-wheeler
manufacturer in the
world. We are setting a
target of $1 billion in rev-
enues for this [calendar]
year but when it comes to
being profitable, we are
still some distance away.
84 | The losses continue to
narrow but given the pace
at which the market is pro-
gressing, there is a need to
invest in infrastructure,
charging grids and prod-
uct enhancement. So, cash cally designed aluminium gotten better from there. everybody wants to cash
profitability is definitely structure of a scooter. It is With new generations in on the first-mover ad-
not [going to happen] this extremely stable and has being launched, there vantage and customise
year. It may happen in a a rigid frame, because of are more features that according to the needs of
year or two. the weights used. Instead make the scooter more the time. Do you believe
of using steel tubes, we user-friendly. Like, with in that?
fff have used aluminium and Ather Stack 5.0 we have During our early rounds
What differentiates it is all bolted together. introduced new modes, of fundraising, Sachin
Ather from other elec- This makes the frame controls, [and] better [Bansal, Flipkart Co-
tric scooters? durable and light, and it navigation as a part of founder and an investor in
Ather is the safest electric can survive vibrations integrating Google Maps. Ather] gave me some good
scooter in the market... on the road. But the bat- It’s almost magical how advice and that was, we
one that’s been built and tery is at the heart of an you can get the new must stay true to ourselves.
researched for the longest Ather scooter. We were features in an older bike He said that we must not
period of time... We start- surprised [to find] that as well, simply by doing a change anything in the
ed work on the scooter in the battery in a scooter software upgrade. deck for investors. So that’s
2013… late 2012 and what launched over four years what we stick to. We stay
you see on the road today ago was still at 85-90 per fff true to ourselves and work
is a product of research cent capacity. That is a Despite starting early, towards building a resilient
that has happened over 10 reflection of how Ather is it took you a good four product.
years. the best in this segment. to five years to put a ve-
It is also the first lo- And, we have only hicle on the road. Today, @r_dhanrajani

Business Today 6 August 2023

THE TRICKLE-DOWN
Features that were earlier
exclusive to premium cars may
become mainstays in the mass
market segment soon, thanks to
the diffusion of technology

WHAT WAS SCIENCE fiction of yore is flagship tech of today. And what is flag-
ship tech today will become accessible to a larger set of consumers tomor-
row. That, in a nutshell, is the democratisation of technology, which takes
place for reasons such as economies of scale, lower prices, innovation
and greater demand.
A sterling example is the iPhone. Before 2020, only the line-up’s
flagship Pro models sported OLED displays; the non-Pro models
86 | had to make do with IPS LCD displays. But come 2020, all iPhones
in the line-up were provided with OLED displays.
The story is similar in the automotive space, where some
features available in premium cars now could well be available
in more mass-market variants in the future. Here is our pick
of four such features:

ADVANCED
DRIVER
ASSISTANCE
SYSTEMS
(ADAS)
This is a feature that’s already
available in several cars in India like
the Mahindra XUV700, the Honda
City or the MG Hector. As this tech
evolves, features like adaptive cruise
control, lane keep assist, automatic
emergency braking and blind spot moni-
toring could truly save lives.

Business Today 6 August 2023

AUGMENTED
REALITY
AR in cars? Yes, but we’re
talking about AR heads-up
displays (HUD) and AR cameras.
AR HUDs are a standard feature
in several premium cars in India.
Here, details such as potential
safety hazards, driving modes, speed
limits and turn-by-turn navigation are
projected on the windshield in front of
the driver. The BMW i7 has taken this a
notch higher by superimposing turn-by-
turn directions on visuals from the front
camera, giving an immersive AI experience.

SUSPENSION TECH
For the tough terrain on India’s roads, advanced air suspension tech
can prove to be a game changer. Cars like the Mercedes-Benz S-Class
and the EQS 580 have a self-levelling suspension system that automati- | 87
cally slows the vehicle at high speeds and can be raised to tackle tough
terrain or the occasional speed-breaker. Range Rover also offers this
feature across its SUVs and it can come in handy, especially for ingress and
egress from the vehicle.

STEERING
TECH
No matter how good a
driver you are, it’s often
impossible to parallel park
or manoeuvre a big car in
narrow lanes. That’s when
rear axle steering—available in
cars such as the Range Rover
SV and Mercedes-Benz EQS—
comes in handy. A slight tilt of
the rear wheel reduces the turning
radius and makes the big car easier
to manoeuvre than a Honda City or a
Maruti Suzuki Baleno.

Business Today 6 August 2023

COMING OF AGE Work on the