Elon Musk Vs Bhavish Aggarwal: The Race for Cheap Electric Cars Begins

With a market share of 1.1 %, Ola's proposal to make cheap electric cars comes as a welcome initiative

How many Indians can afford the cheapest Tesla car priced at $50,000? The Electric Vehicle industry has huge potential in India as the market conditions are conducive to bringing out cheaper vehicles on a large scale. No wonder, Bhavish Aggarwal, the cofounder of Ola Electrics was struck with the idea of competing with Elon Musk's Tesla and China's BYD in manufacturing cheap electric cars priced only at 8 lakh rupees. In a market where the share of electric vehicles is only 1.1 %, with only players like Tata and Morris Garage in the EV car making, Aggarwal's proposal comes as a refreshing initiative, at least in the view of increasing fuel prices and growing environmental consciousness. Ola has a long presence in the electric mobility race and also could launch its e-Scooter last year. As per reports, it is planning to hire 3000 people for non-IT roles after reportedly laying off 200 techies.

Aggression is weighing down heavily on employee morale and profits

A report by Bloomberg states, his persistence, which is rather harsh, is making the employees, including senior executives leave the firm within a year or two. Ex-employees, as well as the current ones, reported his behavior as ruthless as he is used to calling teams useless and tearing presentation papers over sentence construction, calling off meetings in anger. But for Aggarwal, it is all part of the job and he holds the opinion, that it is difficult for Indians to stand his working style. "Passions and emotions run high and we are not on an easy journey. But I don't want to choose an easier journey for myself or Ola. My anger, my frustration – that's me as a whole." Mr. Aggarwal said in an interview last month at Ola Electric's headquarters located in Bengaluru. When it entered the two-wheeler market last year, it almost made a dent in the stagnant EV automobile section. However, plagued with supply chain problems, declining sales and complaints against faulty vehicles challenged the survival of Ola as a viable product. Many senior executives working for Ola had aspersions if Ola's business model could survive at all. With mounting internal challenges and a bearish market, Mr. Aggarwal had to step back from the IPO plan for ANI Technologies, a subsidiary of Ola Electric.

Elon Musk Vs Bhavish Aggarwal: Who's Got the Edge

Amidst the unrelenting stance of the Indian Government imposing import duties on Tesla cars, and Elon Musk's take on not manufacturing where they cannot be sold, Aggarwal's idea is pregnant with huge market potential. Moreover, blue-chip investors and sovereign funds, that traditionally invest in Chinese markets, are looking for alternatives. If his idea can see the light of day, it could demonstrate how a third-world country like India can replace costly electric cars with cheaper models. However, putting things in a different perspective, Neha Singh, the co-founder of Tracxn Technologies, a company that tracks Start-Up says, "By seeking to pull off something big in the EV industry, Bhavish Aggarwal aspires for the world stage". However, with declining consumer confidence which led to the recalling of around 1400 electric scooters although registering profits last year and witnessed steep growth in the past few months to overtake rival company Hero, it is only how Aggarwal steers through the rough waters of generating local demand for electric vehicles and lack of supporting infrastructure such as charging stations in India will determine how quickly Aggarwal could realize his dreams.