Tarun Mehta and Swapnil Jain’s three year journey to set a new benchmark in automotive technology culminated today in the launch of India’s first truly smart, electric scooter, the S340, at Surge Conference in Bangalore. Packed with a powerful lithium-ion battery pack, a top speed of 72 kmph, and a range upto 60 kms, this product from Ather Energy is designed for urban tech lovers, who are curious about futuristic products and have a propensity for technology.
Ather Energy is the brainchild of IIT graduates Tarun Mehta & Swapnil Jain, and is among the few hardware startups in India. The team also consists of Arun Vinayak, Chief Product Officer, and Ravneet Phokela, Chief Business Officer. Founded in 2013, it has received funding from Tiger Global and Flipkart founders, Sachin & Binny Bansal. The scooter is designed in-house by Ather and will be manufactured in India.
Tarun Mehta, CEO & co-founder, stated, “The future will be connected and inevitably electric, and the Ather S340 has been built as a manifestation of this philosophy. It is an unapologetically electric vehicle; it has been designed and built mostly in-house with engineering precision.” Structurally robust and intelligently designed, its IP67-rated battery pack offers an uncompromised ride of 50,000 kms. In the fast charging mode the scooter can be charged up to 80% within 50 minutes, and can be charged from any 5A normal socket in normal mode. S340 has a distinct sporty look with zero lateral weight offset, a low centre of gravity, almost 20% lower than normal scooters, and intuitive LED lights that respond to ambient light conditions.
The S340 also boasts of a touchscreen dashboard which integrates cloud-based data to help personalise the consumer ride experience. Features like user profile-based sign in, onboard navigation, pre-configured drive modes like sport and economy, allow a personalised experience. Its integration with the S340 mobile app keeps the rider connected with the vehicle, helps the rider to configure ride and profile preferences, and sync navigation routes remotely. Predictive analytics and aggregation of ride statistics enable customised recommendations.
Added Tarun, “Intelligent vehicles will revolutionize our commute experience in future and we have just begun that journey. The automobile industry is in the midst of a huge technological disruption. The technology of electric vehicle has advanced in leaps and bounds. It is the preferred choice because of its inherent efficiency that will shape urban commute and the smart cities of tomorrow. The other aspect is the connectedness of the world around us, enabling integration of devices and making our life experiences seamless. Intelligent vehicles will revolutionise our commute experience in the future and the S340 stands at the cusp of this exciting reality.”
With a manufacturing unit set up in Bangalore, the S340 will roll out production by end of this year. Experience centres will bring the product to life and facilitate test rides in the next few months while the product itself will only be sold through the online channel with doorstep delivery and service, which is an industry first. The buyer will have a single point of contact or one CRM to maintain the consistency in human experience. Pre-ordering will be open in the cities of Bangalore, Chennai and Pune in the next quarter. The company also aims to set up a charging infrastructure, consisting of public, private, and corporate charging points in every city it will operate in, partnering with government and private enterprises making sure that the nearest charging point is no more than 2 km away from a consumer.
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