From a College Project to India's EV Revolution: The Story of Ather Energy
From a College Project to India's EV Revolution: The Story of Ather Energy
Imagine two young engineers, fresh out of college, dreaming of changing how India moves.
That’s how Ather Energy began — with Tarun Mehta and Swapnil Jain, graduates from IIT Madras, daring to believe that electric scooters could be smart, cool, and powerful.
In 2013, while others doubted the future of electric vehicles, they got to work.
Starting from a small lab in their college’s Research Park, they built simple scooters that zipped around campus. Every little success pushed them forward.
With early support from IIT-Madras and angel investors, they kept innovating — even building their battery pack when none were available that suited their dream.
But building an electric scooter in India wasn’t easy.
There were no proper supply chains, no big charging networks, and very few believers.
Still, Tarun and Swapnil didn’t give up. Their big moment came when Flipkart’s co-founders invested $1 million in their vision.
Later, a $19 million boost from Hero MotoCorp helped Ather set up a factory and start large-scale production.
Ather didn’t just make scooters.
They built an entire ecosystem with Ather Grid — a fast-charging network across cities.
In 2018, India saw the launch of the Ather 450 — a smart scooter with a touchscreen dashboard, OTA updates, and lightning-fast charging.
The Ather 450X followed, winning hearts with its futuristic design and insane speed.
Today, with a massive factory in Hosur, charging points across India, and millions in funding, Ather Energy stands tall — a symbol of what passion, grit, and innovation can achieve.
Their journey teaches one simple lesson:
When you truly believe in your idea and work fearlessly, even the biggest dreams can come true.
