The Ather 450X might be the current king of the hill when it comes to electric scooters in India, but its position could be in trouble, thanks to another Bangalore-based EV startup – Simple Energy.
Founded by Suhas Rajkumar in 2019, Simple Energy will unveil its first electric scooter later this year. Currently called the Mark 2, its stated aim is to be “the perfect EV which could replace a conventional ICE scooter”.
The Simple Energy Mark 1 prototype was developed in a garage and was ready by January 2020. It had a range of 200 km on Eco mode (30-40 kph speed) but they wanted to go higher. Now with a team of 50 members and an investment amounting to a few million dollars, it is getting ready for mass production.
Ahead of the launch, Simple Energy has shared photos of the Mark 2 being tested on track in a camouflage wrap. The design does seem to be very similar to the Ather 450X with the battery pack in the base, disc brakes on the front and rear, a raised seat, exposed suspension, a large boot as well as a 7-inch touchscreen dashboard.
In fact, in an interview with Carandbike, Rajkumar went on record to talk about its next-door rival: “The Ather 450X is our primary competition. What Ather Energy has done is absolutely amazing, there's no doubt about that. But everyone wants to be the best. Our product will only bring new benchmarking in the EV industry.”
When ready, the Simple Energy electric scooter will have a range of 240 km and a top speed of 100 kmph, besting Ather 450X’s 85km and 80 kmph respectively. It also aims to bring cloud connectivity, Bluetooth functionality and customizable rides.
Simple Energy has a production facility in Whitefield, Bangalore, which has a capacity of 50,000 units a year. Pricing is expected to be in the range of Rs 1-1.5 lacs. The company will also set up a charging network.
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