‘Aeris has contributed to India’s goal of being carbon neutral’

Dr. Rishi Mohan Bhatnagar is an established leader in starting strategic initiatives, executing and profitably scaling. Currently, as the Board Member and President - Aeris Communications India, a pioneer in IoT/M2M Technologies, he is leading the Aeris business in the Indian subcontinent, MEA & the APAC region. He speaks to Aditi Kelkar from EV Story about the direction Aeris is taking in the Electric Vehicle space.

Can you tell our readers how Aeris’s IoT solutions are helping fuel the EV revolution in India?

At Aeris, we are convinced that the future of a world without carbon is electric vehicles. By 2030, electrification could lead to electric vehicles holding a substantial share (up to 50 percent of new vehicle sales in a breakthrough scenario) of the global automobile sector. Both established and emerging original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) have stepped up and are making significant expenditures in the production of e-Rickshaws, scooters, vehicles, and transit buses, trucks of all sizes, and even large tractor trailers that are entirely or primarily driven by electricity. And Aeris technology caters to all these segments.

Since the year 2018, Aeris has been helping multiple EV OEMs transform their standard EV into a smart and connected product! Aeris-powered smart vehicles don’t just act as an accessory to the consumers, but also help OEMs in having detailed insight on how their product is performing on road. By supporting the electric vehicle ecosystem with connected technologies and clocking 120 million kilometres of green driving, Aeris, India has contributed to India’s goal of being carbon neutral, saving 9100 metric tonnes of CO2. This translates to about six lakh trees. I believe that the tech industry will revolution the future of services and this is only possible if the IoT-driven solutions are made cost-effective.

What are the possible hurdles for EV in India?

While India is already gearing up the EV ecosystem and the government is doing their bit by introducing EV friendly policies for increasing EV adoption in the country; there remain many roadblocks. The key challenge is to identify the true addressable market and creation of a stable ecosystem from vehicle parts to services for electric vehicles before it matures into a viable market.

To turn consumers and give them confidence in buying EVs in India, charging and troubleshooting infrastructure must be readily available. Range Anxiety—the understandable worry of being stuck with a dead battery far from a charging station—is one of the main concerns of EV buyers, alongside the vehicle’s price. The largest challenge to be addressed would be standardisation and charging infrastructure. Also using green fuel for going green with EV is a must for reduction of carbon footprint. Poor charging infrastructure is one of the biggest roadblocks ahead in the wide acceptance of EVs in India. Because electric vehicles need to have a comprehensive charging infrastructure, they can place additional strain on electric grids, which the city must not only pay for, but also meticulously plan for. To achieve optimal charge scheduling in a dynamic environment, the municipal administration would have to deploy the Internet of Vehicle systems to ensure that there is a constant and holistic interchange of information between EVs and charging stations regarding energy availability, demand, and cost of energy.

What is the future of electric-powered trucking fleet, from the IoT lens?

The transportation sector is reinventing itself to develop unique goods centred on software-led innovation and zero-emission technology. Software is proving to be a game-changer and is quickly becoming one of the most important development areas for the automobile industry because of ongoing developments in fields like connectivity, battery/fuel cell powertrain, and autonomous driving. Trucks are becoming mobile data centres. In the upcoming years, the powertrain for electric trucks will rely on hybrid techniques to speed up the transformation in order to match the rate of electrification experienced by battery electric vehicles (BEVs) when driving in cities.

While EV adoption is gaining traction, there are safety concerns bothering many. How do you think Aeris is filling this gap?

We introduced the Aeris Aertrak Platform, which offers connected telemetry to ‘everything moving’. The single dashboard view of all the vehicles can be monitored on a mobile device or a desktop computer from any location. Fleet owners and logistics managers can track and monitor their vehicles using our state-of-the-art track & trace technology. AertTrak analyzes the data gathered in order to enhance vehicle performance, usage, safety, and security. AerTrak saved the day for one of the scooter’s owners in Odisha, where a female thief posing as a doctor stole an EeVe Xeniaa electric scooter from an unsuspecting owner. Fortunately, his eScooter was already equipped with Aeris AerTrak, which resulted in the eScooter’s ignition being turned off, making it impossible for the thief to move the vehicle any further. Aeris was the first one to launch India’s First IoT-based connected eRickshaw Solution. This solution tracked and recovered the sole source of livelihood of an Electric Rickshaw owner.

Please elaborate on what kind of M2M solutions by Aeris Communications have been deployed by the EV industry players.

IoT is one of the enablers for EV adoption in India, if not the key driver. For EVs, IoT is opening new avenues of growth with innovative business models, and huge cost savings. Our B2B consumer segment which is mainly into last-mile delivery, ride-sharing business models etc., benefit tremendously as they are not only able to track their vehicle’s usage but also enjoy its safety. Our consumers in the B2C segment, especially the tech savvy generation, benefit by getting real-time insights & control of the vehicles on a click of a button from their smartphones.

Some of our IoT technology deployments include,

a. Omjay EV Ltd., the parent company of Bhubaneshwar-based electric vehicle startup, Eeve India partnered with Aeris, India to provide telematics solution to the vehicles already launched and upcoming models of Eeve India.

b. An interesting use case of IoT technology creating USP’s for fleet enterprises is that of SmartE, India’s first and largest electric mobility service.

c. BattRE has partnered with Aeris Communications, India for rolling out its affordable internet connected electric scooter will change the way people commute.

d. While Okinawa focuses on safety and security features for the consumer segment, Aeris enables the company to provide an integrated solution with insights on Trips, Alerts, Driver Behaviour, Find My Scooter, Secure Park and SOS.

e. Aeris Communications and CTECH have teamed up to introduce sustainable smart lithium-ion energy storage and EV mobility solutions which are ‘Made in India’.

f. SELIS, the leading Indonesian manufacturer for eBikes commanding 85% of the electric two wheelers market share entered into a partnership with Aeris which enabled the OEM to launch connected eBikes powered by the Aeris® Mobility IoT Platform, IoT Telematics and Connected Battery Management solutions.

How is micro-mobility growing in India? Could you help us understand with recent examples?

Micro mobility is a revolution of our time, it is altering how we get around. To achieve net-zero emissions for transportation, it is essential. Additionally, industry participants are continuously looking for ways to develop sustainable business models and grow more quickly. The micro-mobility field is expected to scale four times faster than any other innovation in the mobility market. The growth of micro mobility businesses over the past several years, including ofo, mobike, citi bike, and jump bike, has also raised consumer interest in practical transportation solutions. Young people are increasingly using small, lightweight vehicles for last-mile transportation, such as bicycles, e-bikes, electric scooters, electric skateboards, shared bicycles, and electric pedal assisted bicycles.

Our readers will be excited to know about the research focus areas at Aeris Communications that would support the EV adoption in India.

We are doing a lot of work on connected 2/3/4 electric vehicles, battery management and battery swapping. We are offering use cases for vehicle-fleet management and for car sharing. In fact, insurance is one sector where Aeris technology makes a lot of sense due to shifting risk models, diverse customers and changing business models. The ability to track vehicles, as well as safety and security measures, is another significant area where IoT is a game changer and Aeris is investing a lot in this area for making keeping vehicles safer.

In addition to this, Aeris became the 1st Indian end-to-end IoT Service Provider with the launch of its own IoT Devices designed and manufactured in India. Now Aeris, India manufactures its own IoT devices here, supporting the national ‘Make in India’ campaign.

What would you want to leave the readers with on account of the 75th Independence Day and with India’s EV revolution?

EV is the new sunrise space. India has joined the global EV30@30 initiative, which aims to switch at least 30% of vehicle sales to electric vehicles by 2030. With the government’s help, India’s EV market has risen significantly, fuelled by the 2/3-wheeler segment, with major contribution coming from the EV cars. Low fuel and operating costs, increased demand for first and last-mile connectivity, and the need to achieve carbon neutrality are all driving large-scale adoption of EV. While the regulatory support and technology advancements would certainly lead to better TCO economics for EV customers, this development is going to significantly impact manufacturers across the automotive value chain. Accepting this shift, exploring expansion opportunities to venture into newer areas of value addition and reinventing the ways to manage revenue and profit, automotive players can be a part of the success story of e-mobility in India.