With Tesla facing some difficulty due to the geopolitical situation concerned US and its owner, Elon Musk as the man close to US President Donald Trump, it is China’s BYD that has announced lowering of prices of its electric performance passenger vehicles. According to a report in Yahoo News, buyers of BYD electric vehicles will have to spend no more than US$ 10,000 to acquire one for themselves. Not only undercutting domestic competitors BYD seems to be gearing up to undercut its global competitors like Tesla as well. 
Besides announcing that its EVs will start at US$13,688 and feature ‘God’s Eye’ advanced driver assistance system as standard, BYD has also announced a revolutionary charging technology that works nearly as fast as a fill up. The ultra-fast EV charging system includes flash-chargers that can provide a full charge for its latest EVs within five to eight minutes. The time taken is similar to the amount of time needed to fill a fuel tank of an ICE vehicle.
Planning to build more than 4,000 new charging stations across China, the electric vehicle maker has been refining its battery and energy storage technology over time. Expanding its auto empire outside China, the company is known to claim that its one-megawatt flash chargers will provide power for up to 400 km in five minutes.
BYD founder Wang Chuanfu is known to have said in a recent statement that ultra-high voltage and a large current are required to maximise charging speeds. To completely solve users' anxiety over charging, our pursuit is to make the charging time for EVs as short as the refueling time for fuel vehicles, he elaborated. 
Its flash-charging system relies on silicon carbide power chips with voltage levels of up to 1,500-volt. Developed in house, the system works to ultra-fast charge the Blade lithium-ion phosphate batteries found in BYD vehicles. The Blade battery technology of the Chinese company is considered to the world's safest and most efficient. Even Tesla is said to have taken to use blade batteries in some of its EVs, acknowledging its benefits over other battery technologies, sources in the EV industry claim. 
BYD reported a sale of over 4.3 million new energy vehicles last year, up 41 percent when compared to the sale of 1.8 million battery electric vehicles and 2.5 million plug-in hybrids in the corresponding period the year prior. 
In India, BYD unveiled the Sealion range of performance electric cars in January 2025 at the Bharat Mobility Global Expo 2025. It has been steadily expanding its reach in the country’s growing EV market, which is dominated in the passenger vehicle space by players like Tata Motors, JSW MG Motors and Hyundai Motor India among a few others. 
 

Comments (0)

ADD COMMENT

Link Copied!

Bengaluru-based electric vehicle maker Ather Energy has reached a significant milestone by opening over 500 Experience Centres (EC) across the country. In just the last three months, the company added 101 new centres, with a strong focus on expanding its presence in central and northern India.

The company's rapid expansion is largely driven by the growing demand for its electric scooters, particularly the new Rizta, Ather's first family-oriented scooter. While southern India remains Ather’s strongest market, the success of the Rizta has accelerated its growth in new regions.

Ravneet Singh Phokela, Chief Business Officer, Ather Energy, said, “Crossing 500 Experience Centres marks an important step in our growth journey, as we continue to expand our presence in line with rising demand across markets. While South India continues to be our strongest base, where we are steadily growing, the success of Rizta has also helped us fast-track expansion in Middle and North India. This growth is not confined to metros alone. We are also building deeper into tier 2 and 3 cities, where consumer response has been equally encouraging. As we continue to scale, our focus remains on making Ather accessible to more customers across India, with the aim of crossing 700 Experience Centres by the end of FY26.”

Going forward, Ather aims to have over 700 Experience centres by the end of fiscal year 2026 to make its vehicles more accessible to a wider audience. The company is not only expanding its retail footprint but also its service network, including dedicated Ather Gold service centres.

The EV maker’s market share has grown from 7.6 percent in Q1 FY2025, to 14.3 percent in Q1 FY2026.

To support its ambitious growth, Ather operates two manufacturing plants in Hosur, Tamil Nadu, and is building a third facility in Maharashtra that will increase its total annual production capacity to 1.42 million electric two-wheelers.

Comments (0)

ADD COMMENT

Link Copied!

Chennai-based electric motorcycle start-up Raptee.HV has received strategic funding from the Technology Development Board (TDB), a government body under the Department of Science & Technology.

The company claims it is the first electric motorcycle manufacturer in India to receive this support, which will be used to develop its high-voltage technology further.

Raptee.HV specialises in adapting high-voltage technology from electric cars for use in two-wheelers. The company has spent over six years developing its own technology from the ground up, aiming to create electric motorcycles that offer car-level performance, reliability and charging convenience.

Dinesh Arjun, CEO and Co-Founder of Raptee.HV, said, “This support from the Technology Development Board is a strong endorsement of Raptee.HV’s mission to redefine performance electric mobility, from India, for the world. In the absence of an ecosystem for high-voltage motorcycle architecture, we built our own through uncompromising engineering. Earlier, we also received a grant from the Ministry of Heavy Industries through ARAI-AMTIF and now from TDB, both clear signals of the Government of India’s focus on supporting indigenous technological innovation. The trust placed in us by TDB and ARAI-AMTIF strengthens our resolve to push the boundaries of performance-driven motorcycle electrification in India.” 

By investing in Raptee.HV, the TDB is making its first-ever investment in the electric motorcycle sector. This places the startup in a select group of companies, including Tata Motors and Bharat Biotech, that have historically received TDB support for groundbreaking technological innovations.

With motorcycles making up a significant portion of India's two-wheeler market, Raptee.HV’s focus on performance-driven, high-voltage technology could play a key role in helping India achieve its 2030 target of 30 percent EV penetration in the two-wheeler segment.

Comments (0)

ADD COMMENT

Link Copied!

Celebrating a significant five-year milestone in the UK, Polestar recently hosted its largest customer event, the Polestar Festival, at Bicester Motion. The festival served as the dynamic backdrop for the UK premiere of the new Polestar 5, a four-door performance Grand Tourer that embodies the brand's forward-looking vision.

The event attracted around 1,000 guests to the company's headquarters for a weekend highlighting Polestar's remarkable growth, which has seen over 45,000 vehicles sold since its 2020 launch. In a striking display of community, 180 owner vehicles were meticulously arranged on the Bicester airfield to form a record-breaking, 170-metre-wide collage of the Polestar logo.

Attendees experienced the first UK showing of the Polestar 5, a model extensively developed by the brand’s British engineers and evolved from the pioneering Precept concept. The festival also featured an interactive partner zone with leading technology firms like Google, Bowers & Wilkins and Brembo showcasing their contributions.

Further highlights included the exclusive Arctic Circle collection of modified Polestar vehicles, available for virtual driving experiences, and the display of a Guinness World Record-holding Polestar 3 that achieved 581 miles (approximately 935 km) on a single charge. The agenda was packed with live driving demonstrations on and off the track, alongside insightful discussions with Polestar executives on critical topics such as sustainable innovation and automotive design.

Matt Galvin, Managing Director, Polestar UK, said, “It was incredible to see so many customers and friends of the brand on Saturday, and the reception to the new Polestar 5 has been astonishing. Polestar UK is growing fast and has a very exciting future ahead of it, and I would like to thank all our customers for being part of this success story.”

Comments (0)

ADD COMMENT

Link Copied!

Tata Motors, one of India’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturer, has further strengthened its electric small commercial vehicle offerings.

The company has announced that over 25,000 public charging stations are now installed and accessible to its e-SCV customers across more than 150 cities, including Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad.

The EV chargers are strategically located across key logistics hubs, empowering last-mile delivery operators with enhanced range confidence, operational efficiency and improved earnings.

Furthermore, Tata Motors has also inked MoU with 13 leading Charging Point Operators (CPOs) – A Plus Charge, Ampvolts, chargeMOD, Charge Zone, Electric Fuel, Envo The Sustainer, EV Spot Charge, Kazam, Nikol EV, Sonik Mobility, Thunderplus Solutions, Volttic and Zeon Electric – to install and operate 25,000 additional public chargers over the next 12 months.

Pinaki Haldar, Vice-President & Business Head – SCVPU, Tata Motors Commercial Vehicles, said, “Crossing the 25,000 public charging station mark is a pivotal milestone in our commitment to advancing electric cargo mobility and its enabling ecosystem. With over 10,000 Ace EVs already deployed and having collectively covered more than 6 crore km, we’re seeing growing confidence among customers and transporters in the benefits of using four-wheel electric commercial vehicles. Our recently introduced Ace Pro EV is also gaining traction with its advanced capabilities tailored to evolving customer needs in urban and semi-urban cargo applications.”

“While we continue to innovate and deliver reliable, high-performance e-cargo vehicles, we remain equally focused on expanding infrastructure access through strategic collaborations. This partnership with India’s leading Charging Point Operators underscores our dedication to building a robust support network and enabling profitable, zero-emission logistics for entrepreneurs and transporters across the country,” said Haldar.

At present, Tata Motors’ e-SCV lineup includes the Ace Pro EV, Ace EV and Ace EV 1000.

Comments (0)

ADD COMMENT

Link Copied!