Pune-based electric mobility tech start-up, Autobot India, is working towards developing talent pool for the EV industry in India, with the aim of being a one-stop solutions platform for E-mobility and EV education. To that effect, the company is working on developing EV solutions for the industry, as well as offering a special blended model of learning and specialisation programme through the Autobot Academy. The company is working on developing solutions for the EV sector to support different stakeholders like - OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers), start-ups, the Government and even academia.
Ashwini Tiwary, Co-Founder and CEO, Autobot India started the company in 2017 with an aim to create a one-stop solutions platform for E-mobility and EV education
Autobot functions under three verticals - Learning and Development, Lab Infrastructure, and Product Solutions. As part of its learning and development platform, the company offers specialisation in the form of certificate courses for EV industry aspirants - both students as well as working professionals. Speaking to carandbike about it, Ashwini Tiwary, Co-Founder and CEO, Autobot India, said "We were the first company to introduce electric vehicle certification programme, with more focus on electric vehicle specialisation. I think till 2021, we stand as the only company that offers specialisation in this vertical in India. So, under this domain, we are working on a 360-degree platform, right from certification programmes to customisation programmes to capability development of the employees of the OEMs. So, we are working with a lot of OEMs like Tata Motors, MG Motor, and there are other companies that have already utilised our platform."
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Autobot offers specialisation in the form of certificate courses for EV industry aspirants - both students as well as working professionals
The company was co-founded in 2017 with the aim to develop a very unique ecosystem platform that will support the EV aspirations of the country with the necessary structured thought process, awareness about EV technologies and expertise about innovation. Ashwini says that he found that there was a major disconnect between what was taught at universities and the actual working of the auto industry. The biggest knowledge gap, he says, was in the electric vehicles space. The Autobot Academy platform has over 2000 active learners from industry and academia and more than 200 candidates have joined the EV industry. For Level 2 courses dedicated to career oriented courses Autobot has developed around 100 professional GET level candidates out of that over 70 candidates have joined the EV industry. This course launched last year.
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The unique blended model of learning platform offers access to both ecosystem, virtual as well as practical
Explaining more about their product, Ashwini pointed out that currently most learning and skill development course for auto industry aspirants are either completely online or they are traditional training institutes. Whereas with Autobot Academy, they are offering a unique blended learning model. He says, "With the blended model we are trying to create a platform where you have access to both the ecosystem, both virtual as well as practical. And we are more towards promoting hands-on learning... So, we have created our own network of hubs, Autobot Hands-On Hub. Currently, we have that in Pune, Bangalore and Delhi, and then we have our virtual platform where people are taking certain programmes there and coming to our hubs from the practical work."
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Autobot is also works on Lab Infrastructure, developing solutions which allow universities to have their own labs, where students can get practical know-how of EV technology
Autobot also offers lab infrastructure solutions for learners to take their knowledge to the next level. Ashwini believes that currently, the universities in India lack the infrastructure to support this kind of technology curriculum. To that effect, the company is also developing an end-to-end solution for universities and support them to have a programme on their campus. Also, the company is working on establishing something like an in-campus Autobot Centre of Excellence for EV technology learning. And for that, the company is developing all kinds of hardware solutions in-house which will allow universities to have their own labs, and students can get practical know-how of EV technology.
Autobot also has a product development arm which is currently working on building EV technologies locally, under the Make in India initiative, however it's still in a very nascent stage
Additionally, Autobot also has a product development arm, however, it is currently in a very nascent stage. Under this vertical, the company is working on certain battery management systems, sales analysers, data loggers and similar solutions for fleet operators, start-ups and even for MSMEs (Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises). Commenting on the company's product development vertical, Tiwary added, "These things are largely taken from China or other countries, which are really expensive. So, we needed to have a solution which can be developed in India under the Make in India initiative. So, these we are trying to develop in India to bring the cost down, to become more economical, and also if these things are developed in India, the support will also be there."
