The C.A.S.E. Mobility Grand Start-up Challenge, part of the ongoing Hyderabad E-Mobility Week, saw global corporate heads and industry leaders get together to evaluate and mentor the business case studies of seven clean mobility start-ups. The Challenge allowed start-ups to share innovative, feasible, and scalable solutions for real problems prevalent in urban mobility in India with new-age entrepreneurs, innovators and investors.

Founders of seven start-ups, including two each from the state of Telangana and Karnataka, and one each from Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Gujarat, presented their innovations and business ideas to the jury which comprised Vikram Garga, Group Head, Marketing, Apollo Tyres, Sanjeev P, Head, Micro Mobility, TVS Motor; Mamatha Chamarthi, Head of Software and Business Product Management, Stellantis; and Prof Rajalashmi, Director TiHan, IIT Hyderabad and Sascha Ricanek, VP, ZF Race Engineering at the finals of the challenge.

Hala Mobility showcased multimodal EV shared mobility platforms. Adiabatic presented its intelligent Battery Management System technology (BMS). Comuti Energy Vayu shared their concept for a hydrogen fuel cell-powered electric two-wheeler. Aatral introduced its Sodium-Ion batteries as an alternative to lithium batteries and AutoNXt driverless electric tractors and high voltage electric powertrains. The start-ups altogether showcased young entrepreneurial India’s plans to move towards clean and green energy.

Vikram Garga, Group Head, Marketing, Apollo Tyres while evaluating the business plans counselled the participants to plug the gaps in their business plans and offered his learnings to help them scale up their businesses.

The Jury finally gave a thumbs up to Gujarat-based i-elektrik, which was declared a winner for its smart charging solutions for the emerging EV markets. E-neomotion, an IIT Madras start-up’s electric products for wheelchair users (elderly, physically challenged) was adjudged the runner-up. Both received a grant of Rs 15 lakh for their projects.

Amidst the challenges in adapting to a green mobility future, Telangana is one of the first states to launch the EV and ESS policy in 2020. Currently, the state is growing to be the biggest hub for technology and innovation by being home to several of the largest global IT players and auto industries.

Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary, Information Technology, Electronics and Communications, and Industries and Commerce Departments, Government of Telangana speaking at the Grand challenge said that innovation will help fuel the “movement to sustainable mobility” stating that moving forward Telangana will become the start-up capital of India.

In the Budget 2022-23, the government allocated Rs 283.5 crore for the Start-up India Seed Fund Scheme, which was higher than the Revised Estimates of about Rs 100 crore in the previous budget. The budgetary allocations for the Fund of Funds for Start-ups stood at Rs 1,000 crore.

Saurabh Bakliwal, Managing Director and Partner, BCG, one of the juries for the event, said, “The solutions built by the start-ups in the CASE challenge were truly very bold, taking on leading global companies with deep tech solutions. It was really energising to witness the impressive quality of their submissions and be a part of the jury, evaluating and celebrating the brilliance of these entrepreneurs.”

The Challenge was organised by the Government of Telangana in association with T-Hub along with Telangana Mobility Valley (TMV), India’s first cluster focusing on new and sustainable mobility.