<ul><li><keyword id="4393078" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ola-Electric">Ola Electric</keyword>, the unicorn subsidiary of ride-hailing giant <keyword id="6354720" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ola">Ola</keyword>, has acquired Amsterdam-based <keyword id="9296511" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="EV-startup-Etergo">EV startup Etergo</keyword>.</li><li>Ola Electric will now work with the startup to bring their award-winning e-scooters to markets across the world. </li><li><keyword id="1543567" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bhavish-Aggarwal">Bhavish Aggarwal</keyword> Ola founder said that ‘two wheelers’ will take over the world. </li></ul>Ola Electric, the unicorn subsidiary of ride-hailing giant Ola, has acquired Amsterdam-based EV startup Etergo. And through the acquisition, Ola Electric will now work with the startup to bring their award-winning e-scooters to markets across the world. Ola Electric, the unicorn subsidiary of ride-hailing giant Ola, has acquired Amsterdam-based EV startup Etergo. However, the scooters will now be manufactured in India. And interestingly the cab aggregator startup Ola founder said that ‘two wheelers’ will take over the world. “The future of mobility is electric, and the post COVID world presents an opportunity for us to accelerate the adoption of electric mobility globally. Every year, almost twice the number of two-wheelers are sold across the world compared to cars. With electric, digitally connected capabilities, two-wheelers will further emerge as the most preferred urban mobility paradigm around the world and empower every consumer. We look forward to building the best global capabilities in engineering, design, and manufacturing for these products to be made here in India,” Bhavish Aggarwal, Founder &amp; Chairman, Ola Electric in a statement. Ola Electric is aiming at the over 100 million global two-wheeler market, including the over 20-million Indian two-wheeler market. In July 2019, Ola Electric became a unicorn after it raised $250 million from Softbank. It is also backed by Arun Sarin, former Vodafone Group CEO and also from the Chairman Emeritus of Tata Group, Ratan Tata. In March 2019, it raised ₹4 billion from Ola’s existing and early investors – Tiger Global and Matrix India. Ola Electric had also in November 2019 partnered with BSES Yamuna Power (BYPL) and BSES Rajdhani Power (BRPL) to set up charging stations in Delhi. BSES Rajdhani Power is a joint venture of Reliance Infrastructure and Delhi government. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/enterprise/news/three-ways-tcs-infosys-and-other-it-giants-in-india-are-trying-to-cut-costs-but-its-not-going-to-increase-their-profitability/articleshow/76021884.cms">Three ways TCS, Infosys and other IT giants in India are trying to cut costs — but it’s not going to increase their profitability</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/uttarakhand-forest-fire-pictures-videos-and-visuals-as-north-india-temperatures-rise/articleshow/76025287.cms">Devastating pictures from Uttarakhand forest fires over last four days⁠— forests burn as North India becomes the world’s warmest region</a>

Ola Electric acquires Amsterdam-based EV startup Etergo – will now manufacture electric scooters in India

<ul><li>The Softbank-backed <keyword id="6354720" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ola">Ola</keyword> is now competing with legacy business houses in India like Hero Moto, TVS Motor and Bajaj Auto as well as with startups like Ather Energy and Okinawa Scooters.</li><li>Ola says it will set up the biggest electric scooter manufacturing plant in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.</li><li>Ola has been rapidly making a shift from being just a cab aggregator app to an electric vehicle manufacturer. The company in 2017 had floated a subsidiary <keyword id="4393078" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ola-Electric">Ola Electric</keyword>, which is now a unicorn in its own right with backers like Tiger Global, Matrix Partners and SoftBank.</li><li>With the pandemic, even as the ride-hailing business took a massive hit, Ola Electric has been ramping up its business.</li></ul>Six months after it acquired the Dutch startup Etergo, Ola Electric has announced a ₹2,400 crore ($320 million) investment plan to set up, what it calls, the biggest electric scooter manufacturing plant in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Tamil Nadu government is for a factory with an initial annual capacity of 2 million units. “This will be one of the most advanced manufacturing facilities in the world. This factory will showcase India’s skill and talent to produce world class products that will cater to global markets,” said Bhavish Aggarwal, Chairman and Group CEO, Ola in a statement. The factory will produce two wheeler products starting with the electric scooters and the company said it will create 10,000 jobs in the process. The Softbank-backed Ola, whose last reported valuation was $6 billion in May 2019, will now be competing with legacy business houses in India like Hero Moto, TVS Motor and Bajaj Auto, who have decades of experience in the two wheeler space, as well as with startups like Ather Energy and Okinawa Scooters. Ola is more than a cab aggregator now Ola has been rapidly making a shift from being just a cab aggregator app to an electric vehicle manufacturer. The company in 2017 had floated a subsidiary Ola Electric, which is now a unicorn in its own right with backers like Tiger Global, Matrix Partners and SoftBank. With the pandemic, even as the ride-hailing business took a massive hit, Ola Electric has been ramping up its business. In August 2020, Aggarwal in an email to employees said that the company plans to hire 2000 people – 1,000 engineers globally over the next quarter and another 1,000 people across other functions. “Looking forward, our aim is to build electric vehicle products and the required BaaS systems for a global market and across all product segments,” Aggarwal had said then and added that the future belongs to electric and connected mobility and that the team at Ola is working hard to bring out the electric vehicle soon. Targeting the European market, Ola had also brought on board Julien Geffard as the Director of Go-To-Market Strategy for its electric business in Europe. Geffard earlier worked as the Global Commercial Director and a member of the Board of Management at Peugeot Motorcycles, and has also worked with Bentley Motors, Alpine and BMW. Meanwhile Ola, in the US, had also set up an advanced technology center in 2019 which housed engineers who worked on the next-generation technologies in mobility. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/the-difference-between-doordash-zomato-and-swiggy-is-not-in-what-the-companies-do-its-where-they-do-it/articleshow/79715531.cms">The difference between DoorDash and Indian peers Zomato and Swiggy is not in what the companies do⁠ — it’s where they do it</a>

Ola will become a two-wheeler maker with a new electric scooter plant in Tamil Nadu where it is investing ₹2,400 crore

<ul><li><keyword id="2904207" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pranay-Jivrajka">Pranay Jivrajka</keyword>, one of the founding members of <keyword id="6354720" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ola">Ola</keyword>, who was running its cloud kitchen vertical, has now left the company.</li><li>Jivrajka was elevated to the position of co-founder last year.</li><li>His reported exit comes as Ola had already seen seven top management exits last year alone.</li></ul>Ola, the Indian ride-hailing unicorn, which has driven its way into the electric vehicle world, continues to see exits in its top management. According to a report by <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/prime/technology-and-startups/as-bhavish-aggarwal-charts-new-growth-paths-ola-loses-pranay-jivrajka-co-founder-and-ex-coo/primearticleshow/81397859.cms">ET Prime,</a> Pranay Jivrajka, one of the founding members of Ola, who was running its cloud kitchen vertical, has now left the company. Ola confirmed the news to Business Insider, but said that for Jivrajka, who had been in the company for ten years, this was a natural progression. “We thank Pranay (Jivrajka) for his many contributions through the years and wish him the very best for his future endeavors,” said a spokesperson at Ola. Ola, founded in 2010 by Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati, counted Jivrajka as one of the most important members of the company. Jivrajka was elevated to the position of co-founder last year. Jivrajka’s reported exit comes as Ola had already seen seven top-level exits last year alone. Exits at Ola in 2020 <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; table-layout: fixed; width: 468pt;"><colgroup></colgroup><col /><col /><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Ankit Jain </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;"> Co-founder, Ola Electric </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Sanjay Bhan </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Chief Business Officer, Ola Electric </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Arun Srinivas </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">COO and Global Chief marketing Officer, Ola </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Sanjiv Saddy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Senior Vice President, Ola </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Naroo Krishnan </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Head of Products at Ola Mobility </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Sanjay Kharb </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Vice President for Engineering at Ola </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Nitin Gupta </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">CEO, Ola Financial Services </td></tr></tbody></table> Ola, which had taken a hit during the COVID-19 pandemic as people stayed home and avoided venturing outdoors, has shifted gears recently. Just a few months after it acquired the Dutch startup Etergo, <keyword id="4393078" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ola-Electric">Ola Electric</keyword> in December announced a ₹2,400 crore ($320 million) investment plan to set up, what it calls, the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/bhavish-aggarwal-led-ola-showcases-its-first-electric-scooter-aims-to-operate-1-crore-bikes-by-2022/articleshow/81394484.cms">biggest electric scooter </a>manufacturing plant in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The plant would have an annual capacity of producing 10 million EVs by 2022, with one scooter being rolled out every two seconds.

Ola loses another founding member as Pranay Jivrajka leaves the ride-hailing giant

<ul><li>In an email to employees, <keyword id="1543567" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bhavish-Aggarwal">Bhavish Aggarwal</keyword> said that the company plans to hire 2000 people. </li><li>The hires include 1,000 engineers globally over the next quarter and another 1,000 people across other functions.</li><li>Aggarwal also said that the team at <keyword id="6354720" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ola">Ola</keyword> is working hard to launch their first electric two-wheeler.</li></ul><keyword id="4393078" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ola-Electric">Ola Electric</keyword>, the unicorn subsidiary of ride-hailing giant Ola, is charting out a new roadmap for growth. Ola co-founder Bhavish Aggarwal in an email to employees said that the company plans to hire 2000 people – 1,000 engineers globally over the next quarter and another 1,000 people across other functions. Ola, in the US, had set up an advanced technology center in 2019 which housed engineers who worked on the next-generation technologies in mobility. The news comes at a time when many of Ola Electric’s top bosses have quit, the most recent one being its co-founder Ankit Jain. Meanwhile, Aggarwal also said that an employee referral program will be floated soon. In his email, he also spoke of an organizational restructure, which would include streamlined KRAs, KPIs, and reporting lines to enable “more systematic and structured cross-functional work across the lifecycle of product development.” Aggarwal was referring to Ola Electric’s most recent acquisition – Amsterdam-based EV startup Etergo. Through this acquisition, Ola Electric will now work with the startup to bring their award-winning e-scooters to markets across the world. “Looking forward, our aim is to build electric vehicle products and the required BaaS systems for a global market and across all product segments,” said Aggarwal, who said the future belongs to electric and connected mobility and that the team at Ola is working hard to bring out the electric vehicle soon. Ola Electric is aiming for the over 100 million global two-wheeler market, including the over 20-million Indian two-wheeler market. In July 2019, Ola Electric became a unicorn after it raised $250 million from Softbank. It is also backed by Arun Sarin, former Vodafone Group CEO and also from the Chairman Emeritus of Tata Group, Ratan Tata. In March 2019, it raised ₹4 billion from Ola’s existing and early investors – Tiger Global and Matrix India. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/ola-is-staring-at-an-internal-crisis-with-seven-cxo-level-exits-in-eight-months/articleshow/77670080.cms">Ola is staring at an internal crisis with seven CXO level exits in eight months</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/makemytrip-opens-up-its-hotel-inventory-to-offline-travel-agents/articleshow/77741624.cms">MakeMyTrip opens up its hotel inventory to offline travel agents</a>

Ola Electric plans to hire 2000 —  co-founder Bhavish Aggarwal says electric two-wheeler launch soon

<ul><li><keyword id="6354720" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ola">Ola</keyword>, whose business has been severely impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, has seen as much as seven CXO level exits in 2020 alone.</li><li>The latest to leave the company has been Ankit Jain, co-founder of <keyword id="4393078" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ola-Electric">Ola Electric</keyword> and reportedly one of the closest allies of <keyword id="1543567" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bhavish-Aggarwal">Bhavish Aggarwal</keyword>. </li><li>In May 2020, Ola had fired 1400 people as a cost cutting measure during the coronavirus pandemic. </li></ul>Indian ride-hailing unicorn Ola has trouble brewing not only because of external factors led by the coronavirus pandemic but is also witnessing a spate of high-level exits in its internal operations. Drivers of Ola and Uber in Delhi-NCR are now threatening to go on a <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/ola-uber-threaten-strike-september-1-delhi-ncr-6572135/">strike</a> from September 1 demanding a hike in fares. The drivers are also demanding an extension in moratorium for the repayment of loans, as most drivers have EMIs to pay for the cars but are seeing low number of daily rides. Meanwhile, in 2020 alone, the company has seen seven CXO level exits. The latest being Ankit Jain, co-founder of Ola Electric, according to <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/startups/newsbuzz/struggling-with-cxo-exits-ola-electric-loses-another-co-founder-as-ankit-jain-quits/articleshow/77656992.cms">an ET report.</a> Recent exits at Ola <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"><colgroup></colgroup><col /><col /><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Ankit Jain </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;"> Co-founder, Ola Electric </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Sanjay Bhan </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Chief Business Officer, Ola Electric </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Arun Srinivas </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">COO and global chief marketing officer, Ola </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Sanjiv Saddy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Senior Vice President, Ola </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Naroo Krishnan </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Head of products at Ola Mobility </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Sanjay Kharb </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Vice president for engineering at Ola </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Nitin Gupta </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">CEO, Ola Financial Services </td></tr></tbody></table> Ola declined to comment on the latest development of Ankit Jain’s exits. Jain had been with the company for over five years and according to <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/startups/newsbuzz/struggling-with-cxo-exits-ola-electric-loses-another-co-founder-as-ankit-jain-quits/articleshow/77656992.cms">ET,</a> was one of the closest aides of Ola co-founder Bhavish Aggarwal. Jain’s exit leaves two top spots at Ola Electric, the unicorn subsidiary of Ola. Even during the pandemic in May, the subsidiary had acquired Amsterdam-based EV startup Etergo. Ola hits a roadblock Until late last year, Ola was hiring top CXO executives as it was preparing for an IPO by 2021. It was adding experienced people into the fold by hiring for top management level across its subsidiary companies – Ola Electric and Ola Financial services. The startup was also cutting down losses as its standalone losses stood at ₹1,160 crore as of March 2019 – which was half of the ₹2,676.7 crore year before. However, overall the ride hailing business has been severely affected due to the coronavirus pandemic. In May 2020, Ola had fired 1400 people as a cost cutting measure during the coronavirus pandemic. “Our revenue has come down 95% over the past 2 months,” Aggarwal had said in a blogpost in May. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/google-eyes-indias-sharechat-as-microsoft-goes-after-tiktok-in-the-us-heres-why-it-makes-sense/articleshow/77667345.cms">Google eyes India’s ShareChat as Microsoft goes after TikTok in the US — here’s why it makes sense</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/tiktok-instagram-and-youtube-data-leak-exposes-data-of-235-million-users/articleshow/77668688.cms">TikTok, Instagram and YouTube data leak exposes data of 235 million users</a>

Ola is facing an external and internal crisis as drivers threaten strike and seven CXOs have exited in past eight months

<ul><li>In an exclusive interview with Business Insider, <keyword id="5563078" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Divya-Gokulnath">Divya Gokulnath</keyword>, co-founder and director at BYJU’s shares how the startup has seen the busiest three months thanks to lockdown. </li><li>In March and April, BYJU’s added 13.5 million consumers, taking the total to 50 million. </li><li>Even before that, revenue has doubled to ₹2800 crore and the startup plans to go international soon.</li><li>Get the latest news and updates on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/">Business Insider</a>. </li></ul>The <keyword id="23248" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Online-learning">online learning</keyword> platform, BYJU’s has had its busiest three months. In March and April, BYJU’s added 13.5 million consumers. It was the first to announce that its content would now be available for free for all soon after the lockdown, and that got the $8-billion ed-tech giant, which was already profitable, a new wave of users, many of whom, the company hopes, will pay for the services in the future. The reason why Byju’s could afford free content for over 50 million subscribers is because the company had already doubled its revenue to ₹2,800 crore ($370 million) in the year ending March 2020, revealed co-founder Divya Gokulnath. “We have met our revenue target of ₹2800 crore. This has happened even when our consumer (students) and purchaser (parents) are different,” she said in an exclusive interview with Business Insider. The startup now has 50 million users on its platform, even though paid user count is 3.5 million. But a metric that made all the difference was the engagement rate. Students who used to spend 70 minutes on the app per session and come back twice-thrice a week, now spend 100 minutes per day. “85% of our students renew the courses year after year. That is happening because parents see effectiveness,” she said. Byju and Divya, teachers first The founders, Divya and her husband Byju, were preparing as early as February while the country went into lockdown only on March 25. “Both of us are still teachers first. We are very paranoid about the quality of classes, so the top management at Byju’s are actually all teachers who are taking classes on the app,” said Divya. Byju, who is quarantined in the US, stays up all night to take the classes. “He doesn’t sleep. He is available India, US and Singapore time,” she said with a laugh. In fact, according to Divya, the entire top management at Byju’s are all teachers taking classes on the app. Busiest three months So, in the times of the pandemic, BYJU’s rolled out three new features – it started live classes, introduced new subjects like social studies (history, civics and geography) and also rolled out the app in multiple languages. And this meant, teams worked overtime and put in double the effort to roll out new features within days. “Nobody predicted how things would be. We have opened up a lot of business avenues which we forecasted, it’s just that it’s happening earlier than what we thought. Right now, we are taking one day at a time. We have weekly goals and we break them down into daily goals,” she shared. What’s the new normal? At the helm of India’s biggest online learning app, Divya believes that the new normal will not be 100% online. She instead believes that the new normal will include the best of online learning into a school curriculum. She said that BYJU’s is at that sweet spot, where once a child comes back from school the learning on the app is all they would need. “School is critical for the wholesome development of the child. Every crisis presents an opportunity and this is that inflection point for <keyword id="6355445" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="education">education</keyword>, where we expect the rise of a blended model of education,” she said. But here’s what online learning has cracked – there are no more backbenchers. “Lockdown has enabled the power of online learning be it students, teachers or parents all are adapting to online learning. Every student now has a front row seat in the class, the concept of backbenchers is gone. And this is an opportunity for students to take up self learning,” she said. A decacorn in the making and new plans According to reports, BYJU’s is now raising funds with a $10 billion valuation set to be India’s third startup to be a decacorn, after Paytm and OYO. While Divya doesn’t comment on the funding plans, she confirms that BYJU’s plans to go international are still very much on the works. “We are planning to go international in the next few months but we are also going deeper in India. 65% of our students are outside the top 10 cities, that showed us it is an aspirational product for students who don’t have access to good education,” she said. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/ola-electric-acquires-amsterdam-based-ev-startup-etergo-will-now-manufacture-electric-scooters-in-india/articleshow/76026216.cms">Ola Electric acquires Amsterdam-based EV startup Etergo – will now manufacture electric scooters in India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/oyo-mahindra-holidays-emirates-and-boeing-agree-people-wont-fly-for-a-while/articleshow/75731204.cms">OYO and Mahindra Holidays’ new strategy is based on the premise that airlines are doomed for a while⁠— both Emirates and Boeing agree</a>

You Searched For "EV startup Etergo" and got 6 results

Ola Electric acquires Amsterdam-based EV startup Etergo – will now manufacture electric scooters in India

Sanchita Dash

Ola will become a two-wheeler maker with a new electric scooter plant in Tamil Nadu where it is investing ₹2,400 crore

Sanchita Dash

Ola loses another founding member as Pranay Jivrajka leaves the ride-hailing giant

Sanchita Dash

Ola Electric plans to hire 2000 — co-founder Bhavish Aggarwal says electric two-wheeler launch soon

Sanchita Dash

Ola is facing an external and internal crisis as drivers threaten strike and seven CXOs have exited in past eight months

Sanchita Dash

EXCLUSIVE: BYJU’s co-founder reveals that revenue has doubled to ₹2800 crore in a year⁠ — and that is just the start of a glorious run

Sanchita Dash