Exponent Energy Raises $26.4 Mn In Series B Round The round was led by Eight Roads Ventures, with a strategic investment from TDK Ventures
By S Shanthi
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
Energy-tech startup Exponent Energy has raised $26.4 Million in a series B round led by Eight Roads Ventures, including a strategic investment from TDK Ventures – marking their first investment in India's EV sector. Along with two new global investors, the round witnessed participation from all existing investors like Lightspeed, YourNest VC, 3one4 Capital, AdvantEdge VC, and the family office of Dr. Pawan Munjal, Executive Chairman, Hero MotoCorp
The 3-year-old Bengaluru-based startup has raised $44.4 million in total so far and plans to utilize the fresh funds to scale its presence to 5 new cities by FY' 24. The company also plans to expand its offering in the e3W space and enter the intercity e-bus segment in 2024. It aims to deploy 1,000 e^pumps (charging stations) and have 25,000 EVs powered by Exponent by 2025.
Commenting on the investment, Aditya Systla, Partner, Eight Roads Ventures said, "Exponent's focus on the Indian commercial vehicle space is a massive opportunity which constitutes 10% of vehicles but consumes 70% of the on-road energy, with more vehicles transitioning to electric over the next few years. As our first investment in the electric vehicle sector in India, we're very excited to partner with Arun, Sanjay, and the entire Exponent team, as they build one of the largest full-stack energy platforms in the country."
Sharing insights on the investment, Nicolas Sauvage, President, TDK Ventures said, "I was impressed by Arun and his talented team when I met them in their office in Bengaluru earlier this year. Exponent's groundbreaking achievement in crafting an economical and scalable 15-minute rapid charging solution utilizing standard LFP cells is revolutionary, allowing electric vehicles to adopt a more compact battery pack that can swiftly charge within a concentrated public charging infrastructure, effectively removing range anxiety. We share the vision of expanding rapid charging accessibility at a reasonable cost, making electric mobility an option for everyone. This collaboration represents an exciting stride toward a more sustainable and electrified future."
The company claims that its proprietary energy stack - battery pack (e^pack), charging station (e^pump), and charging connector (e^plug) together unlock a 0%-100% rapid charge, in 15 minutes for EVs and unlock a 3000-cycle life warranty using regular Li-ion cells. Exponent also partners with OEMs to integrate its e^pack to create a rapid charging variant and sets up a network of e^pumps for end users operating in logistics to seamlessly charge their Exponent-powered EVs.
Speaking about the fundraising, Arun Vinayak, co-founder and CEO, Exponent Energy said, " We're excited to welcome Eight Roads & TDK to our cap table and grateful to all our existing investors who've supported us since Exponent's inception. The last 3 years were an incredible journey of building world-class tech, achieving product market, and unlocking freedom & flexibility for our customers in logistics. With this round, we're set to scale operations from battery manufacturing to on-ground network presence across categories & cities, and simplify the broken energy ecosystem at scale!"
