Bajaj Auto Backs Yulu In First Electric Mobility Bet

Bajaj Auto Ltd. is investing $8 million in scooter and bicycle rental startup Yulu in its first investment in electric mobility, weeks after the company unveiled the battery-powered version of its iconic Chetak.

As part of the strategic investment, Bajaj Auto will do research and development, co-design and manufacture short-commute electric scooters and bikes for micro-mobility for Yulu, Amit Gupta, co-founder of Yulu, told BloombergQuint over the phone.

“By the end of next year, we aim to have 100,000 electric scooters—Yulu Miracles—in the country, that will be mix of new designed vehicles and existing Yulu Miracles,” he said. At present, the firm has 3,000 Yulu Miracles and 8,000 bicycles. With the funding, the firm aims to expand its operations to eight cities in the country.

Yulu is also looking to add another $1.5 million from existing investors, taking the overall fund-raise to $9.5 million. The company had last raised $ 7 million in seed funding.

Bajaj Auto, the maker of Pulsar motorcycles, joins rival Hero MotoCorp Ltd. in betting on electric mobility startups. While Hero MotoCorp backed Ather Energy, its chairman Pawan Munjal invested in scooter rental startups Vogo. Earlier this year, Uber Technologies Inc. teamed up with Yulu to pilot bike rentals.

Also Read: Here’s What Can Make Or Break Bajaj Auto’s Electric Chetak Ride

Yulu, which offers bicycles and dockless lithium-powered scooters focusing on first- and last-mile connectivity covering up to 5 km, is part of a wave of global e-scooter ventures like Lime and Bird. Yulu, which uses a battery-swapping model, is said to be doing about 30,000-35,000 rides a day.