India’s Premium EV Problem, Byju Raveendran’s Sorrows, and 3one4 Capital Partially Exits

India’s EV race has split into two lanes. One is the mass-market sprint led by Ola, Ather, TVS, and Bajaj. The other is the premium motorcycle lane where Ultraviolette is trying to build India’s Tesla Roadster. The gap between these lanes explains why Ultraviolette’s dream looks bold on paper but brutal in practice.

The company has everything investors say they admire: deep-tech engineering, a stunning product, and Zoho’s backing. But the numbers tell a harder truth. Ultraviolette lost ₹425 crore in FY24, up from ₹109 crore last year, while selling only a fraction of the volumes that mass players move each month. Ola or Ather can justify high burn because they sell tens of thousands of scooters. Ultraviolette is burning at that scale while selling in the hundreds.

And the market isn’t helping. India’s EV boom is real, but it’s overwhelmingly value-driven. Nearly 90% of EV two-wheelers sold in India are below ₹1.5 lakh. The F77 costs ₹3.8-4.5 lakh, a segment where demand is tiny, especially as subsidies shrink and financing tightens. Even Ather, far cheaper, had to repeatedly tweak pricing after FAME-II ended. In this landscape, a premium electric superbike is less a business model and more a passion project.

Globally, Tesla and Rivian could start premium because their markets had both purchasing power and infrastructure. India doesn’t. Here, EV adoption is still in the “volume stage.” The “aspirational stage” comes much later. Ultraviolette is trying to start where India hasn’t reached.

The result is a mismatch: a high-tech product built for a small, slow-moving segment. TVS and Bajaj have decades of supply chain efficiency; Ola has built scale through aggressive pricing; Ather has crafted a premium-but-not-unreachable segment. Ultraviolette hasn’t found its lane yet. It’s too expensive for the mass user and too small in brand recall to command luxury loyalty.

Ultraviolette’s engineering edge is real. No other Indian company has attempted a performance EV motorcycle at this level. And internationally, the premium EV motorcycle space is still open - India could, in theory, export a high-end EV bike like it once exported Royal Enfield nostalgia.

But for that to happen, Ultraviolette needs time, money, and patience. Its burn rate doesn’t match the size of the market it is targeting. It can’t compete with Ola on price, TVS on scale, or Ather on urban recall. It needs a different playbook entirely - slower domestic expansion, more export focus, and engineering-led differentiation instead of mass-market ambitions.

India’s EV race is being won in the lane where pricing, EMI, and service matter more than top speed or design philosophy. Ultraviolette is racing in the aspirational lane, but burning like it’s in the mass lane. That tension, not its technology, will decide whether this story becomes India’s Rivian or India’s Fisker.

India can build an electric superbike. The question is whether it can build a business around one.

Let’s go through what else is happening in Indian startup world - Grab your simmering cup of StartupChai.in and unwind with our hand-brewed memes.

“Paisa Laya?”: US Court Orders Byju Raveendran To Pay $1.07 Bn

A US court has turned up the heat on Byju Raveendran, directing him to cough up a staggering $1.07 Bn after he skipped discovery and ignored earlier orders.

The ruling slaps him with $533 Mn worth of damages over what the court calls a fraudulent transfer from BYJU’S Alpha, plus another $540.6 Mn tied to a Camshaft Capital Fund move.

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“Ash Toh Kar Yaara Ash Toh Kar”: 3one4 Capital Partially Exits Kuku FM With 90% IRR

3one4 Capital is smiling all the way to the bank after a partial exit from audio OTT star Kuku FM delivered a roaring 90% IRR just weeks after the startup’s ₹85 Mn Series C.

The move also pumped up the firm’s DPI, adding another bright feather to a year already studded with wins. With earlier full exits from ToneTag at 5 to 7X and a jaw-dropping 58X from Darwinbox, the fund seems to be in a groove that refuses to fade.

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“Police Ne Tumhe Gher Liya Hai”: ED Flags Misuse Of CoinDCX Accounts In Cyber Fraud Money Trail

The ED’s Hyderabad wing has tightened its grip on a sprawling cyber-fraud trail, freezing ₹8.46 Cr across 92 accounts, including those tied to CoinDCX and several crypto wallets.

Investigators say nearly ₹285 Cr sprinted through a maze of short-lived bank accounts that vanished within days, only to reappear deeper in the shadows through dozens of secondary accounts.

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“Sab Changa Si”: Aggregators Feel The Heat As Centre Notifies Four Labour Codes

India’s freshly notified labour codes have stirred the pot, finally giving gig and platform workers a formal identity while shrinking 29 laws into one tighter playbook.

Aggregators from Swiggy and Zomato to Amazon and Flipkart must now part with 1 to 2% of their turnover to fund gig-worker welfare, a step that’s making boardrooms sweat. With social security benefits like PF and insurance now their responsibility, the gig economy’s backstage is about to get a long-overdue upgrade.

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“Waah Kya Scene Hai”: UPI Set To Enter Europe As RBI, NIPL Move to Link With ECB’s TIPS

UPI is gearing up for a European debut as the RBI and NPCI’s global arm move to link India’s favourite payment rail with the ECB’s TIPS system.

The tie-up nudges open the door to smoother cross-border payments, letting the Euro area tap into UPI’s lightning-fast rhythm. If all goes to plan, Indian travellers may soon find Europe just a QR scan away, and that’s a future worth packing for.

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“Mungerilal Ke Haseen Sapne”: Meesho Eyes December Listing, Targets $6 Bn IPO Valuation

Meesho is warming up for a December debut on the public markets, aiming for a post-money valuation north of $6 Bn as it wraps up investor roadshows.

The timeline is nearly locked, with a first-half or mid-December listing looking increasingly likely. With SEBI also clearing IPO paths for Shadowfax, boAt, and Curefoods, the startup street is about to feel a festive-season rush of draft papers and big ambitions.

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1. Agnikul has raised $17 Mn, about ₹150 Cr, pushing its valuation to a sleek $500 Mn as it gears up to scale rocket manufacturing and stage-recovery tech. The startup is also pouring funds into reusable launch architecture, aiming to build the world’s first recoverable small-satellite launch vehicle.

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2. OYO Assets has snagged ₹125 Cr in a new round led by InCred, giving its hotel-focused PropTech play fresh fuel. The capital will accelerate acquisitions across premium segments and sharpen its asset-management game as it eyes growth in key leisure and business hubs.

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