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Time of India
14-07-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
Average deal size doubles in India's auto sector to $34 million despite fewer transactions in Q2 2025: Report
India's automotive sector recorded fewer deals in Q2 2025, but with significantly larger investment sizes, according to the latest Automotive Dealtracker report by Grant Thornton Bharat. The industry registered 29 transactions valued at $1.3 billion, including public market activity. Excluding IPOs and QIPs, there were 28 deals worth $946 million. Although total deal values dropped 36 per cent quarter-on-quarter, they more than doubled compared to Q2 2024. This resulted in the average deal size increasing from $17 million to $34 million. The report attributes the trend to a shift toward high-value investments in autotech and Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) platforms. Electric vehicles (EVs) accounted for 34 per cent of deal volumes and 39 per cent of deal values. Saket Mehra, Partner and Automotive Industry Leader at Grant Thornton Bharat, said, 'The Indian auto industry is in a phase of strategic transformation—balancing policy shifts, global trade developments, and rising investor appetite for sustainable mobility solutions.' M&A shifts focus to platform and tech consolidation The mergers and acquisitions (M&A) landscape saw 8 deals totalling $305 million, an 11 per cent decline in volume and 15 per cent drop in value from the previous quarter. Domestic consolidations formed the bulk of deal volumes, but the largest transaction was outbound—KPIT Technologies' $191 million acquisition of Caresoft Global, which accounted for 63 per cent of total M&A value. GT Bharat's report noted a growing emphasis on digital mobility platforms, EV-ready component integration, and connected vehicle technologies. The electric three-wheeler and commercial vehicle segments also remained active. Private equity activity steady, but mega-deals absent Private equity (PE) activity remained stable with 20 deals totalling $641 million. While the absence of billion-dollar transactions, such as Erisha E Mobility's fundraise in Q1, led to a 43 per cent decline in value, the report notes a fivefold increase in investment value when adjusted for that outlier. The quarter's notable PE deal was a $275 million investment in Greenline Mobility Solutions. MaaS platforms attracted $458 million across logistics, finance, and ride-hailing. Investors continued backing full-stack digital platforms, recurring revenue models, and EV ecosystem enablers such as charging networks. Limited public market activity The public markets recorded a single IPO—Ather Energy—which raised $343 million at a revised valuation of $1.4 billion. The company aims to utilise the capital for product development, battery research, and expansion of retail and manufacturing. QIP activity remained subdued. Despite the limited public listings, Grant Thornton Bharat's report suggests that investor sentiment toward India's clean mobility sector remains strong, with continued interest in capital-efficient, scalable business models.
Motor Trend
25-06-2025
- Automotive
- Motor Trend
China Is Way, Way Ahead in the Car Business—Can the West Catch Up?
It's tricky for Americans to appreciate the magnitude of the technology gap that has formed and continues growing between new Chinese cars and those being produced elsewhere in the developed world. That's because our market has effectively been walled off, at least from China's homegrown brands and global nameplate electric cars. MotorTrend has attempted to lead on American press coverage of this vital market, by producing a documentary on China's inroads to Mexico (and, therefore, North America), attending Chinese auto shows, and by testing more domestic-market Chinese cars than our peer publications. The West lags behind China's rapid car development due to slower innovation cycles and differing market priorities. To catch up, Western automakers must prioritize speed, adaptability, and cost-efficiency, targeting China as the main competitor, not traditional rivals. This summary was generated by AI using content from this MotorTrend article Read Next So we listened, nodded, and took lots of notes as Terry Woychowski—CEO of vehicle benchmarking firm Caresoft Global, addressed the Society of Automotive Analysts and the Automotive Press Association, shared his thoughts on what it might take for The West to begin closing the gap with the Chinese. The question to ask yourselves is, do we have the resolve to implement his suggestions? Speed is a Key Differentiator China seems to better appreciate that the one thing there's simply no getting any more of, whether by hard work, cunning, guile, or force: time. Once a minute's gone, there's no getting it back. Terry recounted many examples of the huge differences in vehicle development time, noting that China typically spends one and a half to two years developing a new platform, versus legacy OEMs' four to five years. That's how Xpeng developed five platforms in nine years, launching one in 2018, another in 2020, and the next three in 2024. Volkswagen, by contrast, launched its MEB architecture in 2019; announced PPE in 2019 and launched it in 2025; while SSP was announced in 2021 and is scheduled for the 2028–2029 timeframe. He presented the chart below illustrating the phases of a model development program, each of which established automakers spend three to four times as long completing. Development Cycle Times (in months) Longer Hours Terry claims his contacts in China report a 9-9-6 paradigm that, frankly, seems utterly anathema to Western sensibilities. Engineers work from 9 in the morning to 9 at night six days per week. It is a pace they become inured to growing up in China, where admission slots to the coveted engineering colleges are extremely competitive. So they reportedly study way harder and party way less throughout their secondary and higher educations. Terry serves on the College of Engineering Advisory Board at Michigan Technological University, so he took time to visit ShanghaiTech University on a weekend day while in town for the auto show. He reported the library being jammed full. Speed of Innovation The days of Chinese R&D being jokingly referred to as 'receive and duplicate' instead of "research and development" are long gone. Terry reports BYD has filed as many as 45 patents per day . To date the Chinese giant holds 15 times as many patents as Tesla. Speed of Implementation Even when they don't think up a great idea on their own, the Chinese are way faster at implementing that idea once they see it. And they put up far less resistance to outside ideas. Some examples Woychowski provided: Tesla implemented its innovative integrated heat pump and EV thermal management 'Octovalve' on the Model Y in March 2020 and Huawei developed a similar 'super-manifold' with heat-pump capability for its AVATR models by mid-2022. Tesla switched from flexible copper onboard power cables used in Model S/Y to a lighter, cheaper, easier-to-install rigid aluminum setup on the Model 3/Y. The Chinese new-energy vehicle startups adopted this practice from their inception, while the legacy EV manufacturers still mainly use copper. Tesla proposed using the Transformer AI network (large language model) in Full Self Driving in 2021. Great Wall Motor followed suit launching its Highway Pilot in mass production the same year; Nio and Xpeng in 2022; and Li-Auto in 2023. DeepSeek was developed in China by Hangzhou DeepSeek AI Basic Technology Research Co. to make it easier to implement the Transformer AI LLM into automotive platforms. According to Terry, no traditional OEM has deployed it yet. Tesla introduced Gigacastings, and already Xpeng's are lighter and stronger than Tesla's. Tesla uses 9,000-ton presses; the Chinese are developing 16,000-ton presses that may be able to make an entire half of a car. The Chinese car buyer's top-five purchase considerations are technology (digital cockpits, smart features, ADAS, etc.), connectivity (embedded cellular connection with smartphone integration and AI assistants), relational priorities (brand status and reputation, OEM-customer ownership experience, riding comfort), non-traditional values (buying smarter, with less regard for traditional brand loyalties, focus on affordability, youthfulness), and environmental priorities (electrification, willingness to pay more for greener tech). By contrast, Terry says the main North American, European, Korean, and Japanese manufacturers ' top-five priorities are acceleration, power/torque, chassis grip and handling, NVH, and fit/finish. He contends the priority gap between Chinese and global buyers may be narrowing, suggesting a realignment of priorities might be overdue in Western automakers. Good question. And maybe not. But then again, those cars sell for vastly less money when new, and the march of technological progress may render them unsalable after six or eight years anyway. In that case, maybe they just need to be highly recyclable (or perhaps the third world will soon be able to tap into a huge cache of obsolete but still drivable cars). Structural Cost Advantages The playing field is not level and may not be level-able. There's no way to put a number on the cost savings of a government regulatory framework that is established and never gets altered by changes in the political winds. But some factors that have been quantified include the general cost to acquire land, raise capital, and borrow money, which is estimated to be 7–9 percent lower for Chinese OEMs. Chinese OEMs and suppliers are each said to be about 7 percent less profitable. One practice that might suggest potential savings for the establishment is a Chinese auto industry willingness to make common certain products and specifications, sharing some parts across manufacturers and suppliers to lower the cost for all (Caresoft attributes a 7–15 percent savings to this practice). What Must American Companies Do? Change everything. Bust paradigms. Stop prioritizing features and attributes that customers aren't willing to pay for nor care about. Establish a moon-landing mission mindset and target China as the competition, as opposed to cross-town or trans-Atlantic rivals. Lobby governments in lockstep to reduce structural costs. Most of all, take full advantage of any temporary relief tariffs may afford to lower costs and accelerate development. China faces some internal headwinds, including gross overcapacity, which is driving both the national impetus to export and an expected consolidation or culling of brands in the next few years. Some suppliers are in tenuous financial shape, which the government is looking to shore up by forcing OEMs to pay suppliers more quickly. But western automakers will only catch up by accelerating their own efforts; not by waiting and hoping for internal troubles to slow China down.
Time of India
21-05-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
KPIT Technologies expands footprint in Sweden with new tech centre
KPIT Technologies , homegrown mobility tech firm , announced its expansion plan in Sweden with the inauguration of its new technology centre at Lindholmen Science Park, Gothenburg, which is at the heart of Sweden's automotive and mobility R&D ecosystem. The Gothenburg center, KPIT's first in the Nordics, will help it collaborate with Swedish and European OEMS and tap into local talent. Sachin Tikekar , President & Joint MD, KPIT Technologies, said, 'Our vision is to reimagine mobility for a cleaner, smarter and safer world. Sweden is a powerhouse of innovation, especially around safe and sustainable mobility, with Gothenburg at its epicenter. We are excited to work with local talent, harness Sweden's focus on technology and green transition, and co-develop solutions for challenges of mobility OEMS globally.' KPIT's entry into Sweden strengthens its European footprint and complements its operations in Germany, the UK, France, Italy, while also enhancing its global delivery network that spans the US, Japan, China and Thailand, India and Tunisia. Recently, the Pune-headquartered firm also expanded its operations in China, with the acquisition of Caresoft Global's engineering solutions business for $191 million. This will help KPIT to deepen its focus on the commercial vehicle segment and expand presence in China as Caresoft has a strong foothold there.
Web Release
20-05-2025
- Business
- Web Release
Ruler attends signing of MoU between Ras Al Khaimah and Miami to enhance cooperation across sectors
His Highness Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, today witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Ras Al Khaimah and Miami, Florida, with a view to strengthening and promoting exchange and cooperation across a number of sectors of mutual interest. The agreement was signed by Senior Advisor to HH Sheikh Saud, His Excellency Mohammed Hassan Omran Alshamsi, and the Mayor of Miami, Francis Suarez. HH Sheikh Saud said: 'This agreement marks the beginning of a new era of collaboration for Ras Al Khaimah and Miami, though it is a continuation of the long-standing friendship and strategic partnership between the United Arab Emirates and the United States. By encouraging greater collaboration and exchange, we open new pathways for innovation, investment and cultural dialogue. We look forward to building a dynamic partnership that reflects our shared values and ambitious visions for the future.' Through the MoU, Ras Al Khaimah and Miami intend to establish a cooperative relationship across several sectors and areas of mutual interest, including city planning and public security, business promotion and tourism, Smart City technology, innovation and start-ups and sustainable development, in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. During the meeting, discussions also focused on enhancing economic, trade and investment ties, as well as the many existing US companies based in Ras Al Khaimah, such as Hilton, Guardian Glass and Caresoft Global. HH Sheikh Saud also highlighted the Emirate's vibrant economic landscape and the investment opportunities it offers to support business growth and innovation. Mayor Suarez expressed his sincere appreciation to HH Sheikh Saud for the warm hospitality, praising the strong ties between the UAE and the US and an agreement that will mark an exciting new chapter in relations between Ras Al Khaimah and one of the US's most prominent cities.
Sharjah 24
19-05-2025
- Business
- Sharjah 24
Saud bin Saqr attends signing of MoU between RAK and Miami
The agreement was signed by Senior Advisor to His Highness Sheikh Saud, Mohammed Hassan Omran Alshamsi, and the Mayor of Miami, Francis Suarez. His Highness Sheikh Saud said, 'This agreement marks the beginning of a new era of collaboration for Ras Al Khaimah and Miami, though it is a continuation of the long-standing friendship and strategic partnership between the United Arab Emirates and the United States. By encouraging greater collaboration and exchange, we open new pathways for innovation, investment and cultural dialogue. We look forward to building a dynamic partnership that reflects our shared values and ambitious visions for the future.' Through the MoU, Ras Al Khaimah and Miami intend to establish a cooperative relationship across several sectors and areas of mutual interest, including city planning and public security, business promotion and tourism, Smart City technology, innovation and start-ups and sustainable development, in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. During the meeting, discussions also focused on enhancing economic, trade and investment ties, as well as the many existing US companies based in Ras Al Khaimah, such as Hilton, Guardian Glass and Caresoft Global. His Highness Sheikh Saud also highlighted the Emirate's vibrant economic landscape and the investment opportunities it offers to support business growth and innovation. Mayor Suarez expressed his sincere appreciation to His Highness Sheikh Saud for the warm hospitality, praising the strong ties between the UAE and the US and an agreement that will mark an exciting new chapter in relations between Ras Al Khaimah and one of the US's most prominent cities. Areas of cooperation in the MoU The full list of areas of cooperation in the MoU are: City Planning and Public Security, Business Promotion and Tourism, Sustainable Development and Resilience (Sustainable Development Goals framework set forth by the United Nations), Smart City, Technology, Innovation, Start Ups and Digital Inclusion, Public Management, Participation and Accountability Mechanisms, Urban Mobility, Traffic and Mass Transportation Management, Primary Care, Health and Social Inclusion, Logistics and Airport Services, Culture, Sports and Education, Promotion of Creative Economy.
