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Bhavish Aggarwal Becomes One of India’s Youngest Billionaires After Ola Electric IPO

• ByStartupStory     |    August 10, 2024

Bhavish Aggarwal, the founder of Ola Electric Mobility Ltd., has officially become one of India’s youngest billionaires following the successful public listing of his company. The 38-year-old entrepreneur added $1.4 billion to his wealth as shares of Ola Electric jumped 16% during its trading debut on Friday in Mumbai, boosting his net worth to $2.6 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

This remarkable milestone comes just two years after Aggarwal faced one of his biggest challenges. A video surfaced on social media showing an Ola Electric vehicle engulfed in flames in Pune, casting doubts on the viability of his ambitious project. However, Aggarwal, often compared to Elon Musk for his audacity and vision, has managed to turn the tide, proving the doubters wrong.

“Three years ago when we launched our product, I believe that’s when the EV story began,” Aggarwal said at a press conference in Mumbai in late July. Despite the setbacks, including a major recall of over 1,400 scooters following a series of EV battery fires in 2021, Ola Electric has emerged as a leader in India’s electric vehicle (EV) market.

Ola Electric’s IPO is the largest in India in the last two years, driven by strong investor demand and the growing adoption of electric vehicles in the country. Despite not yet turning a profit since its inception in 2017, the company has capitalized on the increasing interest in alternative fuels. The firm reported a net loss of 14.7 billion rupees for the financial year ending March 2023, according to its offer document.

Aggarwal’s journey from a Microsoft Research India employee to a billionaire entrepreneur is nothing short of extraordinary. After graduating from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, he founded Ola Cabs, now known as ANI Technologies Pvt., in 2010. The ride-hailing app quickly became a formidable competitor to Uber Technologies Inc. in India and expanded into online payments and food delivery.

His latest venture, Krutrim, founded in 2023, became India’s first $1 billion AI startup in January this year. Aggarwal plans to use Krutrim to build large language models, data centers, and ultimately servers and supercomputers for the AI ecosystem.

Aggarwal is also known for his outspoken nature, particularly on social media. Recently, he welcomed Tesla Inc.’s decision not to invest in India, stating on X (formerly Twitter), “This is Tesla’s loss, not India’s.” He has also criticized Microsoft for its use of gender-neutral pronouns, calling it “pronoun illness” and advocating for India to set its own guidelines for diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Aggarwal’s journey embodies the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” initiative. He is a vocal supporter of boosting local manufacturing and frequently discusses how his companies contribute to India’s economic growth.

As Nitin Pangarkar, associate professor of strategy and policy at the National University of Singapore, puts it, “He’s like India’s Elon Musk. Brash and abrasive and all that. But that hasn’t stopped Musk from succeeding.”

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