How can a UPI-like structure revolutionize the Mobility Industry while pushing key players out of business?

Standardizing the battery design and infrastructure will improve user convenience boosting EV adoption rates!

The battery is the heart of an Electric Vehicle. According to a report by PitchBook and TechCrunch, venture capital (VC) firms and growth equity funds have plowed nearly $42 billion into battery technology startups across almost 1,700 deals for the better part of the last decade. This is roughly equivalent to the GDP of countries like Greece or Hungary.

Despite such large investments going into battery technology, the technology hasn’t plateaued suggesting an even greater scope for improvement. The result is going to be even more investments going into battery technology.

Should we keep making better batteries and neglect other EV Design elements?

Solution: Consolidate battery research and development efforts through a government organization and standardize battery design and infrastructure across the country. Market Players will have to design their products to be compatible with the Government regulated battery design and parameters much like the UPI System for payments.

This solution goes against the principles of free market, however, solves major concerns with respect to electric vehicle adoption. Here are a few benefits observed:

1. Streamlining Investments: No two companies have to compete to create the same type of technology (e.g., Company A and Company B both are working on creating a breakthrough Na-ion battery. They neither have to work in silos nor compete against each other. Instead, they could collaborate and build an even better solution.
2. Eliminating Battery Charging Time: Standardizing Battery design and infrastructure will allow customers to swap batteries at a swapping station.
3. Expanding Innovation: Much of the innovation in electric vehicles has been in battery technology with minimal improvements in design or materials. EV Manufacturers now will have ample time and resources to enhance their products in other departments with the battery being standardized.
4. Establishing Quality Standards: Low-quality batteries being dumped from China have tainted the industry. Standardizing and establishing norms for batteries will ensure safety as the government will share equal responsibility.
5. Efficient Battery Swapping Infrastructure: With more new players entering the market with battery-swapping offerings, all these players will have to establish their own infrastructure mounting the infrastructure costs.

Why is this necessary?

With the ever-increasing car ownership in India and with crumbling public infrastructure that does not meet the needs of the population, we are going to consume more fuel than ever. Transition to Electric Vehicles is the need of the hour! (Although EVs are equally dangerous to the environment)

EVs have a fundamental problem with range and battery charging time. When we break these thresholds, we unlock the potential for it to become a viable alternative to conventional fuel-engine vehicles. Battery-swapping solves both these problems with multiple benefits. However, each battery-swapping player striving to build its own infrastructure defeats the purpose. With a standardized battery design, EV makers can play the differentiation game on other key elements of an EV vehicle.

What do you think are the challenges to this? Thoughts?