Deeptech startup Chara Technologies, which manufactures rare-earth-free motors, has raised $6.2 million in a funding round led by Arkam Ventures, with Exfinity, Kalaari Capital, and IIMA Ventures participating.
The company plans to use the fresh funding to scale its rare-earth-free powertrain platform and achieve an annual capacity of 1 lakh units.
“The funding marks a significant milestone in Chara’s scale-up journey as it gears up to establish a new state-of-the-art factory in Bengaluru along with a dedicated testing and validation facility,” the company said in a statement. “The expansion is expected to increase Chara’s production capacity fivefold from 20,000 to 100,000 units annually.”
Founded in 2019 by Bhaktha Keshavachar, Mahalingam Koushik, and Ravi Prasad, the company has been developing rare-earth-free motors for multiple use cases, including EV two-wheelers and four-wheelers, as well as applications in agriculture and industry.
Chara Technologies has close to 100 customers, including Greaves Cotton, BullWork, and Sonalika. The majority of its motors are used in the two-wheeler segment.
The startup also plans to launch new product lines, including lighter, higher-speed motors and industrial variants.
"We saw the problem of rare earth long before there were discussions on supply constraints. With India facing these challenges even today, rare earth motors will prove to be an important product for the Indian market," Bhaktha told ET in a recent interaction. "The infusion of capital will help us scale our product deployments, strengthen our manufacturing capabilities, and invest in future products."
This comes at a time when India is planning to launch the National Critical Minerals Stockpile (NCMS), an initiative to ensure the availability of rare-earth-free elements in the country, as reported by ET. The move came after China imposed curbs on rare earth magnet exports.
The company, which has a presence in Belgium and Italy, now plans to expand to North America and further into Europe. Chara Technologies says it is targeting 6x topline growth between FY25 and FY26, and sell 40,000 motors by FY27.
The company has so far raised close to $6 million in funding, according to market intelligence platform Tracxn.
“Our thematic investment strategy, centred on the global technology trade war’s impact on rare earth materials and India’s unique engineering strengths, led us to Chara three to four years ago — a prediction validated by recent Chinese restrictions,” said Chinnu Senthil Kumar, managing partner of Exfinity Venture Partners. “Chara’s end-to-end powertrain architecture has demonstrated the ability to build sustainable and scalable motor systems for the EV ecosystem.”
According to Rahul Chandra, managing director, Arkam Ventures, “Chara is one of those pioneering companies that is solving a critical need for the EV ecosystem. Chara with its combination of proven technology and design to manufacturing capability is well placed to fulfill the growing needs of Indian auto OEMs for power train solutions."
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The company plans to use the fresh funding to scale its rare-earth-free powertrain platform and achieve an annual capacity of 1 lakh units.
“The funding marks a significant milestone in Chara’s scale-up journey as it gears up to establish a new state-of-the-art factory in Bengaluru along with a dedicated testing and validation facility,” the company said in a statement. “The expansion is expected to increase Chara’s production capacity fivefold from 20,000 to 100,000 units annually.”
Founded in 2019 by Bhaktha Keshavachar, Mahalingam Koushik, and Ravi Prasad, the company has been developing rare-earth-free motors for multiple use cases, including EV two-wheelers and four-wheelers, as well as applications in agriculture and industry.
Chara Technologies has close to 100 customers, including Greaves Cotton, BullWork, and Sonalika. The majority of its motors are used in the two-wheeler segment.
The startup also plans to launch new product lines, including lighter, higher-speed motors and industrial variants.
"We saw the problem of rare earth long before there were discussions on supply constraints. With India facing these challenges even today, rare earth motors will prove to be an important product for the Indian market," Bhaktha told ET in a recent interaction. "The infusion of capital will help us scale our product deployments, strengthen our manufacturing capabilities, and invest in future products."
This comes at a time when India is planning to launch the National Critical Minerals Stockpile (NCMS), an initiative to ensure the availability of rare-earth-free elements in the country, as reported by ET. The move came after China imposed curbs on rare earth magnet exports.
The company, which has a presence in Belgium and Italy, now plans to expand to North America and further into Europe. Chara Technologies says it is targeting 6x topline growth between FY25 and FY26, and sell 40,000 motors by FY27.
The company has so far raised close to $6 million in funding, according to market intelligence platform Tracxn.
“Our thematic investment strategy, centred on the global technology trade war’s impact on rare earth materials and India’s unique engineering strengths, led us to Chara three to four years ago — a prediction validated by recent Chinese restrictions,” said Chinnu Senthil Kumar, managing partner of Exfinity Venture Partners. “Chara’s end-to-end powertrain architecture has demonstrated the ability to build sustainable and scalable motor systems for the EV ecosystem.”
According to Rahul Chandra, managing director, Arkam Ventures, “Chara is one of those pioneering companies that is solving a critical need for the EV ecosystem. Chara with its combination of proven technology and design to manufacturing capability is well placed to fulfill the growing needs of Indian auto OEMs for power train solutions."
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