Achieving India’s ambitious 30 percent EV penetration target by 2030 will require building a robust local ecosystem for lithium-ion battery production. With India currently dependent on imports for critical battery components, establishing domestic manufacturing capabilities is crucial—not only to reduce costs and supply chain vulnerabilities but also to support energy security and sustainability. However, accomplishing this will require rapid access to essential knowledge about products, raw materials, and technology, says Ankit Singhal, CEO and Co-Founder, Mappes Inc in an interview with Anurima Mondal, Editor of EVolution Auto India.
Q: Could you walk us through the business journey of Mappes and its significant milestones?
Ankit Singhal: Mappes was founded in 2017, headquartered in Virginia US and operations based in India, with the goal of uniting the high-tech manufacturing ecosystem on an online platform to improve visibility and accessibility for both suppliers and customers across the complete value chain. Initially, we designed a technology-focussed digital network—a blend of marketplace and social network for advanced equipment and materials. However, it soon became clear that our customers needed more than just a platform; they sought our expertise in sales and connections to suppliers.
We’ve since partnered with globally recognized companies, helping them enter the Indian market, especially in the solar, semiconductor and optical fiber industries. In 2023 alone, we facilitated over USD 10 million in sales. This year, we anticipate growth in the EV battery and green hydrogen manufacturing space as well.
Q: What solutions and services does Mappes Inc provide to its customers, and what is your unique selling point (USP)?
Ankit Singhal: Mappes Inc is a sales, service, and sourcing company based in India, specializing in introducing the latest technologies and raw materials to emerging industries, with lithium-ion batteries being one of the prominent verticals. Our mission is to assist both suppliers and buyers in navigating the complex high-technology landscape.
We support global manufacturers of high technology products with sales, installation, and commissioning in the Indian market, while helping Indian buyers discover the right suppliers and technologies through our digital platform, Mappes.io- which essentially stands for ‘MAPping Product Ecosystem’.
Our USP lies in digitally mapping the entire value chain (supply chain) and ecosystem of these highly complicated industry verticals by mapping all the products, raw materials, applications, suppliers, customers, videos, case studies, content from Sand to Solar Cells, Sand to Integrated chips and Lithium Metal to Lithium Ion battery packs and beyond.
Our open source platform allows anyone to be part of the value chain and enrich the data further accelerating the discovery and manufacturing of advanced technologies.
Q: Could you highlight how your platform Mappes.io accelerates the sales and sourcing process for its users?
Ankit Singhal: Sales and sourcing typically start at discovery—whether it’s a buyer searching for the right technology or a seller trying to find the right customer. Traditionally, this process can take over six to nine months to find the right partner. Mappes.io’s digital ecosystem significantly reduces this timeline.
Through our platform, users can search for a product and view its entire value chain, including suppliers of raw materials, its applications, and a prospect list. We also offer features like direct RFQs (Request for Quotations) without requiring users to search for the product, saving even more time. Additionally, we provide a free content-sharing space for companies to post articles and resource links, which are directly added to their company and product pages.
By offering this level of integration and transparency, Mappes.io cuts down the research time by 60%, streamlining the discovery process and accelerating both sales and sourcing for our users.
Q: Could you shed some light on the current status of EV battery manufacturing and the key challenges faced in India? How does Mappes aim to mitigate these challenges?
Ankit Singhal: India’s EV battery manufacturing sector is progressing but faces notable challenges. Chief among these are knowledge gaps and supply chain inefficiencies. While lithium-ion technologies like LFP (lithium iron phosphate) are gaining traction due to their safety and longevity, we still see significant dependency on imported raw materials and advanced machinery, creating hurdles for domestic scaling.
Moreover, many manufacturers are still learning to manage next-generation battery chemistries and automation processes crucial for consistent quality.
This is where Mappes plays a key role. Our platform acts as a digital ecosystem, bringing together stakeholders from across the battery value chain, facilitating knowledge transfer, fostering innovation, and ultimately supporting the localization of production. By reducing reliance on imports and enabling faster sales and sourcing, we aim to accelerate India’s transition to a robust EV ecosystem.
Q: The Indian government has set a target of 30 percent EV penetration by 2030. What are your thoughts on this?
Ankit Singhal: Achieving India’s ambitious 30 percent EV penetration target by 2030 will require building a robust local ecosystem for lithium-ion battery production. With India currently dependent on imports for critical battery components, establishing domestic manufacturing capabilities is crucial—not only to reduce costs and supply chain vulnerabilities but also to support energy security and sustainability. However, accomplishing this will require rapid access to essential knowledge about products, raw materials, and technology.
Traditional methods of finding relevant information are too slow for today’s fast-paced market, largely due to the distributed nature of the manufacturing ecosystem. A digital platform like ours, which has centralized extensive data on products, raw materials, equipment, and global players in the EV ecosystem, is pivotal for companies that need to move quickly. By enabling instant access to comprehensive, digitized information, our platform accelerates sourcing, partnerships, and strategic decisions, allowing companies to stay agile and focus on innovation. With this kind of support, India’s 2030 EV target is much more within reach.
Q: As a tech enthusiast, how has your journey been in the EV industry? What are your long-term goals?
Ankit Singhal: Our journey in the EV industry has been both exciting and transformative. Through collaborations with Indian and global battery manufacturers, I’ve seen firsthand the impact of cutting-edge technologies like silicon anodes, which boost energy density, and AI-driven machine vision systems, which enhance quality control. Indian manufacturers are increasingly embracing these innovations, investing in high-performance battery separators and automated production lines to meet the growing demand for EVs.
Looking ahead, our long-term goal is to help Indian manufacturers bridge the knowledge gap by adopting advanced technologies through our digital ecosystem, Mappes.io. Our team’s expertise in cross-border sales and sourcing enables us to bring the best of global innovations to local manufacturers, empowering them to scale current production, enable backward and forward integration of their value chain and meet the challenges of tomorrow’s EV industry.
Q: Is there anything else you’d like to add to the discussion?
Ankit Singhal: Just that the EV revolution in India is a once-in-a-generation opportunity, and we’re committed to playing a pivotal role in making it a success. By leveraging our platform and fostering global partnerships, we’re not only connecting businesses but also helping to shape the future of sustainable transportation in India.