Forbes 30 Under 30: From Statiq cofounders to Hop Electric Mobility CTO; check Indians on the list

Global business publication Forbes released its list of 30 shining entrepreneurs in the Asian continent, aged under 30. The list includes several promising Indians, including Raghav Arora and Akshit Bansal – cofounders of EV charging startup Statiq.

Bansol and Arora, included in the 'Industry, Manufacturing and Energy' category of Forbes 30 Under 30 list, were lauded by the publication for Statiq's "nationwide network of charging stations for electric cars, buses, trucks and three-wheelers".

Statiq has so far raised $27.5 million in funding from investors and according to the cofounders, it will post its first operating profit in the next financial year, it added.

TDS founder Bhagya Shree Jain

In the 'Social Impact' category, Forbes has included 29-year-old Bhagya Shree Jain, who founded The Disposal Company (TDC) in 2020 to advise mostly fast-moving consumer goods companies on how to reduce their plastic footprint.

TDC also brokers plastic credits, similar to carbon credits, for its customers. It takes a fee but uses the rest of the money to pay waste workers to collect plastic trash from landfills to be recycled, helping companies offset their plastics use.

Ship Global Express CEO Aayush Anand

Harvard-educated Aayush Anand is the cofounder and CEO of New Delhi-based logistics firm Ship Global Express that focuses on serving small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Founded in 2021, the company enables SMEs to ship parcels internationally at a low cost, without a minimum weight requirement. It raised $2.5 million in seed funding last year from InfoEdge Ventures.

EF Polymer cofounders Ankit Jain and Narayan Lal Gurjar

Jain and Gurjar are the cofounders of agriculture startup EF Polymer. Established in 2018, the company has developed a polymer-based water-retention product that comes in the form of powder. Made from biodegradable materials such as banana and orange peels, it can help to retain moisture and boost crop yields by absorbing excessive moisture and then slowly releasing water into soil.

EF Polymer has raised over $4 million in funding from investors including Beyond Next Ventures.

Hop Electric Mobility CTO Rahil Gupta

Rahil Gupta is the cofounder and CTO of electric motorbike startup Hop Electric Mobility. Established in 2020, the company currently has three products selling from $800 to $1,600. The higher-end Oxo bike, for example, has a maximum speed of 95 kilometers per hour, and can travel 150 kilometers on a single charge.

Hop Electric Mobility has raised $6 million to date, including $2.6 million in funding contributed in 2022 by an undisclosed publicly listed company in India.

Zyod cofounder Ankit Jaipuria

Cofounded by Ankit Jaipuria in 2023, ZYOD seeks to be a one-stop service provider to India's small-and-medium sized fashion brands. The startup provides services including manufacturing, logistics as well as using AI to create designs based on individual customer needs.

Last year, ZYOD raised $3.5 million in seed funding led by Lightspeed Venture Partners.

Loopworm co-founders Abhi Gawri and Alok Bagaria

College friends Abhi Gawri and Ankit Alok Bagaria cofounded agriculture tech startup Loopworm in 2019. The company turns insects into animal feed and has developed insect-based food for birds, fish and poultry.

In 2022, Loopworm raised $3.4 million in seed funding from investors including Omnivore and WaterBridge Ventures.

Flux Auto co-founder Pranav Manpuria

Manpuria cofounded autonomous driving startup Flux Auto in 2017. The Bangalore-based company is developing self-driving software for forklifts and warehouse robots, which it says can be integrated into existing infrastructure with ease.

Flux Auto has raised almost $6 million in funding to date, and its investors include Asymmetry Ventures, Soma Capital and the Y Combinator.

RACE Energy cofounders Arun Sreyas and Gautham Maheshwaran

University pals Sreyas and Maheswaran cofounded RACE Energy in 2018.The Hyderabad-based startup develops swappable battery packs for the three-wheeled auto-rickshaws popular in India.

Since its launch, RACE Energy says it has enabled an average of 1,100 swaps on a daily basis. The startup has raised a total of $4 million in funding, including from India's GrowX Ventures.

Raptee Energy cofounders Dinesh Venkatasami, Karthikeyan Adhikesavan,Keerthivasan Ravi and Phunith Kumar V

Dinesh Venkatasami, Karthikeyan Adhikesavan,Keerthivasan Ravi and Phunith Kumar V cofounded Raptee Energy in 2019. As India embraces electric two-wheelers, they have developed a motorbike that can go 150 kilometers on one charge and reach a maximum speed of 135 kilometers per hour.

Raptee Energy has raised $5 million in total funding, including $3 million in a pre-A round from investors led by Bluehill Capital in 2023.