Manuj Khurana, who quit his post as Tesla’s local head of policy and business development in June, will start next week at the firm based in the southern technology hub of Bangalore, a person with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg News.
Khurana will join as a vice president, though his specific role there is unclear, the person said, declining to be named as the matter is not public.
Ather, which competes with local rivals including Ola Electric, this year raised US$128 million from investors including Hero MotoCorp Ltd. and India’s National Investment & Infrastructure Fund.
It’s one of several players vying for a slice of a market expected to surpass US$150 billion by the end of the decade — roughly 400 times its current size.
Representatives for the startup didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Khurana had joined Tesla in March 2021.
The US electric automaker, run by billionaire Elon Musk, has faced a raft of challenges in India over import taxes and a local factory.
It sought lower levies in India so it can test the market by selling cheaper imported electric vehicles before committing to a manufacturing base of its own.
