Euler Motors lays off around 200 employees amid restructuring

Electric commercial vehicle manufacturer Euler Motors has laid off around 200 employees six months after raising $60 million in its Series C funding round. GIC-backed Euler became the third EV start-up to cut jobs. It said it had laid off 10 per cent of its employees.

The Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC backed Euler at least became the third electric vehicle (EV) startup to cut jobs this year after Bounce, and OLA laid off its staff in January to preserve funds amid a market volatility and funding slowdown.

Euler, while confirming the layoffs said that the company is restructuring to better deliver to customers as well as to investor expectations of greater efficiency in the context of changing global circumstances.

“Our decision to restructure, however, meant that we had to part with approximately 10 per cent of our employees from across the organisation,” the company spokesperson said.

The severed roles were largely related to sales and R&D, sources said.

As per the company’s LinkedIn page, Euler Motors has over 500 employees in the startup. However, according to sources the number of impacted employees stands at around 200.

The layoff comes at a time when securing additional funding has become difficult for startups, forcing them to cut costs and become leaner, often shelving new projects to focus on existing lines of business.

The development comes at a time when the startup ecosystem across the world is facing challenges since last year amid global macroeconomic uncertainty and a severe funding crunch.

However, so far, layoffs in the EV industry were a rarity due to increased adoption and capital infusion by investors. India’s electric vehicle (EV) industry has touched the milestone of one million unit sales in the financial year 2023.

Euler Motors’ layoff also comes on the heels of the launch of its new vehicle. The startup announced the launch of its advanced version of HiLoad EV 2023, which it claims to have the highest battery pack and range in the three-wheeler cargo segment.  

The startup had raised $60 million in funding last October led by GIC. Other investors included Moglix, Blume Ventures, Athera Venture Partners, QRG Holdings, and ADB Ventures.

Euler has sold 1,542 vehicles since its launch in 2018, according to Vahan data. More than 3 million commercial three-wheeler vehicles have been sold since 2018.

The company makes electric three-wheelers and competes against established automakers like Mahindra and Mahindra and Piaggio as well as startups like Altigreen.

“We continue to maintain year-on-year growth with a strong product orderbook, and remain steadfast in our pursuit to develop the most superior products delivering the best ROI in the categories that we operate in,” the spokesperson added.