Η Helixx Technologies has begun pitching an idea in Southeast Asia for an electric car subscription service, and we're likely to see an exciting presentation of an extraordinary but very disturbing idea.
Helixx's cheapest subscription is $0,25 per hour, meaning you'll get a new car/van with insurance and maintenance for $6,00 per day. Yes, you won't have to pay anything else, just charge with your own current.
If your car breaks down or gets into an accident, there's an instant replacement available, which is a feature that's sure to appeal to those using the EV for commercial purposes.
The Helixx vehicle platform can use up to six 2 kWh LFP batteries (lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery packs) for a total capacity of 12 kWh and a range of 200 km. If the batteries are not enough for a delivery, it's just a matter of changing batteries to you are productive again.
The Helixx delivery truck has a capacity of 2100 liters and a maximum payload of 500 kg. The cargo area is 140 cm long and is accessible from a 110 cm wide rear door. The body is 3,2 meters long and 1,5 meters wide. The central driving position ensures compatibility in both left- and right-hand drive markets.
All of this is a very exciting proposition compared to the current car “ownership model” which is responsible for the 1,5 billion cars currently on the planet.
The problem is that the ownership model is behind the dynamics of a century-old industry, and many influential people are heavily invested in maintaining the status quo.
The automobile industry for example will be one of the strongest opponents of this idea. The automotive industry currently contributes $1 trillion to the US economy each year and has historically contributed 3+% of the entire nation's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
It employs 1,7 million people and is also a huge consumer of goods and services from other manufacturing sectors, making it an even more important driver of the entire manufacturing industry (11,5%) in GDP.
America had its "automobile century", as did all other developed economies. America and most of Europe are now "replacement markets" for the car industry.
The Earth has nine billion people and 1,5 billion motor vehicles on the road, so while the ownership model has been good for the world's most advanced economies, it's probably not as widespread as you might think.
In America, only 8% of households do not own a car, but there are 50 countries in the world where only 8% of households own a car.
Every major country benefits greatly from its automobile industry, with China leading the way as the world's largest producer and consumer of automobiles. The Chinese auto industry accounts for 10% of China's massive GDP.
So it's not hard to say how Helixx's business model could bring disruptive innovation to one of the world's largest industries and how this could have dire consequences for the wider economic landscape...achieving its intended purpose of empowering the underprivileged communities.
Sometime in early 2025, we'll be able to see this grand design in action when the Singapore facility starts producing cars, Utes, vans and tuk-tuks. If all goes well, people currently registering to express interest in becoming the first customers of the system will have their vehicles a year from today.
“Disruptive entrants” usually capture unmet demand in an existing market, and the intelligent nature of the Helixx system is based on this premise.
It does not attempt to sell cars to the most privileged public who already own one, but to reshape the car by offering it to everyone who does not.
