Shah Talha & Syed Najeebullah

engineers linked to Mode

Compiled from 1 recorded interview. Every statement below is drawn from the passage cited beside it.

Shah Talha & Syed Najeebullah are the co-founders (CEO & CPO) of Mode Mobility. Talha was a marketing executive in 2012 and 2013 and moved up the ranks in 2014. He joined Shayan at Icon 7, which Shayan was setting up at the time.

Early life and background

Talha was raised in Islamabad and moved there in 2002. He moved back to Karachi in 2019 for family reasons. Najiullah grew up in Karachi and Islamabad, mostly in Karachi. [1]

Education

Talha attended Bahria College in Islamabad for FSC. He went on to university at NUST's Karachi campus, where he studied mechanical engineering. Talha joined PNEC in 2010 to study mechanical engineering, and has said he had a strong liking for cars in those years. [1]

Najiullah did his O and A levels at City School, Islamabad, in 2009. He studied for two weeks at a place that offered only electrical engineering, then decided he wanted to study mechanical engineering because he had always wanted to make cars. Najiullah has said he left NUST and LUMS and went to Karachi to join PNEC. Talha has said Najiullah was one year senior to him at PNEC. Najiullah failed a course after neglecting his studies for Formula Student. [1]

Formula Student

Talha and Najiullah became connected through Formula Student. Talha has said that NUST PNEC was registered for Formula Student in 2012. Talha says Najiullah led the competition in 2012. Talha says his team was not cleared by scrutineering when it went in 2012 and 2013. Najiullah led the Formula Student team in his final year, when the team could not clear scrutineering. [1]

Talha says the engine they used came from an existing bike, within a 600 cc limit. He says they built a lot of the structural and mechanical parts, including suspension components, locally. Najiullah led the design of the car, though not the overall team leadership. Talha and Najiullah were employed by a company to look after the team for another year. [1]

A sponsor asked both Talha and Najiullah to stay with the team after they graduated. The sponsor said it was having financial issues and would not be able to continue. Talha left at the end of 2015, while Najiullah took two or three more years to leave. [1]

Career

Talha was a marketing executive in 2012 and 2013 and moved up the ranks in 2014. He joined Shayan at Icon 7, which Shayan was setting up at the time. Talha started TradeMore with Shayan in 2017 and is still running it. [1]

Najiullah went to Australia for a master's in automotive engineering at RMIT. He worked with the RMIT Electric Racing team and volunteered again at Formula Student in Australia. Najiullah taught at a university for about three and a half years. He then taught mechatronics at ZABIST. [1]

Mode

Shayan is the third partner in Mode. Mode says its niche is vehicle design, and that its expertise is design and engineering. Mode has designed four to five two-wheelers so far and has a prototype of one of them. Mode says its bike is designed completely in-house and manufactured in Pakistan. [1]

Mode says that apart from certain imported components, everything on its bike is its own bespoke part. Mode imports battery cells and assembles the batteries locally. Mode has formed a JV company with its manufacturing partner. [1]

Mode says its bike comes with two motor sizes and two battery sizes, making about four variants. Mode says its bike has a step-through, scooter-like design so riders in traditional clothing can ride it. Mode says it does not offer the long seat with the smaller motor, which has a one-person seat, while the larger motor version fits two riders. Mode says its vehicle technically falls in the cycle category, so it needs no licence or registration. [1]

Mode says the larger battery gives up to 70 km of range and the smaller one about 30 to 35 km. Mode says the bike is charged by taking the battery out and plugging it into any mains socket. Mode says both battery sizes share the same casing, and the smaller one has fewer cells to make it cheaper. Mode says connectivity is a big feature in its planned future models, though not in the current variant. [1]

Mode says it targets niche markets, and the niche with the largest total market size that it identified is women. Mode says 7% of the responses it got were from women and 93% were from men. Mode says its largest target customer is B2B. Mode's plan is to perfect the product in Pakistan first, then serve the region, and eventually Europe and the US. [1]

Mode's long-term plan is two-wheelers and three-wheelers first, then buses, then cars. Mode expects to take pre-orders by mid-year and to roll out deliveries by the end of the year. Mode plans to warranty its products up to a set number of kilometres and an age, with figures not yet fixed. Mode stocks its spare parts, which raises the cost of its after-sales operations. [1]

Mode has not yet earned from bike sales but says it has earned a lot from product design. Mode is funded through TradeMore, the company Talha runs with Shayan. Mode is looking for pre-seed funding and plans to raise large funding once it is post-revenue. Mode is part of an accelerator programme. [1]

Mode says it has got a lot of traction. Mode says it uses a lot of computer-aided engineering and some physical testing to check the product's life. Mode cannot avail certain subsidies unless it is a manufacturer. [1]

Views

Talha says Najiullah always gives the example that a car door holds more engineering than a two-wheeler. Mode says after-sales is its biggest focus. Mode is not targeting the mass market at present. [1]

Timeline

2002
Talha moves to Islamabad.[1]
2009
Najiullah completes his O and A levels at City School, Islamabad.[1]
2010
Talha joins PNEC to study mechanical engineering.[1]
2012
NUST PNEC is registered for Formula Student, and Najiullah leads the competition.[1]
2014
Talha moves up the ranks after two years as a marketing executive.[1]
2015
Talha leaves the team at the end of the year.[1]
2017
Talha starts TradeMore with Shayan.[1]
2019
Talha moves back to Karachi for family reasons.[1]

Appearances

DateTitleWhere
2022-02-25 The Pakistani startup designing EVs from scratch Thought Behind Things

Frequently asked questions

Where did Shah Talha & Syed Najeebullah study?

Talha attended Bahria College in Islamabad for FSC and went on to university at NUST's Karachi campus, where he studied mechanical engineering. Najiullah did his O and A levels at City School, Islamabad, in 2009, and went to Australia for a master's in automotive engineering at RMIT.[1]

Where is Shah Talha & Syed Najeebullah from?

Talha was raised in Islamabad and moved there in 2002, then moved back to Karachi in 2019 for family reasons. Najiullah grew up in Karachi and Islamabad, mostly in Karachi.[1]

How did Shah Talha & Syed Najeebullah meet?

Talha and Najiullah became connected through Formula Student. Talha has said Najiullah was one year senior to him at PNEC. Talha says Najiullah led the competition in 2012.[1]

What is Mode, the company linked to Shah Talha & Syed Najeebullah?

Mode says its niche is vehicle design, and that its expertise is design and engineering. It has designed four to five two-wheelers so far and has a prototype of one of them. Shayan is the third partner in Mode.[1]

What company is Talha, of Shah Talha & Syed Najeebullah, running?

Talha started TradeMore with Shayan in 2017 and is still running it. Mode is funded through TradeMore, the company Talha runs with Shayan.[1]

References

  1. The Pakistani startup designing EVs from scratch . Thought Behind Things , 2022-02-25.
Show the source passages (67 statements)
  1. Talha was raised in Islamabad and moved there in 2002. I've been, uh, raised in Islamabad. I moved to Islamabad in 2002, uh, and then I moved back to Karachi in 2019.
  2. Talha moved back to Karachi in 2019 for family reasons. And 2019 mein because of my family reasons, I moved back to Karachi.
  3. Talha attended Bahria College in Islamabad for FSC. Bahria College, Islamabad. FSC? Uh, FSC, yes.
  4. Talha went on to university at NUST's Karachi campus. And then university? Uh, NUST, Karachi campus.
  5. Talha studied mechanical engineering at the Karachi campus of NUST. NUST, Karachi campus? Haan ji, ji, Karachi campus. Wahan se kya kiya tha? Uh, wahan se maine mechanical ki.
  6. Talha joined PNEC in 2010 to study mechanical engineering. jis zamane mein main 2010 mein gaya, uh, PNEC mein mechanical karne
  7. Talha has said he had a strong liking for cars in those years. Toh us zamane mein mujhe bahut shauq tha gaadiyon ka
  8. Talha has said Najiullah was one year senior to him at PNEC. he was, uh, one year senior to me in PNEC.
  9. Talha and Najiullah became connected through Formula Student. hamara jo, uh, how we got connected is basically through Formula Student.
  10. Talha has said that NUST PNEC was registered for Formula Student in 2012. So, 2012 mein humne NUST PNEC ko ismein register kiya.
  11. Talha was a marketing executive in 2012 and 2013 and moved up the ranks in 2014. 2012 aur 13 mein I used to be a marketing executive and then in 2014 I grew up the ranks.
  12. Talha says Najiullah led the competition in 2012. 2012 mein Naji bhai used to lead the competition.
  13. Talha says the engine they used came from an existing bike, within a 600 cc limit. Engine hum ek existing bike ka use karte the, 600 cc limitation thi uske andar.
  14. Talha says they built a lot of the structural and mechanical parts, including suspension components, locally. we were building a lot of the structural bits, uh, a lot of the mechanical bits, suspension wagera ke components locally.
  15. Talha says his team was not cleared by scrutineering when it went in 2012 and 2013. hum jis tarah 2012 mein bhi jab hum gaye, 13 mein bhi jab hum gaye, toh we weren't cleared by the scrutineering team.
  16. Najiullah led the Formula Student team in his final year, when the team could not clear scrutineering. Uh, I led the team, uh, in, uh, sorry, I joined in my final year. So, I joined Formula Student team in my final year. I led the team. Uh, us saal we couldn't clear scrutineering.
  17. Najiullah failed a course after neglecting his studies for Formula Student. because of all the Formula Student, uh, stuff, I sort of, you know, thoda studies ko maine chhod diya. So, I failed a course.
  18. Najiullah led the design of the car, though not the overall team leadership. So, usmein I led the design of the car, not the overall team leadership.
  19. Talha and Najiullah were employed by a company to look after the team for another year. we were employed by, uh, Interactive Group to look after the team for another year.
  20. Najiullah went to Australia for a master's in automotive engineering at RMIT. I went to, uh, Australia for Masters at RMIT. Kis cheez mein kiya aapne? Uh, automotive engineering.
  21. Najiullah worked with the RMIT Electric Racing team and volunteered again at Formula Student in Australia. Uh, udhar I got to work with the RMIT Electric Racing, Right. uh, for a bit. And then I again volunteered at Formula Student as well, uh, in Australia.
  22. Najiullah taught at a university for about three and a half years. uh, for about three, three and a half years, uh, I taught at DHASOFA, uh, and then moved to ZABIST.
  23. Najiullah then taught mechatronics at ZABIST. Uh, main ZABIST mein mechatronics mein tha aur DHASOFA mein mechanical mein.
  24. A sponsor asked both Talha and Najiullah to stay with the team after they graduated. jab hum dono graduate huye, toh humein jo sponsor karte the, uh, unhone yeh kaha ke yaar, I want both of you to stay with me.
  25. The sponsor said it was having financial issues and would not be able to continue. sponsor ne kaha ke yaar I'm having financial issues, toh hum log jo hai na, isko continue nahi kar payenge.
  26. Talha left at the end of 2015, while Najiullah took two or three more years to leave. maine toh phir 2015 ke end pe chhod diya, inko toh aur do teen saal lage kaam chhodte huye
  27. Talha joined Shayan at Icon 7, which Shayan was setting up at the time. Shayan, uh, us time pe Icon 7 setup kar raha tha. So, I joined Shayan in, uh, at Icon 7.
  28. Shayan is the third partner in Mode. Shayan ke saath, uh, who's also the third partner in Mode.
  29. Talha started TradeMore with Shayan in 2017 and is still running it. Ji, 2017 mein Shayan aur maine TradeMore shuru ki. I'm still running TradeMore with Shayan.
  30. Najiullah grew up in Karachi and Islamabad, mostly in Karachi. Karachi and Islamabad both, mostly Karachi.
  31. Najiullah did his O and A levels at City School, Islamabad, in 2009. but I did my O and A levels from City School, Islamabad, uh, in 2009.
  32. Najiullah studied for two weeks at a place that offered only electrical engineering, then decided he wanted to study mechanical engineering because he had always wanted to make cars. I joined there, uh, do hafte padha, but then, uh, one thing was nagging me ke I always wanted to make cars and they only had electrical engineering. I was like, nah, mechanical karni hai.
  33. Najiullah has said he left NUST and LUMS and went to Karachi to join PNEC. I just left NUST, LUMS and went to, uh, uh, Karachi, uh, to join PNEC.
  34. Talha says Najiullah always gives the example that a car door holds more engineering than a two-wheeler. Naji bhai hamesha ek example dete hain ke ek gaadi ke darwaze mein jitni engineering hai na, woh two-wheeler se zyada hai.
  35. Mode's long-term plan is two-wheelers and three-wheelers first, then buses, then cars. we do first two-wheelers and three-wheelers, then we get into buses. Buses are relatively easy. Aur uske baad eventually gaadi.
  36. Mode says its expertise is design and engineering. our expertise is basically design and engineering.
  37. Mode has designed four to five two-wheelers so far and has a prototype of one of them. abhi tak humne chaar se paanch two-wheelers design kar li hain. Unmein se we have prototype one of them
  38. Mode expects to take pre-orders by mid-year and to roll out deliveries by the end of the year. inshallah by mid this year we will be able to take pre-orders and by the end of this year we will be able to roll out deliveries.
  39. Mode says its bike is designed completely in-house and manufactured in Pakistan. It's it's manufactured in Pakistan, designed by us completely, unique design
  40. Mode says that apart from certain imported components, everything on its bike is its own bespoke part. Yeh imported component hain other than that saari cheezein jo hain woh hamari bespoke hain.
  41. Mode imports battery cells and assembles the batteries locally. So battery ke cells hum import karte hain usko assemble locally karte hain, manufacture locally karte hain.
  42. Mode has formed a JV company with its manufacturing partner. So that's why we have developed a JV company with the manufacturing partner
  43. Mode cannot avail certain subsidies unless it is a manufacturer. Lekin is case mein we cannot avail those subsidies unless and until we are a manufacturer.
  44. Mode says its bike comes with two motor sizes and two battery sizes, making about four variants. Basically we have we have different variants so depending on where we are offering two motor sizes and two battery sizes. Toh that makes about four variants.
  45. Mode is not targeting the mass market at present. We are not targeting the mass market right now.
  46. Mode says the larger battery gives up to 70 km of range and the smaller one about 30 to 35 km. So the big battery will go up to 70 km and the smaller battery about 30-35.
  47. Mode says the bike is charged by taking the battery out and plugging it into any mains socket. You don't plug the bike, you take the battery out of it. You can take the battery and plug it into any mains charge any switch.
  48. Mode says both battery sizes share the same casing, and the smaller one has fewer cells to make it cheaper. Even the battery casing is the same. So it's just less number of cells in the smaller battery. Right. So just to make it cheaper.
  49. Mode says connectivity is a big feature in its planned future models, though not in the current variant. Is variant mein nahi hai, but jo hamare future variant, future models planned hain, unke andar connectivity waghera is a big thing.
  50. Mode plans to warranty its products up to a set number of kilometres and an age, with figures not yet fixed. So after sales, we're we're going to warranty the products for up to a certain number of kilometers and an age. Numbers abhi main nahi.
  51. Mode says after-sales is its biggest focus. So hamara bahut bada jo focus hai na woh after sales hai.
  52. Mode stocks its spare parts, which raises the cost of its after-sales operations. we stock all of those parts, which makes which increases the cost of, you know, after sales operations for us
  53. Mode says it targets niche markets, and the niche with the largest total market size that it identified is women. So USB essentially we are targeting on niche markets aur usme jo humne niche identify ki sabse badi jo total market size jiska sabse bada hai that is women.
  54. Mode says 7% of the responses it got were from women and 93% were from men. but we got 7% responses from women. 93% were still guys.
  55. Mode says its bike has a step-through, scooter-like design so riders in traditional clothing can ride it. it is a step through sort of design, scooter like so women in traditional clothing, longer clothes, abaya, burqa whatever, shalwar kameez usme they can just ride the bike.
  56. Mode says it does not offer the long seat with the smaller motor, which has a one-person seat, while the larger motor version fits two riders. With the smaller motor, we're not offering the long seat variant. Kyunki woh jab inclined hoga na toh aapko tang karega. Toh isliye humne usmein ek bande ki seat di hai. Haan. Aur jo badi motor hai usmein do bande easily.
  57. Mode says its vehicle technically falls in the cycle category, so it needs no licence or registration. You don't need to register the vehicle. Aapko license bhi nahi chahiye. So technically kyunki yeh cycle category mein aa jati hai.
  58. Mode says its largest target customer is B2B. Kyunki hamara ek bahut bada jo target customer hai woh B2B hai.
  59. Mode's plan is to perfect the product in Pakistan first, then serve the region, and eventually Europe and the US. Hamara jo plan hai woh yahi hai ke pehle we'll perfect the product and then we'll roll out to the to the to the national jo bhi mobility needs hain. Uske baad we go to address the region and then eventually Europe and US.
  60. Mode is funded through TradeMore, the company Talha runs with Shayan. So basically jo hamari dusri company hai, Me and Shayan Trade More, so we're funding it through that.
  61. Mode is looking for pre-seed funding. we're looking for pre-seed right now, lekin till we get post revenue
  62. Mode plans to raise large funding once it is post-revenue. once we are post revenue, toh that's where we can really raise big.
  63. Mode is part of an accelerator programme. hum log ek accelerator ke part hain
  64. Mode says its niche is vehicle design. Uh hamari jo niche hai that's in vehicle design.
  65. Mode has not yet earned from bike sales but says it has earned a lot from product design. So humne abhi tak bike bech ke toh paise nahi kamaye but humne product design karke bahut paise kamaye hain.
  66. Mode says it has got a lot of traction. By the way, we have got a lot of traction, Alhamdulillah.
  67. Mode says it uses a lot of computer-aided engineering and some physical testing to check the product's life. we do a lot of CAE, which is computer-aided engineering. Toh uske upar we we engineer the product. Uske ilawa physical testing bhi hum kisi had tak uske upar conduct karte hain