Season 2 of the BCV Podcast continues with an energizing conversation with Alper Tilev, Co-Founder and CTO of Ampersand, Africa’s leading EV energy tech company. Ampersand has created a world where motorcycle transport is cleaner and more profitable for customers than ever before by building a commercial e-motorcycle fleet and battery swapping network at scale.
Beyond Capital Ventures Managing Partner Eva Yazhari and Partner Nicholas Java are joined in this episode by Partner and Nairobi-based Africa lead Christophe de Montille to discuss Ampersand’s impact on the continent’s environment, economy, and livelihoods. The talk also veers into the e-mobility tech trends that will continue to disrupt and define the marketplace.
Self-driving bikes? It remains to be seen, but, for now, Ampersand is focused on the limitless road ahead.
Some don’t-miss moments from this high-octane conversation:
- Alp discusses the key drivers that differentiate Ampersand from competitors that came before. (4:03)
- Why being based in Kigali is essential to understanding Ampersand’s customer base, ensuring their voices are heard and the product developments meet their needs (5:01)
- Eva explains how BCV’s relational approach to investing aligns with Ampersand’s customer-centric approach. (5:42)
- What motivates the Ampersand customer beyond the environmental impact and how the company delivers on that promise (6:16)
- Why the fallacy of the cheapest product always wins in emerging markets isn’t only false—that race to the bottom means missing major opportunities (8:05)
- The critical role data plays in every Ampersand decision and how AI factors into the company’s future operational efficiencies and excellence (11:24)
- What investors are missing out on if they’re not investing alongside BCV in companies like Ampersand that are defining the future of emerging markets (19:32)
- Eva distills how empathy—listening to customers, building intentional technology, collecting data, lowering costs, entering new markets, and replicating the business model faithfully—creates a path for founders looking to build their own solutions. (28:01)