Indigo: Why Change is so Hard

Indigo Technologies has reinvented the wheel. (I just had to say that and get it out of the way.)

At the Indigo Technologies EV pre-launch event last evening CEO and Chairman Will Graylin gave a mini masterclass in coping with change in the automotive industry. The company's experience in bringing innovation to the transportation sector exemplifies the challenge facing startups throughout the automotive industry and other industries as well.

It boils down to Joseph Schumpeter's "creative destruction" and Clayton Christensen's "innovator's dilemma" narratives. How do you convince an organization to adopt a process that will simultaneously destroy and restore existing operations?

Indigo Technologies possesses patented SmartWheels technology that will disrupt the automotive industry. In its earliest days, the company had to decide whether to offer to sell its technology to auto makers or should the company get into the vehicle making business itself?

I guess you already know the answer to that question. But the answer has had multi-billion dollar implications, so it's worth reviewing. It's also worth pondering because so many companies in the same market segment (such as Ree and its REEcorner technology) have been forced to confront this same conundrum.

Indigo Technologies' SmartWheels technology combines propulsion and suspension directly into the wheel. This "simple" innovation, backed by 105+ patents, allows for lighter, more spacious, and more efficient electric vehicle design. It also enables the creation of what Indigo calls its Flow Cargo model for flexible vehicle design and Flow Ride, what the company describes as a magic carpet-like driving experience.

One path to market for Indigo might have been to sell its integrated suspension-propulsion solution directly to auto makers and fleet vehicle designers. The challenge to overcome in this approach to the market is twofold. The first challenge is the typical auto maker response that has been heard over and over by innovators and entrepreneurs throughout the automotive industry: "That's a great idea, but we've decided to do it ourselves in house."

This all too common response is laughable on its face, but it persists to this day from auto makers who think they can create their own navigation maps or make their own batteries. The teams that are assigned to those projects inevitably fail and are more or less happy to accept their failure since their success might well have translated to organizational changes capable of putting hundreds if not thousands of colleagues out of work. In effect, large segments of their organizations are rooting for them to fail.

The second challenge is a bit more subtle and often unspoken. This occurs when the new technology, such as Indigo's, is so radical it threatens entire product development groups. The auto maker recognizes it cannot develop the solution in house, but it also recognizes that the new technology threatens the very foundation of the business.

Of course, this is precisely what is occurring in the current transition to electrification. Many universities have gone so far as to shut down their programs for teaching internal combustion engine technology. Professors steeped in ICE have been put out of work.

It's no secret that electrification of the automotive industry is a threat to jobs throughout the industry from management, to product development, to factories, and even to dealers and repair shops. Electrification is reformatting the industry. Most of the new emerging job opportunities lie in writing software code.

Indigo is in the forefront of this reformatting process. Indigo's SmartWheels systems eliminate the need for differentials, driveshafts, and CV axles thereby drastically reducing a vehicle's weight.

Indigo is laying the groundwork to disrupt both the people and package delivery segments with lighter and more spacious vehicles with unique designs and driving characteristics. The pace of Indigo's impact is likely to accelerate as it establishes strategic partnerships with organizations such as Foxconn, for vehicle manufacturing, and American Lease, for the sales and marketing of ride hailing and limousine opportunities, and Clevon for autonomous delivery bots.

The final step for Indigo, highlighted at the pre-launch event, were its purpose built and affordable EVs designed for package delivery. The Indigo Flow Cargo will bring to market a lighter vehicle for commercial Last Mile Delivery use cases equipped with a mid-dash driver position and a larger capacity cargo area along with a suspension system that allows the vehicle to "kneel" to enable wheel chair or package removal access.

Flow Cargo vehicles weigh 3,700 lbs. and offer 200 miles of range on a single charge with fast charging. Indigo says the vehicles have 30% more cargo space relative to comparable vehicles along with a low flat floor.

The company is also bringing the Indigo Flow Ride to the market - suitable for both Rideshare and Taxi transportation and quick change to cargo package delivery. American Lease has already committed to ordering a substantial count of the first production run. That production will commence in late 2026.

The longer term impact of Indigo is yet to be fully understood. The simplification and integration of the drive train and suspension elements creates entirely new opportunities for vehicle design. There is no doubt that Will Graylin and the team at Indigo are moving the transportation industry's cheese. It looks like it is going to be a smooth ride.