ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Can you really pull clean drinking water out of thin air? Navkaran Singh Bagga has been doing exactly that for nine years. In this episode he breaks down the technology, the economics, and the uncomfortable truth that most climate tech founders avoid: being green is not enough if you are not also cheap.Navkaran is the Founder & CEO of AKVO Atmospheric Water Systems, the Kolkata-based company behind akvosphere.com. A third-generation Kolkata entrepreneur who studied in the UK and returned in 2007 to the family trade and exports business, he went on to run a hotel and turn around a steel company before going into clean tech in 2016. AKVO builds atmospheric water generators that mimic condensation to extract potable water from humidity in the air, with systems running in 16 countries and roughly 90% of sales coming from outside India. Its Water On Want (WOW) model lets companies skip the capital cost entirely and simply pay per litre.This is a refreshingly blunt conversation. No sob story, no mission-statement theatre, just a capitalist who thinks the market, not the government, decides when a technology is ready.Chapters:00:00 - Introduction00:34 - Kolkata roots, family business and 19 years of ventures01:28 - Why water: the sector everyone ignores02:04 - Discovering atmospheric water generators03:57 - The Big Short, Michael Burry and betting on water04:43 - "I don't have a sob story, I saw a business opportunity"05:14 - Why India is a natural fit for air-to-water05:53 - How the technology actually works07:42 - Why this is an urban solution08:13 - Taking pressure off utilities and cutting water waste08:58 - Contamination, transport and India's attitude to water10:16 - Is the water safe when the air is polluted?11:49 - The commercial case: how affordable is it really?12:49 - Rs 100 for a bottle vs Rs 2.5-5 a litre from air13:49 - Why they discontinued the home product14:24 - Go-to-market: why large corporates buy15:01 - Water On Want: the pay-per-litre model15:28 - Making the ROI make sense to a business16:40 - Why he does not want government subsidies19:10 - Why AKVO is not the solution for data centres20:14 - Future plans: water as a service across 16 countries21:27 - Are developed markets more open to this?22:18 - Enterprises plan for crises, consumers wait23:21 - Advice for climate tech entrepreneurs24:08 - "Green without being economical makes no sense"26:29 - Closing thoughts---About ELI Podcast:ELI (Entrepreneur's Live Interviews) brings you inspiring stories from India's startup ecosystem. Real founders, real journeys, real insights.Website: https://eli-podcast.com
