Mercedes-Benz India has introduced a transformative new Dealer Management System named SKYLine, a custom platform developed in collaboration with Zoho. This system represents a significant technological leap, engineered entirely in India to meet the specific demands of the local luxury automotive market. SKYLine is built to overhaul the entire customer service journey, creating a seamless and digitally integrated experience from the moment a vehicle is booked for service until it is returned to its owner.

The platform marks a strategic departure from older, fragmented systems by implementing a modern, decentralised architecture. A key feature of this new approach is that each Mercedes-Benz dealership across India now operates on its own dedicated instance of Zoho CRM. This grants individual locations a high degree of operational autonomy while still ensuring they adhere to the brand’s centrally governed standards and processes. A critical technical achievement was the system's ability to integrate flawlessly with the manufacturer's existing European headquarters infrastructure without requiring any modifications to those core systems, facilitated by a sophisticated co-developed middleware layer.

By digitising the complete service lifecycle, SKYLine introduces unprecedented operational efficiency and transparency. The system manages a comprehensive suite of processes, including service booking, digital check-in, vehicle inspection and job card creation. It also enables skill-based assignment of technicians, allows for live job tracking and automates customer communications. This connected workflow eliminates previous inefficiencies, creating a cohesive and paperless journey for the customer. The platform's scope extends beyond core services to also streamline other dealership operations, such as managing courtesy car availability through visual dashboards and centralising processes for the growing pre-owned vehicle business.

The deployment of SKYLine was supported by an extensive rollout programme involving thousands of man-days dedicated to user training and testing to ensure widespread and effective adoption. Orchestrated by Zoho’s Enterprise Business Solutions team, the project stands as one of the most technically sophisticated and strategically important Dealer Management System implementations in the region, fundamentally modernising the customer ownership experience for Mercedes-Benz in India.

Santosh Iyer, Managing Director & CEO, Mercedes-Benz India, said, “SKYLine represents a significant step towards managing our customer service operations, being a key lever that will significantly enhance customer’s experience. This bespoke DMS is built by Zoho for our dealer partners, making it seamless and highly integrated into our global systems, redefining customer journey. With SKYLine, we are setting a new benchmark in customer experience by blending technology with personalised service. We are proud that Zoho developed a world-class, highly secured and local ‘no code-no source’ platform like SKYLine for the Indian customers, underlining the unmatched prowess of Indian technological innovation, having international adaptability. SKYLine brings transparency, efficiency and control into every service interaction, empowering customers while delivering an elevated experience which they desire from Mercedes-Benz.”

Mani Vembu, CEO, Zoho, said, “SKYLine is a technology marvel born of close collaboration and co-creation. When Mercedes-Benz India came to us with a vision that had no off-the-shelf solution, we saw an opportunity to build something truly unique. Together, we have built a decentralised platform that empowers each dealership with autonomy while maintaining central control and real-time HQ integration. To meet these complex needs, we co-developed middleware capabilities alongside our evolving Qntrl platform, enabling seamless communication across legacy protocols. This project reflects what’s possible when product teams and customers come together with a shared sense of purpose and a commitment to solving real-world challenges.”

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Chinese technology company Neusoft Corporation and Mappls MapmyIndia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to leverage their strengths in software and data resources to collaborate deeply.

The companies will engage in joint technological development, ecosystem collaboration and resource integration to provide navigation products and intelligent mobility solutions tailored to localised needs in emerging markets such as Southeast Asia and India.

The partnership is a response to the fact that while global auto brands are expanding into Southeast Asia and India, they face challenges in these regions due to complex road conditions, unique traffic rules, extensive addressing systems and high localisation adaptation costs. These issues limit the ability of automakers to deliver a complete intelligent user experience.

Under the collaboration, Neusoft will adopt its OneCoreGo Global Intelligent Mobility Solution 6.0 Plus as the core technology carrier, deeply integrating MapmyIndia's map data, real-time traffic information and multi-dimensional value-added services. MapmyIndia is noted as the largest local mapping company in India, holding more than 90 percent market share in in-vehicle navigation.

The integration is intended to strengthen a full capability loop of ‘navigation + payment + interaction + connectivity + operations’.

Through API integration and technological convergence, the two parties will jointly develop navigation products and mobility solutions highly adapted to Southeast Asia, India and similar regional markets. These solutions will deliver precise route planning and real-time traffic guidance, address local user needs and continuously enhance product experience and scenario-based services. This will help automotive partners rapidly launch intelligent vehicle models with competitiveness in local markets.

The partnership enables Neusoft to combine the global end-to-end strengths of its solution with localised ecosystem resources, paving the ‘last mile’ for automakers entering the Southeast Asian and Indian markets and delivering comprehensive intelligent mobility experiences.

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Bengaluru-based electric vehicle maker Ultraviolette Automotive has secured USD 45 million from Zoho Corporation and Lingotto, one of Europe's investment management companies as part of its ongoing Series E investment round.

The investment from Zoho Corporation was led by Sridhar Vembu, Mani Vembu and Kumar Vembu.

This growth capital will accelerate the domestic and international scale-up of current products F77 and X-47, as well as future product platforms Shockwave and Tesseract.

Ultraviolette has built a design and technology-led enterprise with the F77 and the recently launched X-47.

The company has expanded to 30 cities across India in a short span of 12 months and is expanding to 100 cities by mid-2026. The F77 motorcycles were recently launched in the United Kingdom, bringing Ultraviolette's presence to 12 countries across Europe.

Narayan Subramaniam, Co-Founder & CEO, Ultraviolette Automotive, said, “We are glad to announce our Series E investment from Zoho and Lingotto. Lingotto's legacy of backing iconic performance and mobility brands, combined with Zoho's long-term commitment to fostering cutting-edge Indian innovation, aligns perfectly with Ultraviolette's mission to build category-defining electric mobility solutions for India and global markets.”

Niraj Rajmohan, CTO & Co-Founder, Ultraviolette, said, "With the ongoing Series E investments, we are doubling down on growth and expanding our production to meet increasing demand. Our focus is on advancing breakthrough battery technology, elevating performance capabilities and expanding production to support upcoming product platforms. This investment will accelerate our journey towards scaling into India and global markets."

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Agentic AI platform Disseqt AI has announced a partnership with Tata Technologies and Infosys. As per the agreement, Disseqt AI will assist both companies' IT and DevOps teams in developing and fast-tracking the production of tailored Agentic AI applications for automobile and FinTech companies globally.

The partnership aims to help auto and FinTech firms embrace customised Agentic AI faster and in a secure manner.

Disseqt AI, which has operations in Bengaluru, San Francisco and Dublin, provides an enterprise-grade platform for IT and DevOps teams. The company claims its platform cuts down Agentic AI testing and operations cost by 70 percent and improves productivity by up to 80 percent. The platform allows these teams to test, simulate and monitor their Agentic AI systems tailored across industries, ultimately enabling enterprises to operationalise tailored Agentic AI faster and at scale, without sacrificing ethics, governance and compliance.

Apoorva Kumar, Founder and CEO, Disseqt AI, said, “This is a landmark announcement for us as we further embed Disseqt into enterprise workflows for testing, simulation, monitoring and auditability purposes. We are already working closely with both Tata and Infosys on several projects and are proud to be part of their innovation initiatives”

Last month, Disseqt AI announced a strategic collaboration with HCLTech and Microsoft to guide financial services institutions with Agentic AI adoption.

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Battery and Energy Storage Europe has announced a programme focused on the EU Battery Passport, a regulatory milestone that becomes mandatory in February 2027. The Barcelona-based event will address the compliance gap for applications beyond the electric vehicle (EV) sector, which have dominated the conversation to date.

The event, taking place on 8th and 9th September 2026 at Fira de Barcelona's Gran Via venue, will focus on solutions and talks for applications that fall within the regulation's scope: stationary energy storage, industrial batteries, grid-scale systems, long-duration energy storage and emerging applications in aerospace, maritime and rail electrification.

With the February 2027 legal requirement date approaching, the programme will bring together industry leaders, technology providers, and policy experts to address the compliance challenges facing these diverse sectors.

The Battery Passport is a digital record documenting a battery's entire lifecycle, from raw material sourcing to production, performance and eventual recycling. From February 2027, it becomes mandatory for all rechargeable EV, industrial and LMT batteries over 2 kWh sold in the EU.

Linked via QR code, the passport will track each battery's complete lifecycle, including composition, carbon footprint and recycled content, fundamentally transforming supply chain transparency and sustainability practices across Europe.

The programme will explore implementation topics including digital infrastructure requirements, data management systems, supply chain integration, verification processes and recycling traceability.

Ken Davies, Conference Programme Director at Battery and Energy Storage Europe, said, "The Battery Passport represents one of the most significant regulatory shifts our industry has faced, yet many companies are still grappling with what implementation actually means for their operations. While the EV sector has dominated the conversation, there's a critical need to address how this regulation applies to stationary storage, industrial applications and the innovative battery technologies powering Europe's energy transition. With the clock ticking toward February 2027, Battery and Energy Storage Europe will shine a light on the practical implementation requirements for these often-overlooked sectors, connecting stakeholders with actionable solutions and bringing together the expertise, technology providers, and collaborative spirit needed to turn compliance into competitive advantage across the full spectrum of battery applications."

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