Union Minister Piyush Goyal recently sparked a stir when he called out Indian startups for exploiting cheap labour to run startups like food delivery and developing lifestyle products like gluten-free ice cream. Goyal also hailed that Chinese startups are excelling in machine learning, robotics and building ‘next-gen factories that can compete with the rest of the world’. Now, an Indian-origin Tesla engineer has expressed similar views saying that ‘engineering without purpose is just noise’.
The Tesla battery scientist and cleantech innovator Harsh Maheshwari emphasised shifting the mindset of innovation from performance to purpose. Speaking during a recent podcast Cell Siders, Maheshwari emphasized the need for engineers and founders to align their technological breakthroughs with the needs of the planet.
“A lighter battery, a cheaper module, a faster charge—it all means nothing if it doesn’t reduce emissions or empower underserved markets,” Maheshwari stated. “We don’t need more features; we need more impact,” he said.
With climate urgency accelerating and geopolitical competition over energy intensifying, Maheshwari believes the next decade of engineering must be mission-oriented. “We’re not just building tech anymore—we’re building survival systems for the planet,” he said. “The question isn’t can we do it? It’s should we—and for whom?” he said.
Maheshwari’s call to action arrives at a pivotal moment as governments and companies ramp up cleantech investments. But he warns that without a clear moral compass, innovation risks becoming an echo chamber of vanity metrics and short-term gains.
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