A few days ago, we looked at Hero MotoCorp’s rapidly shrinking investment in Zero Motorcycles. Hero had allowed its ownership stake to fall from 6.9 percent to just 0.8 percent after sitting out a funding round, while the remaining holding was written down by roughly 92 percent. It looked like Hero was stepping away financially while keeping Zero close enough to help develop premium electric motorcycles.
Now we have a useful comparison, and it makes the whole situation considerably more awkward for Zero. You see, Hero hasn’t lost interest in electric two-wheelers as a category, nor has it suddenly decided internal combustion is going to live forever through the power of positive thinking.
It’s still spending heavily on EVs. It’s just that it's putting that money somewhere other than Zero Motorcycles.
That somewhere is Ather Energy, the Indian electric scooter manufacturer Hero first invested in back in 2016. Hero has reportedly poured around $175.6 million into Ather over the years and currently owns about 30 percent of the company. Following Ather’s public listing, Hero’s stake is now valued at more than $1.34 billion, making it one of the most successful investments in the motorcycle giant’s portfolio.
Hero is also continuing to invest in Ather, which is the detail that really drives the contrast home. The company isn’t simply benefiting from shares it bought years ago and forgot about. It has remained involved, maintained a major ownership position, and continued backing Ather as the company expands its electric scooter lineup, manufacturing presence, retail network, and charging ecosystem across India.
Zero, meanwhile, has gone in the opposite direction. Hero’s stake was valued at $45.2 million in FY24, fell to $24.9 million in FY25, and dropped again to just $1.9 million in FY26. Hero recorded a $22.9 million fair value loss during the latest fiscal year, and its decision not to join Zero’s newest funding round reduced its ownership to a percentage that now looks more symbolic than strategic.
That doesn’t mean Hero has dumped Zero entirely. The two companies are still working together on electric motorcycles, including the Project VxZ concepts shown under Hero’s VIDA brand. Industry reports have also linked the partnership to premium electric models with performance roughly comparable to 500cc and 600cc gasoline motorcycles, potentially arriving sometime during the 2026 to 2027 period.
Hero’s actions suggest that it sees Zero and Ather serving completely different purposes. Ather is a company Hero wants to own, support, and grow inside its most important domestic market. Meanwhile, Zero is becoming more of an engineering partner, giving Hero access to electric motorcycle powertrains and development experience without requiring it to keep shoveling money into Zero’s balance sheet.
That’s a pretty harsh distinction. Hero appears interested in what Zero knows, but far less interested in owning Zero itself. The manufacturer may have concluded that it doesn’t need a large equity stake to keep using Zero’s technology, especially if the development agreement remains intact regardless of how many shares Hero holds.
On top of all that, there are accounting differences worth acknowledging. Ather is publicly traded, giving Hero’s shares an observable market value. Zero is privately held, meaning its valuation is influenced by funding rounds, investor pricing, and internal accounting assumptions.
This isn’t a perfect apples-to-apples comparison, but it seems like one apple is now worth more than €1 billion while the other has rolled under the refrigerator.
The larger takeaway is that Hero hasn’t backed away from electrification. It’s investing in manufacturing, Vida products, charging infrastructure, Ather, and electric development. What it appears to be backing away from is the idea that owning a meaningful chunk of Zero Motorcycles is necessary to accomplish any of that.
Hero still wants Zero’s electric motorcycle expertise. It just no longer seems willing to pay nearly as much for the privilege of calling itself an investor.
