Our Legacy
The ASKEE Origin Story
Built by students.
For students.
ASKEE began as an electric bicycle. It became a movement. This is the story of six engineering students who refused to wait for someone else to solve the problems they saw every day on campus.
"We didn't start with a business plan. We started with a welding torch and a question."
TKM
College
Engineering
2022
Founded
E-Cycle Project
6
Founders
Engineers
∞
Mission
Campus Impact
Photo Gallery
The Journey in Pictures
Workshop Build
Photos coming soon — building the archive
The Full Story
From Workshop to Marketplace
2023
The Spark
E-Cycle Project Born at TKM
At TKM College of Engineering, Kollam, a group of passionate engineering students sat together with one bold question: what if we could build an electric bicycle ourselves? The e-cycle project was born — not from a lecture, not from a lab brief, but from pure student curiosity and a belief that Kerala's campuses needed sustainable transport.
2023–24
Building in the Workshop
Midnight builds, failed prototypes, real learning
The workshop became a second home. Parts were sourced, welded, rewired, and redesigned. There were failed prototypes, burned components, and late nights. But every failure taught the team something no textbook could — that real engineering is iterative, collaborative, and relentlessly hands-on.
2024
First E-Cycle Built
A working prototype from scratch
After months of grinding, the first fully functional electric bicycle rolled out of the TKM workshop. It wasn't perfect. But it moved under electric power, built entirely by students. The team celebrated with chai and the quiet satisfaction of knowing they had done something real.
2024
The First Sale
From makers to sellers — the first transaction
The first e-cycle was sold to a local buyer near campus. It was a small transaction by any measure, but it was proof that what students build can have real-world value. More importantly, it planted a seed: what if we could create a platform that helped more students do the same?
2023–24
EV Workshops
Teaching what we learned
The team began conducting EV awareness workshops at colleges across Kerala. Students, faculty, and even local school kids attended. These workshops weren't just about electric vehicles — they were about showing that young people from Kerala can build, invent, and teach. The mission was expanding.
2025
The Harder Question
What problem do students actually face every day?
The EV journey was meaningful. But the team kept observing a different problem, one that affected every student on every campus: the campus economy was broken. Students bought new things they didn't need, threw away things that still had value, and struggled to afford essentials. There was no trusted way to buy, sell, or borrow within a campus community.
2025
The Pivot
From EV initiatives to a campus marketplace
The transition from an EV-focused initiative to ASKEE was not a rejection of the past — it was an evolution. The same values drove it: sustainability, community, student empowerment. ASKEE would become the platform where the value trapped in unused textbooks, gadgets, and skills could be unlocked and shared across Kerala's campuses.
2026
ASKEE Launches
The marketplace for every student
ASKEE officially launched — a hyperlocal marketplace built by students, for students, across Kerala. Buy, sell, borrow, rent, find tutors, join events, collaborate. The platform carried the same mission the e-cycle project started with: empower young people to create real value for their communities.
The Founder
Thomas J George
Electrical and Electronics Engineering graduate from TKM College of Engineering. Founder of ASKEE.
Early Contributors To The Journey
The following individuals contributed to the early engineering, workshop, innovation, and electric mobility activities that formed part of the journey leading to ASKEE:
Vishal V
Contributor
Kevin Varghese
Contributor
Sreehari
Contributor
Amal A S
Contributor
Jyothis S
Contributor
Their support, collaboration, and participation during the early stages of experimentation, project development, workshops, and community activities helped shape valuable experiences that ultimately influenced the creation of ASKEE.
ASKEE is a collaborative creation. Every feature, every decision, every line of code reflects the shared vision of this team. There are no solo heroes — only a collective that believed student communities deserve better tools.
What We Stand For
Core Values
Student First
Every decision is made by asking: does this make campus life better for students?
Community Built
Marketplace trust comes from real people, verified institutions, and genuine connections.
Ship Real Things
From e-cycles to apps — we build things that work in the real world, for real people.
The story isn't over.
You're part of it.
Every listing you create, every connection you make, every item you give a second life — you're continuing what started in that TKM workshop.