3️⃣ Inside Bird Three

Plus, e-bikes rule Europe, Pro’s Closet bags $40m, and Lime launches new subscription pass.

June 01, 2021

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What You Need to Know This Week

Bird announced plans to roll out its third-generation scooter this summer, its sturdiest, most sustainable “micro-EV” yet. Here’s what we know about the Bird Three scooter so far.

🦺 Safety first: For a smoother, safer ride, the Bird Three features a longer wheelbase, wider handlebars, antimicrobial grips, “triple braking system” with dual independent handbrakes, and an “autonomous emergency braking” that the company says is an industry-first.

🔧 Low maintenance: A propriety OS enables the scooter to run hundreds of diagnostic checks and relay messages to Bird mechanics when repairs are needed.

🔋 Charged up: At a time when many of its competitors are adopting swappable batteries to simplify charging ops, Bird is doubling down on embedded batteries with a new cell system that has 150% more capacity than its last scooter and can last 15-20k miles before requiring service. According to the company, the decision to use embedded batteries came down to sustainability: “smaller and swappable batteries lead to higher overall manufacturing emissions and require more vehicle miles traveled to retrieve, replace, and recharge scooters.”

⏳ Shelf life: All of these improvements add up to a new Bird scooter that is designed to last longer (~24-36 months), require less maintenance, and ultimately help the startup reach its goal of becoming profitable by 2023.

  • In case you’re wondering where all the other micromobility players get their hardware, this graph has you covered.

  • Lime launched its new monthly subscription service, Lime Prime, this week. For $5.99/month, the company will waive the initial fee to unlock scooters for Lime Prime members. In cities that don’t have unlock fees, users will get 25% off the total price of their ride.

  • Among many other things, 2020 may go down in history as the year Europe fell in love with the electric bike. Across eight countries, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, Spain, Italy, and the Czech Republic, e-bike sales increased by an average of 36% last year.

  • With new bikes in drastically short supply, many shoppers are turning to used marketplaces to find wheels. The Pro’s Closet, seller of used bikes and components, just raised $40m in Series B funding, after announcing its revenue more than quadrupled in the last two years.

  • EV sales in China nearly tripled in April, year-over-year. As in previous months, growth was led by the pint-sized Wuling Mini EV, which outsold Tesla by almost 5 to 1. (Our own Oliver Bruce just did a podcast about the low-end Chinese EV explosion; listen here.)

Wuling Mini outsells Tesla Model 3, as China dominates global top 10 EV sales

  • Researchers from the University of Warwick in the UK are aiming to extend the lifespan of shared e-scooters up to three years through a new project.

  • Nigerian motorbike-taxi startup Gokada is diversifying into e-commerce and food delivery.

  • … as Africa’s urban population swells, its market for micromobility is starting to take flight. This week, the city of Kigali announced its first shared e-bike system will launch in summer.

  • New research shows that U.S. commuters who walk, bike, or ride transit are able to access to far fewer jobs compared to those in the rest of the world.

  • More cities are attempting to make transit free to boost ridership and support low-income communities. But, as Slate points out, waiving fares might come at the expense of providing reliable service.

  • EFO Ventures has acquired shared scooter startup Frog Mobility.

  • Indian micromobility operator Yulu grew its revenue and fleet size by 2.5x during the pandemic.

  • The New York Times has an interactive feature showing how urban freeways carved up and segregated many U.S. cities during the 20th century.

Pod People

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Every year China buy 2x more mini EVs (think golf carts) than full-size electric cars.

On a newly unlocked premium episode of the podcast, e-mobility analysts Lavender Au and Nat Bullard explore where the low-end Chinese EV explosion came from and what it means for global transportation.

Jobs to Be Done

Welcome to our jobs board, where every week we post open positions in hopes of connecting our readers with professional opportunities in the burgeoning world of new mobility. Find out who’s hiring below and sign up for the newsletter to view fresh listings every week.