Mobike finally vanished. What happened?

Plus, Pokémon Go hints at dark future for distracted driving, Apple’s iCar probably won’t be self-driving, and Google Maps is losing an "insurmountable" lead.

January 05, 2021

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Micromobility World

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Come join us for exciting talks by provocative thinkers and transportation leaders—including former NYDOT commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan, Lime CEO Wayne Ting, and many more—about the unfolding revolution in urban mobility.

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What you need to know this week

  • Beijing-based Mobike officially halted operations of its mobile app at the end of 2020. Its remaining bikes will be rebranded by Chinese on-demand giant Meituan, owner of Mobike since 2018. It’s an anti-climatic end for a company that, five years ago, popularized dockless, GPS-connected bikes rented through apps on a global scale. But Mobike’s cash-burning pursuit of market share and uncertain business model left it financially hobbled by 2017. Along with its early rival Ofo, also a former unicorn, Mobike was overtaken by a new generation of Chinese bike-share players like Didi Bike and Hello Bike, which prioritized sustainable growth with significant backing from the tech industry. Maybe there’s a lesson there for the West’s burgeoning scooter startups.

  • Two famous British motorbike brands, BSA and Norton, have recently been acquired by firms in India, the world’s biggest two-wheeler market.

  • The price of batteries continues to plummet in what is no doubt the most important energy story of our time: “BloombergNEF’s latest lithium-ion battery price index finds the current weighted-average price for lithium-ion storage batteries is $137 per kilowatt-hour. That’s down from nearly $1,200 per kilowatt-hour in 2010, a price drop of nearly 90% in about 10 years.”

  • London police initiated a massive crackdown on electric scooters following a surge in holiday sales. The city government has said it supports scooters as a safe alternative to mass transit amid the pandemic, but for now, they remain illegal.

  • Nuro is now officially allowed to charge people for robot deliveries in California.

  • Following California’s example, Massachusetts will ban the sale of gas-powered cars by 2035.

  • Throwing some cold water on the notion that Apple’s rumored iCar will be self-driving: “Forget about a self-driving iCar, Tim Cook is too smart to take the chance when there is a much cheaper and safer option that doesn’t involve any legal danger or liability risk.”

  • A study of ebike crashes in China’s Hunan province finds that non-occupational riders over the age of 55 in urban areas are at the highest risk of sustaining a severe injury.

  • The last of Uber’s Jump ebikes, stripped of their iconic orange-red branding, are now for sale on Scoot Depot for $700 apiece (minimum order of 4).

  • A new literature review finds that bike-sharing saves trip time, boosts physical activity, “mostly” replaces journeys by sustainable modes like walking and transit, and is underused in disadvantaged communities.

  • Pokémon Go is the deadliest video game in history by far. According to one paper, distracted Pokémon Go players caused 145,000 car accidents, injuring 30,000 people, killing 256, and leading to $2B to 7.3B in damages in the first 148 days after the game was introduced.

  • Toyota’s tiny C+ Pod EV straddles the line between mini car and heavy micromobility.

Meet Toyota's Smallest and Cheapest EV, the $16k C+pod - autoevolution

  • Google Map’s moat is evaporating: “In 2018, Google inexplicably decided to self-sabotage their enterprise maps business by raising their prices ~1,400% overnight… Google’s slight advantage in terms of navigation and foundational features may well be overtaken by the collective effort of their deep-pocketed competitors.”

  • Just before New Year’s Eve, Miami made the sudden decision to ban shared electric scooters literally overnight.

  • Nearly 700 people on bikes were killed in the US in 2020. The work to remake our streets continues in the new year.

Jobs to be done

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Operator spotlight

Location: Fayetteville, Arkansas (Willing to relocate to AUS, EMEA)Past Roles: Regional Operations Manager @ Veo, Co-founder & CEO @ Grox Industries

I see the big picture and profitably operationalize it at the HQ and market level.

Ideal Next Industry: Micromobility, Climate TechIdeal Next Role: Senior Ops (Director, VP, COO) or Head of Strategic Partnerships