INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
All electric scooters are not created equal
But now the founders of Boosted Boards, which makes the steadiest and safest-feeling electric skateboards, are bringing their rugged
hardware expertise to the scooter world
deployment today in partnership with Washington D.C
and plans for San Francisco.Formerly known by its Y Combinator codename Waybots, the company is exclusively announcing its funding and
rebrand to Skip today on TechCrunch
suspension, and head/tail/brake lights
And while low-grade scooters might feel too unstable for the bike lane, leading to complaints about sidewalk riding, Skips are meant to feel
secure enough to cruise next to cars.With so much well-funded competition, Skip will have to hope customers really notice the
But if riders and cities decide they want a more reliable scooter service, Skip could carve out a solid business while being a better
citizen.Trusting Your Life To A StartupMy Boosted Board was perhaps my favorite gadget ever
After a decade as an unpowered longboard rider, I tested its electric skateboard in 2012 and loved the smooth rides so much I bought one of
the first 10 of the Kickstarter
It felt like being able to effortlessly surf uphill
hardware.But then I crashed
The human body is not equipped for a 22mph meeting with the pavement
Skip says it sees seven rides per day per scooter
You can absolutely feel the lack of stability and smoothness when riding a janky or half-broken scooter
When they got accepted to YC, like Boosted before it, they started experimenting with a dockless version
Meanwhile, Washington D.C
had opened a pilot program for permitted dockless bikeshare, and Waybots convinced the city to give it the greenlight too
Here was not only a last-mile solution, but also a company providing it that understands how to work with cities as well as deliver a
batteries by the afternoon like the useless vehicles-turned-paperweights from competitors that I commonly stumble across in SF
To keep them charged and off the streets at night, Skip has a crowdsourced charging program where people can get paid to pick up, plug in at
You can adjust the handlebar height, they go up to 18mph and dual-suspension flattens road bumps.As for keeping Skips from getting strewn in
That could help it tell the edge of a build from the center of the walkway
Combined with requiring users to photograph the scooter standing upright, and hardware in the vehicles, Skip is hoping to force users to
I think cities should demand them
$500 million and Bird recently closing $100 million as they race to invade the world, Skip is starting late with a much smaller
Luckily, he says it will soon announce some big-name talent with experience here
vechicle rental market goes is a mystery
Maybe it turns into a fundraising war, with the most aggressive deployers locking up markets, and the losers vaporizing in giant money
Maybe the cities get fed up, kick out the unpermitted, and only issue approvals to those with the best glad-handing or the best safety
Maybe users get tons of options on price, quality, and availability to choose from.But absent the bad behavior spurring backlash, many who
try dockless electric scooter and bike rentals love them
rideshare trips turn into scooter cruises
Even at minimum wage, you might save money paying $1.75 for a five-minute, one-mile Skip rather than walking for 20
