Micromobility gets more specific about who it serves

Two-wheeled urban transport is adding software and safety features that address specific barriers. Heat, road hazards, balance and storage keep some riders from using bikes and scooters. MUJI, Ather Energy, Veo and Flatbike address these barriers directly.

MUJI launched a ventilated bicycle helmet co-developed with a beauty vocational school and academic partners, paired with a matching 20-inch bicycle. The design addresses the two most common reasons everyday riders skip helmets: overheating and hair disruption. MUJI collaborated with a beauty school to develop the helmet. 

Ather Energy deployed a pothole and road hazard alert system across its electric scooter fleet in Asia Pacific, using connected data from other riders. The more people ride, the smarter the warnings get. It turns a fleet of individual scooters into a shared sensing network.

Veo launched North America's first shared electric trike, designed specifically for riders who cannot balance on two-wheeled vehicles. Flatbike developed removable pedals and a rotatable stem that compresses a full-size bicycle to one-third its size for indoor storage.

TREND BITE
MUJI, Ather Energy, and Veo focused on friction removal. Each brand identified a single, specific barrier stopping a specific group from choosing a bike or scooter over a car, then designed precisely against it. For cities, mobility operators, and product designers, the opportunity is to run the same exercise on their own fleets, products, or services.