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But, in a sense,
they did.
After two years and five prototypes, the Cambridge,
Massachusetts-based startup has developed a new type of electric
bicycle wheel that steered the company into crowdfunding stardom
raising more than $1.2 million at a record-setting pace on
Kickstarter.
The newly developed bicycle wheel has the major components of an
electric vehicle – a 500 watt motor, a lithium battery and a
suit of electronics, all arranged to fit perfectly into the
radial of a wheel made out of high density foam to avoid a flat.
“The unique thing about this wheel is that we rearranged it,"
Michael Burtov, the CEO & Founder of GeoOrbital said. "We kind
of re-imagined how we put these things together.”
That wheel, which costs roughly $800, transforms any bicycle
into an electric bike that can accelerate to 20 mph in six
seconds.
“It’s not a more efficient system, it’s just a more practical
and applicable system,” said Burtov, adding that his wheel has a
USB port, enabling riders to charge their smartphones on the go.
The first wheel orders are scheduled for delivery in February
2017.
(Reporting by Ben Gruber in Miami; Editing by David Gregorio)
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