SOON people across the globe could be scooting along on a safety-focused e-Scooter designed in south Warwickshire.
Hilo EV, based in Leamington, has successfully claimed £5,750 from Warwickshire County Council’s Digital Creative Recovery Co-Investment Fund to help makes its e-Scooter plans a reality.
Co-founders James Browne and Robin Harris used the funds for the Proof of Concept stage to develop a Native Android Auto Mobile App for the Hilo One e-Scooter which can be folded and put in the back of a car.
The Hilo One e-Scooter was launched at Micromobility Europe 2023 and has a halo light to illuminate riders to increase visibility, and has a large front wheel for a smoother drive over bumps and holes in the riding surface.
Although e-Scooters are yet to become legal in the UK, the company is seeing increasing demand for their products across other parts of the globe. Pre-orders are now being taken and the first customers will take delivery of their e-Scooter towards the end of this year.
James said the grant from Warwickshire County Council had played a crucial role during the development stage of the Hilo One e-Scooter.
He continued: “Since our team has a strong automotive background, we thought there was an interesting opportunity to develop an e-Scooter which could be folded and put into another vehicle to continue travelling in an environmentally-friendly way.
“The project was focused on how we could integrate an e-Scooter with an electric car to allow for seamless integration, and we knew we needed to work with a technology partner to move the navigation information from the car to the screen on the e-Scooter.
“EVware has been brilliant and we have developed an app on the front of the e-Scooter which we wouldn’t have been able to achieve within the timescales of launching this in June without the grant from Warwickshire County Council.
“The grant has been instrumental because it allowed us to embark on a partnership that we wanted, and to carry out all the necessary tests to ensure there was an appetite for what we were doing.”
