Micromobility China: Artificial Intelligence is Coming to E-Scooters

Artificial intelligence has begun to conquer China's 380 million electric two-wheelers. Just like in the automotive industry, LLMs and other AI models are being integrated into the bikes one manufacturer after another in quick succession. The application scenarios range from improved voice navigation to smart recovery of lost bikes and safety features in road traffic.

The manufacturer Segway-Ninebot offers a system called "True Intelligence 3.0," which enables front collision warnings using artificial intelligence (AI). It works by creating an automatic driving recording via a 2K dashcam. With the help of multiple chips and AI models, this ongoing video is then automatically analyzed in real time for dangerous situations on the road. If necessary, the driver is warned.

This advanced AI-based warning system is already being offered for electric two-wheelers with a price range between 2,000 and 4,000 yuan—equivalent to around $283–$565 USD. Features that were recently reserved for premium cars are now arriving in the e-scooter market, whose customers include middle school students for whom bus rides take too long. "This form of democratizing technology is made possible by a significant drop in computing costs," comments the business portal 21jingji. The use of Qualcomm Snapdragon chips from the 8 series has increased the AI computing power per two-wheeler fivefold, while costs have risen by only 12 percent.

LLM from DeepSeek in Vehicle Displays

Segway-Ninebot was also one of the first Chinese manufacturers to announce last spring the integration of DeepSeek's large language model (LLM) into the driving displays and voice guidance of its e-scooters. "This integration will significantly enhance the intelligence of Ninebot's products," the company wrote in a press release on WeChat. "Users will notice a significant leap in the quality of smart interactions, making their rides more convenient and efficient."

The competitor Niu Technologies also integrated DeepSeek shortly thereafter. Niu stated it would "deeply integrate DeepSeek's advanced AI technology" to explore applications in areas such as "driver assistance, driving safety, AI-powered travel companions, voice interaction, and intelligent service recommendations."

Many of the new features now reaching the mass market with the help of AI revolve around user-friendliness. Examples include smart search functions for riders who leave the office or shopping center only to find that a security guard or other caretaker has moved their bike to an unknown location. Using an app on their phone and simple voice commands, the bike can be immediately located.

Further examples of new e-scooter features described as AI-enhanced in the Chinese trade press include automatic distance maintenance during rides, smart unlocking of the bike as soon as the rider approaches, new forms of theft protection, control functions and automatic location notifications for concerned parents, improved monitoring and display of battery charge status, and automatic adjustment of displays for older riders.

Centralize Computing Power

While the industry in China is racing to see who can integrate "AI brains" into e-scooters the fastest, the true benefit for customers often lies in solving smaller everyday problems. In other words, the benefit is real but also limited. However, the upgrading of two-wheelers with AI is still in its early stages. A significant change that is already beginning to emerge is the centralization of all computing power, as has been common in newer generations of cars for several years.

A manufacturer that has already introduced such a central computing unit is Shouqu Technology with its "Skymotor Central Intelligent Brain." This allows not only the display but also vehicle functions such as body control and the electric drive to be addressed. As with cars, software updates for significant improvements can now even be performed over-the-air (OTA) for e-scooters. (se)

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