Startup develops premium, Internet-connected e-scooter

Beijing

LI Yinan, a former chief technology officer at China's largest Internet search engine, has started a company developing electric scooters with plans to export them to Europe.

Mr Li says the scooter, often seen in China as a poor man's ride, is ripe for a high-tech luxury makeover. Called Niu, after the Chinese word for buffalo, Mr Li's offering has a design that evokes comparisons to the Vespa and will be powered by the same lithium-ion batteries that go into the Tesla Model S. It will also come loaded with features such as remote monitoring of battery levels and anti-theft location services.