E-bike startup Gogoro raises $300m to expand its smart energy network

Battery swapping at a Gogoro GoStation. Photo credit: Gogoro.

Taiwanese company Gogoro is known for its “smart scooter,” an electric bike that stands out from the competition with its stylish look and geeky heart.

But the firm, founded in 2011 by HTC veterans Horace Luke and Matt Taylor, is thinking bigger than that. The team’s vision involves energy solutions that could end up powering a lot more than just their scooter. It hinted at this from the start: When the company launched, its product was only described as “a device around energy management.”

Gogoro created a network of charging stations called GoStations to support the bike’s energy needs. There, you can swap your vehicle’s spent batteries with fresh ones. The accompanying app shows you the closest battery station and allows you to book fresh batteries in advance. The service, which includes support and road assistance, is offered through a subscription fee.

At the moment, it has over 400 such stations in Taiwan, with more than 34,000 vehicles sold in the country. But in the future, the charging station model could be used to power other types of vehicles and even serve other energy-related purposes.

“Vehicle makers see how many stations we have and how we can swap batteries anywhere,” Luke, Gogoro’s CEO, tells Tech in Asia. “Other potential industries include logistics and warehousing, or industrial applications.”

Fully charged

Gogoro announced today it’s raised US$300 million for its series C round. Investors include London-headquartered Generation Investment Management, which is chaired by former US vice president Al Gore and invests long-term in sustainability, clean energy, and mobility projects.

Gogoro wants to boost its station network so it can better predict demand spikes.

Also joining in are Singaporean state fund Temasek, Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation, and French electric utility company Engie. Existing investors also participated, including founding investor Dr. Samuel Yin, Panasonic, and more.

Gogoro gains from its new investors’ local and regional connections which include strategic benefits for expansion. While it’s not making any announcements in terms of new markets, it’s definitely looking at several regions with interest, including scooter-happy Southeast Asia.

The funding will also go into technology development and hiring. Gogoro wants to boost its station network so it can better predict demand spikes and know when it needs to get more batteries charged. This way, it doesn’t waste energy charging batteries that aren’t going to be used.

“It’s not as simple as putting a battery [in the station] and charging it,” Luke says. The company plans to work on machine learning and big data applications to let the network make such decisions on its own.

Gogoro co-founder and CEO, Horace Luke. Photo credit: Gogoro.

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