Some of you guys might know Tony Fadell as one of the fathers of the iPod, while others might know him as the co-creator of Nest, the company that brought us smart and connected home products like the smart thermostat, smoke detector, and so on. However Fadell has plans to be known beyond that.
This is why he has recently launched a new company called Actev Motors, in which the company’s first product would be the Arrow Smart-Kart, a go-kart that is designed for kids to introduce them to what an electric car would feel like, which presumably in turn would ingrain the benefits of using an electric car at a young age to help spur on the purchase of greener vehicles when they’re older.
So what so smart about this go-kart? For starters it can be connected to the internet via WiFi, which in turn allows parents to geofence where their kids will be able to drive. This means that parents could geofence their backyard, thus ensuring that the kart would no longer be powered if the kids were to try and take it to the main road.
The accompanying app also comes with a built-in emergency stop button. There will be various kits designed for the car, like a Formula 1-style kit, or a drift kit, and there is also the option to add a higher-capacity battery for prolonged usage. Unfortunately it does not come cheap as it will cost $1,000 upon its release, but for now interested parents can pre-order the starter kit for $600.
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