Boosted (formerly Boosted Boards) was an American
manufacturer
Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a ran ...
of
electric skateboards and
electric scooters
Electric motorcycles and scooters are plug-in electric vehicles with two or three wheels. Power is supplied by a rechargeable battery which drives one or more electric motors. Electric scooters are distinguished from motorcycles by having a ...
based in
Mountain View, California
Mountain View is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States. Named for its views of the Santa Cruz Mountains, it has a population of 82,376.
Mountain View was integral to the early history and growth of Silicon Valley, and is the ...
.
History
2012–2016
Boosted was founded in mid-2012 with financial backing by
StartX
StartX is a non-profit startup accelerator and founder community associated with Stanford University.
It was founded by Cameron Teitelman and Dan Ha in 2011.
It began as a spin-off of Stanford Student Enterprises, the non-profit financial a ...
. The company was founded by Sanjay Dastoor, John Ulmen, and Matthew Tran, who delivered a
TED talk
TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "ideas worth spreading". TED was founded by Richard Sau ...
on the subject in 2013.
The company started a
Kickstarter
Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...
campaign promising a premium
electric skateboard
An electric skateboard is a personal transporter based on a skateboard. The speed is usually controlled by a wireless hand-held throttle remote or rider body weight-shifting between front of the board for forward motion and rear for braking. As fo ...
called the "Boosted Board" for a $100,000 goal. It was a massive success, and generated over $467,000 from backers.
In 2014, the original Boosted Board was renamed the Dual+, and two new models were announced: the Dual and the Single. The Dual and Single received new, upgraded software. The Dual+ also received the software following the announcement.
On May 19, 2016, the second generation Boosted Board was announced. It featured a swappable battery that could be upgraded to a future Extended Range Battery, water resistance, 80 mm Orangatang wheels, upgraded
Bluetooth
Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology standard that is used for exchanging data between fixed and mobile devices over short distances and building personal area networks (PANs). In the most widely used mode, transmission power is limi ...
radio, accessory ports beneath the risers, and more modular design to better enable service and repair by both users and the manufacturer.
However, the Single model was cancelled and store credits to reservation holders to upgrade to Dual and Dual+ models.
2017–2018
In February 2017, the second generation was re-released with additional upgrades to its battery and firmware. In November 2017, an expanded version of the Boosted mobile app was released, including expansion from just
iOS
iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...
to also include
Android. In January 2018 the Extended Range Battery was released, which is able to be mounted on second generation boards, effectively doubling the range of skateboard. On April 17, 2018, Boosted announced its third generation of skateboards. It included two
longboards, and for the first time, two shortboards. The company also expanded at this time from shipping in US and Canada to 34 countries, including the EU, Australia, and New Zealand. ''
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' magazine named the Boosted Mini a Top 50 Invention of the Year. In December 2018, Boosted received over $60 million in new investment to continue its global expansion and development of additional products.
2019
Boosted announced the new Boosted Rev (scooter) on May 15, 2019.
Boosted announced the new Boosted Beams (dedicated headlights) and Boosted 105's (larger wheels) on November 14, 2019.
2020
The Boosted Rev being manufactured in China, was affected by the US - China tariff war causing the company to owe its manufactures up to $100,000 during production.
On March 4, 2020, Boosted announced that it has laid off a significant portion of its team and was actively seeking a buyer.
In April 2020, it was reported that
Lime
Lime commonly refers to:
* Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit
* Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide
* Lime (color), a color between yellow and green
Lime may also refer to:
Botany ...
has acquired some of the remaining assets of Boosted including five of the company's core patents. The remaining inventory of skateboards, scooters, and related parts was acquired by Boosted USA.
Products
Kickstarter Boosted Boards
The first Boosted Boards were offered in a Kickstarter running from September 11, 2012 to October 11, 2012, collecting $467,167 with 1,110 backers. The first boards shipped in February 2014.
First gen Boosted Boards
The official Boosted line-up was launched November 5, 2014 and consisted of three models.
Second gen Boosted Boards
The second generation boards were announced on May 19, 2016. The second generation features an upgrade to the electronics and drive train of the board. New boards featured modular components such as the motors, skid plates, ESC, and battery. Second generation was also launched with two battery sizes, the 99 watt-hour SR battery and the 199 watt-hour XR battery. Originally announced with a singe motor variant, the 2nd generation later discontinued development of this board due to an XR battery recall and subsequent shipping delays.
Third gen Boosted Boards
The third generation Boosted Boards were introduced on April 17, 2018.
The line exists of four models, with the Boosted Mini, a smaller electric skateboard. The major difference between 2nd gen and 3rd gen boards comes with their construction, as they now only use in house Boosted components (deck, wheels, trucks).
Boosted Rev electric scooter
References
Further reading
*
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Companies based in Mountain View, California
Kickstarter-funded products
Skateboarding