NIU launches a $100 scaled-down version of its electric scooter for kids
NIU’s electric scooters, mopeds, and e-bikes have been a hit with adults around the world. Now the company is bringing that same electrically powered fun to a younger audience with the launch of a new kids’ scooter known as the NIU NQi Mini.
The scooter takes the shape of NIU’s popular N-series electric scooters, but in a scaled-down format.
In fact, I happen to own the scooter that this is based on, and I can tell you that it does a pretty good job of paying homage to the original.
You’ll still find the signature and often-copied NIU styling, including that halo headlight and easily recognizable body shape, but there are now a pair of removable stabilizer wheels to helps younger kids learn their balance.
The scooter also features a somewhat more primitive power supply, replacing the lithium-ion batteries found in most of NIU’s foreign market scooters with a small 12V 4.5Ah lead acid battery. The company claims a run time of over an hour from that diminutive 54 Wh battery, though the high efficiency is likely thanks to the sluggish top speed of just 5 km/h (3 mph).
For a kids’ scooter, that slow speed might just be a good idea.
If you thought this was just going to be a bare-bones NIU look-a-like scooter, then you’re probably mostly correct. But there’s still some decent embedded tech such as a reverse gear, working LED lighting, and even a music player. The MP3 player can pull songs off a USB drive or an SD card to belt out a kid’s favorite tunes.
I don’t know about your neighborhood, but I don’t see little kids rolling around here with a pocketful of SD cards loaded with their favorite MP3s. But hey, maybe that’s a cultural difference.
Speaking of a cultural difference, most of you reading this article won’t be able to test out the NIU NQi Mini. That’s because it’s currently only available in China, where it has launched with an MSRP of 699 RMB (approximately US $103).
It’s not the first time we’ve seen companies launch kid-specific electric vehicles. The youth market has been a favorite of companies like Razor, which has created ride-on electric scooters and mini dirt bikes for kids.
Tesla also teamed up with Radio Flyer to launch the Cyberquad for Kids ride-on ATV, complete with Tesla design mimicking the Tesla Cyberquad concept vehicle.
Electric bicycle makers have also created pedal-assist e-bikes designed for younger riders, getting kids started with throttle-less electric bikes from a young age.
Electrek’s Take
There’s always some pushback when we cover EVs designed for kids, with the argument usually being that they should be out there pedaling a bike instead of riding an electric scooter.
I don’t disagree, but I also think that fun toys like these can be valuable for kids. Not only do they help teach balance skills (when you remove the training wheels), but they also help educate kids about the benefits of EVs from an early age. When you grow up with a quiet, relaxing, and zippy electric scooter, it’s hard to see a noisy, smelly, and constantly breaking-down gas motorbike as a positive thing.
So I say let the kids have their fun, as long as they’re also getting some solid saddle time in on a “real” bike.
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Environment
Tesla hires celebrity ambassador despite Elon Musk saying they don’t pay for endorsements
Tesla has hired a celebrity ambassador, a departure from Elon Musk’s policy of not paying for celebrity endorsements.
Musk has often bragged about the fact that Tesla doesn’t pay for celebrity endorsements in contrast to other automakers who hire celebrity brand ambassadors to promote their cars.
Much like advertising, Musk seems to be abandoning this strategy.
Tesla announced that it hired Olympic shooter Kim Ye-ji, whose performance at the Paris Olympics this summer went viral, to be the automaker’s brand ambassador in Korea.
Kim said about her new partnership with Tesla:
I’m very excited to work with Tesla, who have recognized me. I hope to convey a positive message together with Tesla.”
Here are a few pictures released to announce her new partnership with Tesla:
Kim’s agency said that her relationship with Tesla started from CEO Elon Musk tweeting about her viral performance at the Olympics:
“The relationship between Kim Ye-ji and Tesla developed after Elon Musk mentioned her. The company said that Kim is Tesla Korea’s first brand ambassador.”
She is not only Tesla Korea’s first ambassador, but she is the first known paid celebrity ambassador for Tesla globally.
The policy change is not entirely surprising since the policy of Musk not paying celebrities to endorse Tesla’s products was often attached to the automaker’s strategy not to advertise.
Musk went as far as to say that he “hates advertising,” and Tesla started advertising last year.
The change in strategy coincidently, or not, came after Musk bought Twitter, a company relying on advertising, and Tesla even started to advertise on Twitter, now called X.
Tesla sales in Korea haven’t been amazing, but the country’s auto market greatly favors domestic brands. The American automaker does fairly well for a foreign brand with the Model Y becoming the best-selling imported vehicle in Korea during the first half of 2024.
Although, it amounted to just over 10,000 units.
Electrek’s Take
It’s a change of strategy, and Elon certainly can’t claim that Tesla doesn’t pay for celebrities to endorse its products, but it is probably a smart move due to the fact that Koreans prefer domestic brands.
Kim could help create a deeper level of attachment to the Tesla brand, but I don’t really know. I’m just speculating.
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Kia just broke its October sales record as its impressive US sales run continues. After another record-breaking month, Kia said the growth is fueled by “strong demand” for its electric vehicles.
Kia sets new October sales record in the US
Kia sold 69,908 vehicles in the US last month, up 16% from its previous October sales record in 2023.
According to Kia, higher demand for its electric models is charging up sales in the US. Kia’s electrified sales (EVs, PHEVs, and HEVs) reached its highest ever in October.
All-electric vehicles (EVs) led the way, with sales surging 70% year-over-year (YOY). Plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and hybrid (HEV) sales were up 65% and 49%, respectively, from October 2023.
Kia’s first dedicated electric model, the EV6, set a new October sales record with 1,941 units sold. Through the first ten months of 2024, Kia has now sold over 17,700 EV6 models in the US. Meanwhile, its first three-row electric SUV, the EV9, continues to defy expectations.
With another 1,941 models sold last month, Kia EV9 sales reached 17,911 through October. That’s even more than the EV6 despite costing +$12,000 more.
Kia’s first US-made EV9 rolled out of its West Point, GA plant this summer. Although the EV9 is expected to qualify for the full $7,500 federal tax credit next year, Kia is matching it for now through incentives.
Next year, we will also finally see the EV9 GT, which Kia promises will have “enormous power.” Ahead of its official debut, we got our first look at the sporty electric SUV with an active spoiler last month.
| 2025 Kia EV9 Trim | Starting Price* |
| Light Standard Range | $54,900 |
| Light Long Range | $59,900 |
| Wind | $63,900 |
| Land | $69,900 |
| GT-Line | $73,900 |
Earlier this month, we learned that the 2025 EV9 will start at $54,900 (not including the destination fee), which is only $700 more than the 2024 model.
With prices dropping to potentially under $50,000, Kia’s three-row electric SUV is a steal. If you’re ready to experience the EV9 for yourself, we can help you get started. You can use our links below to view deals on Kia’s electric vehicles in your area.
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The outcome of the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 5 won’t affect oil production levels in the short- to medium term, Exxon CEO Darren Woods told CNBC on Friday.
Former President Donald Trump has called for unconstrained oil and gas production to lower energy prices and fight inflation, boiling his energy policy down to three words on the campaign trail: “Drill, baby, drill.”
“I’m not sure how drill, baby, drill translates into policy,” Woods told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” Friday after the largest U.S. oil and gas company reported third-quarter results.
Woods said U.S. shale production does not face constraints from “external restrictions.” The U.S. has produced record amounts of oil and gas during the Biden administration.
Over the past six years, the U.S. has produced more crude oil than any other nation in history, including Saudi Arabia and Russia, according to the Energy Information Administration.
Output in the U.S. is driven by the oil and gas industry deploying technology and investment to generate shareholder returns based on the break-even cost of production, the CEO said.
“Certainly we wouldn’t see a change based on a political change but more on an economic environment,” Woods said. “I don’t think there’s anybody out there that’s developing a business strategy to respond to a political agenda,” he said.
While shale production has not faced constraints on developing new acreage, there are resources in areas like the Gulf of Mexico that have not opened up due to federal permitting, the CEO said.
“That could, for the longer term, open up potential sources of supply,” Wood said. In the short- to medium term, however, unconventional shale resources are available and it’s just a matter of developing them based on market dynamics, he said.
Exxon Mobil shares in 2024.
The vast majority of shale resources in the U.S. are on private land and regulated at the state level, according to an August note from Morgan Stanley. About 25% of oil and 10% of natural gas is produced on federal land and waters subject to permitting, according to Morgan Stanley.
Vice President Kamala Harris opposed fracking during her bid for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination. She has since reversed that position in an effort to shore up support in the crucial swing state of Pennsylvania, where the natural gas industry is important for the state’s economy.
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