Gogoro, the Taiwanese two-wheeler battery-swapping giant, says that its smart electric scooters can now be unlocked and turned on via a key in a rider’s Apple Wallet on their iPhone or Apple Watch. Vehicle owners will also be able to share their scooter key with other iOS users.
Digital keys have been trending in the electric vehicle space for the last few years, with automakers like Tesla, Hyundai, BMW and many others getting on board and both Apple and Google enabling the integrations. The use of digital keys in the two-wheeler space is less common, making Gogoro one of the first to implement the tech on a wide scale.
“Innovation is a key component of Gogoro’s strategy, and we believe that revolutionary technology can have a positive impact on culture,” said Horace Luke, founder and CEO of Gogoro, in a statement. “Scooter Key in Apple Wallet delivers enhanced convenience to our new and existing customers and we are excited to roll out to our vehicles starting today.”
The capability will be available in more than 300,000 existing Smartscooters in Taiwan that have NFC (near field communication) built in already. NFC enables two devices to communicate wirelessly when they’re close together. That means that riders will need to hold their device near the Smartscooter’s NFC-enabled reader to unlock and start their vehicles.
Gogoro says the availability of the scooter key in Apple Wallet will also launch on the company’s new lineup of scooters — the SuperSport TCS, the Delight, the CrossOver and the CrossOver S. Customers in Taiwan will be able to access the capability first, with other markets to follow.
Once customers add their own scooter key to their Apple Wallet, they can share the key with other iOS users via Messages, LINE or WeChat, according to Gogoro.
The company said because the key is stored on Apple devices, Gogoro can’t access private information about customers, like when or where they use or share their keys or with whom they share them.
Gogoro’s integration with Apple also means users will soon be able to track their vehicles. In the coming months, the scooters will come with Apple’s Find My integration built into the scooter, so riders can use the app to locate missing or lost scooters from their phones, according to Gogoro.