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--- transportation:rad [2023/01/06 23:52] – timb
+++ transportation:rad [2026/03/06 22:29] (current) – [Bankruptcy 2025] timb
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 See also: [[transportation:electric_bikes|Electric Bikes]]
+====== RAD ======
 ===== Articles =====
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 https://www.engadget.com/rad-power-radrunner-plus-electric-bike-irl-153525330.html
+== Rad Power Bikes announces ‘New Rad’ after saying that it ‘made mistakes’ ==
+Micah Toll - Jan 26 2023 11:04 am PT
+The CEO of Rad Power Bikes, the leading electric bicycle company in North America, just sent out a mass email committing to changes that it says will strengthen the company’s focus on safety, reliability, and customer service.
+“A new era of innovation.” That’s what was emblazoned across the top of the email that landed in my inbox, along with presumably hundreds of thousands of other inboxes across Rad Power Bike’s vast rider base.
+The email from Rad Power Bikes’ new CEO Phil Molyneux explained that Rad was entering a “new era.” It began with an explanation of how he was brought on board by Rad’s founder and previous CEO, Mike Radenbaugh.
+Molyneux, who came to Rad after leadership positions at Sony and Dyson, took the wheel at a time when Rad was already navigating several different storms. The company’s e-cargo bike known as the RadWagon – which was likely the most popular long tail cargo e-bike in North America – was recalled due to an issue with its wheels. The company is also in the midst of multiple lawsuits ranging from a battery fire to a tragic underage riding death.
+https://electrek.co/2023/01/26/rad-power-bikes-pledges-future-refocus-on-safety/
+== Rad Power Bikes announces major update to its entire e-bike lineup ==
+Micah Toll - Sep 12 2023 6:00 am PT
+Seattle-based electric bike maker Rad Power Bikes has just announced the biggest update to its entire product lineup yet, promising full UL-compliance for its batteries and e-bikes.
+The move comes as UL-listing is seen as an increasingly popular issue among e-bike makers, customers, and local governments seeking ways to regulate e-bike safety.
+According to Rad Power Bikes, all of the company’s e-bikes moving forward will be compliant with UL 2849 and all of the company’s lithium-ion batteries will be compliant with UL 2271.
+UL 2849, known as the “UL Standard for Electrical Systems for eBikes,” provides fire safety certification by examining the electrical drive train, battery, and charger system combinations in e-bikes. The standard covers the entire e-bike drivetrain, including the battery.
+UL 2271, by comparison, applies just to batteries used in light electric vehicles (LEVs) such as e-bikes and e-scooters. The standard covers the safety requirements for the design, manufacture, and testing of lithium-ion batteries used in LEVs.
+By adopting both standards, Rad is ensuring comprehensive fire safety compliance throughout the systems used in all of its electric bikes moving forward.
+https://electrek.co/2023/09/12/rad-power-bikes-announces-ul-listing/
+== We need to talk about Rad Power Bikes’ new e-bike batteries ==
+Micah Toll - Mar 8 2024 5:47 am PT
+Electric bikes just may be the biggest transportation revolution of our generation, helping millions replace car usage with more affordable, more efficient alternatives. But there’s no denying that concerns have been swirling about the safety of e-bike batteries, even if such fire fears have primarily been overblown by much of the media.
+Leading electric bicycle maker Rad Power Bikes has just unveiled its new “Safe Shield Battery” in an effort to mitigate worries over e-bike battery safety. And it’s something we need to talk about.
+The whole underlying issue here is based on the fact that e-bike batteries are usually comprised of dozens of smaller, energy-dense lithium-ion battery cells. Those cells are similar – and sometimes identical – to the battery cells used in everything from electric cars to power tool battery packs.
+The individual battery cells store lots of energy and are generally quite safe. However, danger can occur when the cells are punctured or short-circuited, with the latter often happening when water makes its way into battery packs over time. Well-made e-bike batteries use several methods to mitigate these risks, and the result is that battery fires are exceedingly rare. Even in e-bikes, which seem to unfairly receive the brunt of lithium-ion battery fire scaremongering, such fires occur in a tiny, tiny fraction of a percent of e-bikes.
+https://electrek.co/2024/03/08/we-need-to-talk-about-rad-power-bikes-new-e-bike-batteries/
+== RAD Power Bikes Drops the RadKick, a Belt Driven eBike That is Their Lightest Yet ==
+Ron Frazelle - Aug 13, 2024 9:30 a.m. ET
+Last week, Rad Power Bikes released the RadKick 7-Speed and RadKick Belt Drive. They say these eBikes are engineered to ride more like a standard bicycle. This new bike was a way for RAD to “fill a gap in their line” – a need expressed by their customers.
+After compiling that customer feedback, Rad says they designed the RadKick to be a simpler, more intuitive, and lighter-weight eBike. Lightweight is all relative, especially when talking about affordable ebikes. Rad says the claimed weight of the RadKick belt drive is “under 55lbs”.
+The RadKick comes in two different drivetrains. They come in a 7-speed chain drive flavor, a first for Rad Power. And a single-speed belt drive flavor.
+https://bikerumor.com/rad-power-bikes-radkick-belt-drive-ebike-lightest/
+===== Company =====
+== Rad Power Bikes CEO steps down ==
+Sean O'Kane - 1:39 PM PDT March 10, 2025
+Rad Power Bikes CEO Phil Molyneux has stepped down as part of a wider strategic reshuffling at the acclaimed electric bicycle company. The company told TechCrunch that Chief Financial Officer Stephanie Roberts will serve as interim CEO while the company searches for a replacement, and that Molyneux will serve as an adviser.
+The news, first reported by Electrek, comes a few months after it went through its fifth round of layoffs in under four years. Molyneux took over the CEO role in 2022 after previous CEO Mike Radenbaugh stepped down. The shakeup comes at a time when many of the most visible e-bike brands have struggled, with two — Cake and VanMoof — recently going through bankruptcy restructurings.
+Rad Power itself is in the middle of a “strategic pivot to support a more significant focus on physical retail, which required downsizing our teams involved in the direct-to-consumer business,” the company said in a statement. “While it is always challenging to make these decisions, we are approaching this transition with empathy and unwavering support for our talented team members and are confident that this pivot will better support our riders and the advancement of our mission going forward.”
+https://techcrunch.com/2025/03/10/rad-power-bikes-ceo-steps-down/
+==== Bankruptcy 2025 ====
+== Rad Power Bikes faces shutdown in January without new funding ==
+Sean O'Kane & Kirsten Korosec - 1:14 PM PST November 10, 2025
+Rad Power Bikes has informed its employees that it will shut down in January if it is unable to find new funding or get acquired, according to an internal staff email viewed by TechCrunch.
+The company’s leadership is “still fighting to find ways to continue,” and “the cessation of Rad’s operations is not a forgone conclusion,” according to the email, which was sent by Rad Power’s “people team.” Rad Power employees were told there had been a “very promising” option to keep the company alive that “appeared to be likely to close,” but the deal — which was not specified in the email — “did not come to fruition.”
+“Rad is nothing without its people and wants to ensure that all employees are taken care of and provided for to the fullest extent feasible. Executive leaders are hopeful that a viable solution will be found to ensure that Rad team members remain gainfully employed for the foreseeable future. However, to be fully transparent, despite our collective efforts, it is possible that this may not happen, and Rad may be forced to cease operations,” the email reads. GeekWire was first to report the contents of the email.
+Seattle-based Rad Power has gone through multiple rounds of layoffs over the last few years coming out of the pandemic. While the early pandemic days were a boon to micromobility companies like Rad Power, a “sudden drop in consumer demand” left the company saddled with excess inventory, according to the email viewed by TechCrunch. “Rad continues to face significant financial challenges, including in the form of tariffs and the macroeconomic landscape.”
+https://techcrunch.com/2025/11/10/rad-power-bikes-faces-shutdown-in-january-without-new-funding/
+== Rad Power Bikes files for bankruptcy and is looking to sell the business ==
+Sean O'Kane - 9:28 AM PST December 17, 2025
+Electric bike company Rad Power Bikes filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday, weeks after it warned employees that it could shut down without new funding.
+The company will continue to operate while the bankruptcy case proceeds, and it’s looking to sell the business within 45-60 days, a spokesperson told TechCrunch.
+“This step allows us to keep operating in the ordinary course of business while we pursue the best possible outcome for the people who rely on Rad every day,” they said in a statement. “Our goal is to keep the company intact and preserve the relationships we have built with riders, vendors, suppliers, and partners.”
+Rad Power is the latest in a series of e-bike companies from around the world to go through bankruptcy after pandemic-era excitement for the category wore off. Some of those companies have re-emerged, though, with VanMoof and Cake finding new owners during their respective court-led restructuring processes.
+Rad itself had told employees in November that there had been a “very promising” option to keep the company afloat that was “likely to close,” but the deal fell apart. The company has not shared more details about that potential deal.
+https://techcrunch.com/2025/12/17/rad-power-bikes-files-for-bankruptcy-and-is-looking-to-sell-the-business/
+== Rad Power Bikes files for bankruptcy and is looking to sell the business ==
+Sean O'Kane - Wed, December 17, 2025 at 9:28 AM PST
+Electric bike company Rad Power Bikes filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday, weeks after it warned employees that it could shut down without new funding.
+The company will continue to operate while the bankruptcy case proceeds, and it’s looking to sell the business within 45-60 days, a spokesperson told TechCrunch.
+“This step allows us to keep operating in the ordinary course of business while we pursue the best possible outcome for the people who rely on Rad every day,” they said in a statement. “Our goal is to keep the company intact and preserve the relationships we have built with riders, vendors, suppliers, and partners.”
+Rad Power is the latest in a series of e-bike companies from around the world to go through bankruptcy after pandemic-era excitement for the category wore off. Some of those companies have re-emerged, though, with VanMoof and Cake finding new owners during their respective court-led restructuring processes.
+https://finance.yahoo.com/news/rad-power-bikes-files-bankruptcy-172850412.html
+== Rad Power Bikes reaches deal to sell itself for $13.2M ==
+Sean O'Kane - 11:56 AM PST January 26, 2026
+Electric bike company Rad Power Bikes has reached a deal to sell itself to a company called Life Electric Vehicles Holdings (or Life EV) for around $13.2 million, a little more than a month after entering the bankruptcy process.
+Florida-based Life EV bills itself as a “developer, manufacturer, and distributor in the light electric vehicle industry.” It offers a number of electric bikes for sale on its website, although most of them were labeled as “sold out” at the time this article was published.
+A filing to the bankruptcy docket over the weekend shows that five entities participated in an auction on the Rad Power assets on January 22. The first bid came in at $8 million, and parties traded bids until Life Electric Vehicles came away as the winner. When accounting for Rad Power’s liabilities, the total value of the bid is $14.9 million.
+Another e-bike company called Retrospec had the second-highest bid of $13 million and is being labeled as the “backup bidder” in case the deal with Life EV falls through. The bids were a steep discount to Rad Power’s peak $1.65 billion valuation, which was reached in October 2021, per PitchBook. The company has raised a total of $329.2 million, according to PitchBook data.
+https://techcrunch.com/2026/01/26/rad-power-bikes-reaches-deal-to-sell-itself-for-13-2-million/
+== Rad Power Bikes reaches deal to sell itself for $13.2M ==
+Sean O'Kane - Mon, January 26, 2026 at 11:56 AM PST
+Electric bike company Rad Power Bikes has reached a deal to sell itself to a company called Life Electric Vehicles Holdings (or Life EV) for around $13.2 million, a little more than a month after entering the bankruptcy process.
+Florida-based Life EV bills itself as a “developer, manufacturer, and distributor in the light electric vehicle industry.” It offers a number of electric bikes for sale on its website, although most of them were labeled as “sold out” at the time this article was published.
+A filing to the bankruptcy docket over the weekend shows that five entities participated in an auction on the Rad Power assets on January 22. The first bid came in at $8 million, and parties traded bids until Life Electric Vehicles came away as the winner. When accounting for Rad Power’s liabilities, the total value of the bid is $14.9 million.
+Another e-bike company called Retrospec had the second-highest bid of $13 million and is being labeled as the “backup bidder” in case the deal with Life EV falls through. The bids were a steep discount to Rad Power’s peak $1.65 billion valuation, which was reached in October 2021, per PitchBook. The company has raised a total of $329.2 million, according to PitchBook data.
+https://finance.yahoo.com/news/rad-power-bikes-reaches-deal-195633790.html
+== Rad Power Bikes gets a new owner, pledge to build bikes in the US ==
+Life EV has completed the acquisition of the well-known e-bike brand, which recently filed for bankruptcy.
+Matt Tate - Fri, March 6, 2026 at 6:46 AM PST
+Life EV has completed a court-approved acquisition of Rad Power Bikes, granting a second life to the troubled e-bike brand.
+The Florida-based Life EV now owns Rad’s brand, intellectual property, inventory and certain unspecified operating assets, and will continue to operate as Rad Power Bikes in the US, with plans to expand to "select key markets."
+Rad’s new owner has committed to honoring certain warranties and gift cards purchased prior to the acquisition, and says new bikes will be built in the US going forward. Life EV will adopt a Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) structure for its manufacturing operations, allowing it to take advantage of special domestic customs procedures when sourcing parts from global suppliers.
+"Rad Power Bikes has helped define the e-bike category in North America with its innovative products and passionate rider community," said Life EV CEO, Rob Provost. "Respecting and preserving that legacy - its brand, vision, and leadership - is foundational to this acquisition. Together, we will build on that trust and create new opportunities for riders nationwide."
+https://www.engadget.com/transportation/rad-power-bikes-gets-a-new-owner-pledge-to-build-bikes-in-the-us-144641940.html
+== Life EV officially owns Rad Power Bikes now ==
+Kirsten Korosec - 1:56 PM PST March 6, 2026
+Life Electric Vehicles Holdings, also known as Life EV, officially owns the intellectual property, inventory, and certain operating assets of Rad Power Bikes. Life EV acquired Rad Power for $13.2 million.
+Rad Power Bikes, a buzzy electric bike company that raised nearly $330 million in venture capital, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December. The company had struggled for months prior to its bankruptcy filing, and had warned employees it might have to shut down without new capital.
+Life EV intends to keep the company intact and said it will continue retail operations under the Rad Power Bikes brand in the United States. It also plans to expand the retail footprint in select key markets. Life EV also pledged to support existing customers who might be wondering what would become of their bike warranties or even gift cards.
+https://techcrunch.com/2026/03/06/life-ev-officially-owns-rad-power-bikes-now/
+==== Fire 2026 ====
+== Rad Power Bikes warehouse catches fire following flammable battery warnings ==
+It comes one month after the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections.
+Sarah Fielding - Updated Tue, January 20, 2026 at 8:08 AM PST
+In a strange twist of fate, a fire broke out this week at the Rad Power Bikes retail store warehouse in Huntington Beach, California, Electrek reports. The structural blaze came less than two months after the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) warned customers to "immediately stop" using and dispose of some of the company's e-bike batteries due to fire hazard. In December, Rad filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, stating it couldn't afford to recall the batteries.
+"We’re working with local authorities to review a thermal incident that occurred at our Huntington Beach store Sunday evening," a Rad Power Bikes spokesperson told Engadget. "The incident was contained and happened while the store was closed. The cause of the fire has not been confirmed."
+The recent two-alarm fire hit a commercial complex with multiple businesses. Footage from the fire shows e-bikes outside of the warehouse as firemen fought the blaze. Engadget has reached out to Rad for more information on the fire's impact.
+https://www.engadget.com/transportation/rad-power-bikes-warehouse-catches-fire-following-flammable-battery-warnings-133056542.html
+==== Layoff 2024 ====
+== VC darling Rad Power Bikes hit with another round of layoffs ==
+Rebecca Bellan - 7:59 AM PDT August 1, 2024
+Rad Power Bikes, the Seattle-based e-bike startup that has raised more than $300 million from investors, went through another round of layoffs in July, TechCrunch has exclusively learned. This is the company’s fifth round since April 2021, when it cut back 100 staffers.
+Rad’s latest layoffs follow a culling a year ago, when the e-bike maker pulled out of Europe and laid off around 40 employees. Rad laid off staff twice in 2022.
+The layoffs at the popular e-bike startup come after VanMoof, another ventured-backed e-bike darling, declared bankruptcy last year. The turbulence in the e-bike industry has demonstrated that manufacturing and shipping two-wheelers is a tough business to get right, particularly if a startup is under pressure to scale quickly to provide investors with a return on investment.
+Rad did not share how many staffers it cut in July or which teams were affected. Sources familiar with the layoffs told TechCrunch the cuts mostly hit Rad’s product development teams. According to LinkedIn, Rad Power employs 394 people.
+https://techcrunch.com/2024/08/01/rad-power-bikes-layoffs/
+===== Price =====
+== Rad Power Bikes announces price reductions across all electric bike models ==
+Micah Toll - Jan 17 2024 6:37 am PT
+Rad Power Bikes, one of the leading electric bicycle companies in the US, has just slashed prices on all of its e-bikes.
+The company made the announcement today, effectively ushering in many of the best holiday sales from late last year as new permanent pricing for 2024.
+“We’re lowering 2024 prices across our lineup of award-winning electric bikes,” explained the brand in an email. “From day one, our mission has been to create radical electric bikes that are built for everything, and priced for everyone. Now, we’re thrilled to make our high-quality, awesome electric bikes even more affordable and accessible for everyone.”
+https://electrek.co/2024/01/17/rad-power-bikes-announces-price-reductions-across-all-electric-bike-models/