This is Episode 17 of the Inside Transportation Podcast. This podcast was made possible by Ford Motor Company (www.ford.com) and Fenwick (www.fenwick.com).

Featuring Johan Moreno (Inside.com) and Michael Burtov (GeoOrbital).

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Recorded on August 13, 2020.

Today on the Inside Transportation Podcast, we have a very special guest — Michael Burtov, an inventor, entrepreneur and the founder and CEO of GeoOrbital. If that company name sounds familiar, you may recognize it from Season 9 of Shark Tank. GeoOrbital is a wheel that allows you to retro-fit your bike into a personal electric vehicle.

Learn more about GeoOrbital: https://geoo.com

Watch Michael's Shark Tank pitch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ofv3dEy6nx0

Learn more about Michael's book: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B087C3LH1Z

SHOW NOTES

1:40 - Johan asks Michael the burning question: “What was it like to be on Shark Tank?”

2:50 - Michael gives us a bit about his background and why he’s passionate about micro-mobility

4:10 - Johan asks about the development process and what it was like to execute a wild idea into production

9:30 - Michael talks about the challenges GeoOrtibal and other startups face with raising capital

12:25 - Johan asks Michael about the future of GeoOrbital and where it may be going in the future.

13:00 - Michael talks about other applications for GeoOrbital’s technology away from e-bikes to wheelchairs and other devices.

15:00 - Johan asks Michael where how he sees micro-mobility after the pandemic

19:30 - Michael talks about the capital that is currently funding micro-mobility startups and how sustainable these companies are

22:00 - Johan asks Michael whether the future of electric bikes will be shared or owned

25:00 - The two discuss the potential challenges in obtaining enough batteries for electric vehicles in the near future

28:00 - Johan talks about the power of corporate or enterprise deals for EV makers

31:00 - Michael argues that Tesla is not an automaker, but is more of a software company. The two discuss.

33:00 - Johan argues that Tesla is going to be one of the few operating systems that will be powering electric vehicles in the future

34:00 - Is it possible that Tesla is going to provide their software into other vehicles?

35:30 - Johan asks on the federal level, what do you think the government can do to support EV adoption?

37:40 - The two discuss the lack of clarity where new modes of transportation, like electric scooters, should go.

43:20 - Michael shares some thoughts on what lessons he would give to a transportation startup founder