I.T Box to focus on electric taxis, ride-hailing vehicles

I.T Box is thinking out of the box. Avoiding the already competitive business of producing and selling electric vehicles to personal buyers, the startup is aiming to manufacture vehicles that will serve as taxis and ride-hailing vehicles.

Carmakers have not take into consideration what passengers would like when they produce taxis and ride-hailing vehicles, said the startup's founder Zhang Shuguang.

He said sometimes passengers are not very happy with the service when they have cumbersome luggage or travel for a long distance in a car with little legroom.

Zhang made the remarks when he unveiled I.T Box and its first two models on Wednesday in Beijing.

Among other things, the startup has removed the first-row passenger seat, the space of which could be used to store luggage, in its two models, and the models' long-wheelbases have ensured enough legroom in the second and third row.

The first one, the BM-400, will be produced in 2023 and the second model, the larger BM-600, will follow in 2024.

The BM-400 will have two mileage choices of 420 km and 530 km on one charge, and the BM-600 will have a mileage of 600 km.

Both of the models are capable of fast charging at 600-volt charging facilities, said Zhang.

Citing statistics from the Ministry of Transport, Zhang said there are almost 1.4 million taxis in China, and vehicles ready to be hailed through Didi and other smartphone apps are even more.

"China's mobility market is so huge and there is enough room for one or two companies to focus on the sector," said Zhang.

Zhang said it has received over 42,000 pre-sales orders for the BM-400 model.

lifusheng@chinadaily.com.cn