A visitor takes photos of an eBike at the booth of Bosch during the IAA Commercial Vehicles in Hanover, Germany, on Sept. 20, 2018. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)
CHICAGO, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- General Motors, a major U.S. automaker, announced on Friday to launch two types of eBikes which will hit the market in 2019.
The two eBikes, a folding bike and a compact one, are part of GM's commitment to an "all-electric future," traditional automaker GM said in a statement.
"We blended electrification engineering know-how, design talents and automotive-grade testing with great minds from the bike industry to create our eBikes," said Hannah Parish, director of GM's Urban Mobility Solutions.
GM now invites enthusiasts from around the globe to help name the eBike brand, and the winner will receive a prize of 10,000 U.S. dollars.
GM is not the first automaker to make eBikes. Designers for BMW, Toyota, Ford and some other renowned auto brands have shown that they can build awesome electric bikes. However, the challenge is to bring the eBikes to production and most importantly, to be ridden by the masses, said analysts.