Pursuits
Google-Backed Chinese Smartwatch to Go Head to Head With Apple
- Mobvoi’s Ticwatch 2 will go on sale in September for $200
- Startup hopes to sell 50,000 in its first year, eyes U.S. IPO
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Mobvoi Inc., the Chinese AI startup backed by Google, intends to go toe-to-toe with Apple Inc. when it begins selling its smartwatches in the U.S. in September.
The four-year-old startup founded by a coterie of former Googlers is hoping American consumers will take to the second generation of the Ticwatch, which made waves back home via voice-activated natural language search and innovative features like a touch-sensitive strip for scrolling. The new version responds to questions in English and will let U.S. users order pizzas, hail Ubers and pick out restaurants on Yelp.