Urban cyclists have more in common than an aptitude for pedaling through city streets — they share the ever-present dread of one day discovering their bicycle missing from the bike rack, or finding only the skeletal remains of its wheel-less frame.
These days, the standard U-Lock is no match for saw-wielding thieves, who are also quick to yank a bike from a locked rack on the back of a car or break through a garage door.
But if kryptonite won't stop bike thieves, a growing crop of entrepreneurs are hoping that new technology will outsmart them.
"Everybody who does urban cycling gets their bike stolen at some point," said Niko Klansek, founder of New York-based FlyKly, which makes Bluetooth-connected bike parts. "We have to live with this until we figure it out."
Start-ups from San Francisco to San Jose, Paris to London are building high-tech locks, alarms and tracking devices that aim to deter thieves and help cyclists recover their stolen wheels.
Wi-MM, a three-person start-up in Santa Clara, Calif., has built an alarm that's concealed inside a water bottle holder attached to the bike frame. The device will make a blaring siren-like sound if the bike is moved or tampered with after it has been locked. The owner receives a text message that reads: "Your bike is being stolen as you read this message."
The hope, co-founder and Chief Technical Officer Les Levitt said, is that the owner can stop the theft in action, if the alarm didn't scare the thief off.
"It's like the barking dog — the thief will move on to the next house," Levitt said.
