Apollo and the direct-to-consumer scooter model (2018–2026)

In the profiles of Inokim and Kaabo we described two poles of the modern consumer market — the premium-design pole (machined aluminium, a refined fold) and the value-performance pole (flagship specs at a lower price through a network of distributor-co-developers). Between them, in 2018, a third distinct mode emerged, defined not by material or price positioning but by business model and in-house software: the Canadian brand Apollo, which sells its scooters direct to the consumer and differentiates on its own controller, mobile app and regenerative braking. This section is a standalone profile of the brand: how two people from luxury marketing built, over eight years, a software-led, direct-to-consumer scooter class.

Understanding this history matters for two reasons. First, direct-to-consumer (DTC) is a distinct market regime: the maker owns the whole chain — “design → manufacture → sale → service” — and depends on neither a dealer nor classic retail, with rider feedback built into the development process itself. Second, Apollo was among the first to make software — the controller, the app, regenerative braking — the main point of differentiation, while most competitors competed on hardware (power, battery, suspension).

Origins: Montreal, 2018

Apollo Scooters was founded in 2018 in Montreal, Canada. (Apollo) Its co-founders are Christopher Heathcote-Rey and Maciek Piskorz, who had previously worked together in the luxury-products division of the L’Oréal Group; Heathcote-Rey is a marketing-and-finance graduate of the Sauder School of Business and HEC Paris. (Electric Wheelers) That luxury-marketing background explains a lot of the brand’s later DNA: an emphasis on user experience, design and after-sales support rather than on bare specs.

Apollo’s founding idea differed from its competitors from the start: the company set out to design, manufacture, import and sell its own custom-made scooters, rather than reselling others’ machines. (Apollo) Every model is designed, developed and tested at the Montreal headquarters and manufactured in China — a split Apollo describes as keeping full ownership of the development process. (Electric Wheelers; Apollo) In its first two years the company sold more than 10,000 machines, and it states its quality control as a triple-testing regime with a 10,000 km roll test and UL 2271/2272 certification. (Apollo)

The direct-to-consumer model and “Early Access”

What sets Apollo apart structurally is its direct-to-consumer sales. The brand sells through its own website in the regions it serves (the US, Canada and Australia), without a classic dealer network. (Apollo) This is the opposite of the Kaabo model, where distributors (fluidfreeride, VORO Motors) absorb part of the R&D and service: Apollo keeps the whole chain in-house.

A characteristic feature of this model is the “Early Access” programme: the first production units are sold at cost to riders in exchange for testing feedback before mass production. (Apollo) This makes development iterative and community-driven — reviewers explicitly note that the Apollo Phantom is a product of iterative rider feedback rather than top-down design. (Electric Scooter Insider) It is worth recording one honest nuance, though: the pure-DTC model has since blurred somewhat — the Apollo City 2024 was distributed not only directly (the website, Amazon) but also through the Best Buy retail chain. (CPSC)

Software as the point of difference: the app, MACH and Power RBS

Apollo’s most distinctive engineering trait is its software platform. The scooters connect to a dedicated mobile app (iOS/Android) where the rider adjusts acceleration, top speed and regen-braking strength, sees live telemetry (speed, range, charge) on a dashboard, and can lock the machine from the phone with no physical keys. (Apollo) Apollo rebuilt the app natively (from a React-Native stack) into dedicated iOS and Android versions, adding customizable riding profiles and high-frequency recording of ride dynamics for diagnostics. (Apollo)

At the heart of the platform Apollo places its in-house MACH controller — the “brain” of the brand, which it compares to an Intel processor inside a PC: it manages power flow from battery to motor and connects to the app for real-time diagnostics and adjustments. (Apollo) The Mach 1 controller is stated to be 27% more efficient than stock controllers, while the Mach 2 adds IoT features — fall detection, emergency-contact notification and a 360-degree RGB lighting system. (Apollo) How the controller–BMS–app loop works in general is covered in the article on controllers and electronics.

The second software-dependent subsystem is Power RBS regenerative braking: per the maker, a maintenance-free system that recovers up to +10% of range on every stop, with regen strength adjustable in the app. (Apollo) Apollo exposes discrete speed modes (Eco ~9 mph, Normal ~18 mph, Sport/“Ludo” ~28 mph). (Apollo) Independent reviewers confirm this as a pioneering trait: Electric Scooter Guide credits Apollo with popularising regenerative braking for scooters — including a dedicated regen lever that lets you brake on regen alone — and describes MACH as “the brain of the brand’s whole ecosystem, not just a chip.” (Electric Scooter Guide) Electrek confirms that regen is driven by a separate throttle-style lever on the left, and that the choice of modes (up to a high “Ludo”) materially changes ride character. (Electrek) Why regen is not the primary brake and how it combines with disc/drum mechanisms is covered in the article on brakes.

The lineup: from ultraportable to flagship

Apollo built a full gradation — from a light commuter to a performance flagship:

• Air — the ultraportable entry. The original Air: 36 V 250 W, 36 V 7.5 Ah, 15 mph, ~19 km, 35 lb. The Air 2022 stepped up to 36 V 500 W and a 36 V 15 Ah (540 Wh) 21700-cell battery, 21 mph, up to ~50 km (~37 realistic), 38.5 lb, front fork suspension, a front drum brake plus an electronic regen paddle, 10-inch inner-tube tyres, IP54 (up from IPX4). (Electric Scooter Insider)
• City / City Pro — the commuter flagship. City 2022 (single-motor): 48 V 500 W, 48 V 13.5 Ah, 28 mph, ~40 km, 57.8 lb; City Pro 2022 (dual-motor): 2×48 V 500 W, 48 V 18 Ah, 32 mph, up to ~61 km, 65 lb; self-healing tubeless 10×3.5″ tyres, a front spring plus a rear dual-spring swingarm, drum brakes with regen, IP56. (Electric Scooter Insider) The current City (2024 official spec) raised the battery to 48 V 20 Ah (52× 21700 cells), kept 2×500 W / 1000 W peak, 32 mph, ~37–69 km, triple-spring suspension, self-healing tubeless tyres and an IP66 rating. (Apollo)
• Ghost — the mid-performance machine: 2×800 W (1000 W peak each, 2000 W combined), 52 V 18.2 Ah (947 Wh), 34 mph, ~63 km, 64 lb, adjustable dual-spring suspension front and rear, disc brakes with a regen brake on the handle, 10-inch pneumatic tyres, IPX4. (Apollo)
• Phantom — the performance line. The Phantom V3 (2023): 2×52 V 1200 W (3200 W peak), 52 V 23.4 Ah, 41 mph, ~64 km, 77 lb, full-hydraulic disc brakes with regen, 10×3.25″ tyres, IP54. (Electric Scooter Insider) The Phantom 2.0 (52 V): 2×1750 W (3500 W peak), 52 V 27 Ah (1400 Wh), 44 mph, up to ~80 km, 102 lb, dual-spring suspension (125 mm travel), disc brakes plus Power RBS, self-healing tubeless hybrid 11×4″ PunctureGuard tyres, IP66. (Apollo)
• Pro — the flagship: 2×1000 W continuous (2000 W combined, 2400 W peak), a 52 V 22.5 Ah (1170 Wh) LG-cell battery, 38 mph, up to ~90 km, 77 lb, dual-spring suspension, disc brakes with regen, 10-inch pneumatic tyres, IP54. (Scooter Guide)

How battery voltage and capacity relate to real-world range is covered in the article on batteries; why the IP-protection class (from IP54 to IP66 across the models) matters and what those numbers mean is in the article on wheels, suspension and IP protection.

Reputation: build, comfort and support

English-language reviewers consistently characterise Apollo through build quality, comfort and after-sales support, rather than top speed:

• On commuters: Electric Scooter Insider calls the City Pro “the best dual-motor commuter,” a machine “in a class of its own,” with “top-class build quality” and “exceptionally high-quality ride feel”; the standard City is “one of the best commuter scooters available” with the family-wide build quality. (Electric Scooter Insider)
• On performance: the same outlet characterises the Phantom as “one of the most complete and well-finished scooters on the market,” singling out its quad spring suspension as among the most comfortable it has reviewed. (Electric Scooter Insider) Electrek sums up the Phantom 2.0 as “high performance without sacrificing refinement,” with robust construction from the stem lock to the deck, in “premium territory, where the price reflects the hardware.” (Electrek)
• Overall: Electric Scooter Insider rates Apollo among the best brands by overall impression, emphasising build quality, aesthetics and strong after-sales support rather than raw speed; Rider Guide describes the Phantom 2.0 as “one of the most premium releases of 2025” with “industry-leading warranties, water resistance and proprietary tech.” (Electric Scooter Insider; Rider Guide)

Safety: the 2025 recall

An honest profile cannot skip the question of safety. On 24 July 2025, Apollo recalled about 790 Apollo City 2024 scooters because a weld line on the stem could crack — a fall and injury hazard; the remedy is a free replacement stem. (CPSC) This is not a judgement on the brand’s quality overall, but part of the honest record: the recall concerned a specific welded joint on one model and was resolved with a free part replacement, like the structural recalls of other makers (compare the recall history in the Razor profile).

Apollo in 2026

Apollo remains active and iterates quickly. The brand offers a 12-month limited warranty and, since 2023 in the US, optional 1-year or 2-year “Extend” plans covering accidents, battery failure and electrical/mechanical faults. (Apollo) In 2024 the Apollo Go launched — an entry-level dual-motor commuter; in 2025 the Phantom 2.0 was shown at CES and opened for pre-order. (Rider Guide; Electric Scooter Guide) At CES 2026 Apollo announced five next-generation models on a new “Apollo 2.0” platform with an “Apollo Intelligence” software layer, a LYNQ series, and a lifetime frame warranty on the new machines. (Apollo) Reviewers consistently place Apollo in the top tier of brands alongside Dualtron, Kaabo, NAMI and VSETT, characterising it as one that balances performance and ride comfort. (Hiboy; Electric Scooter Insider)

Summary

Apollo is not the maker of the “fastest” or the “cheapest” machine, but the benchmark of the software-led, direct-to-consumer class: a Canadian brand that since 2018 has owned the whole chain — “design in Montreal → manufacture in China → direct sale → in-house service” — and differentiates on the MACH controller, the mobile app and Power RBS regenerative braking, rather than hardware alone. The Early Access model made development iterative, and the emphasis on build, comfort and support became the brand’s signature.

For a buyer today, Apollo is the right choice for a specific use case: a rider who values software customization, build quality, suspension comfort and service support over the absolute spec-per-cost of the value-performance class or the minimalist portability of the premium-portable one. If the priority is everyday urban commuting, the commuter class fits well; for serious off-road, the off-road models. How to separate these classes for a concrete use case is set out in the guide on choosing a scooter, and the full Apollo model range is in the brand catalogue.