Dean Kamen, inventor and founder of DEKA Research & Development Corp., at Segways headquarters in Bedford, NH. Around Kamen are Segway employees riding the new Segway i2.
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That is not what Kamen--who still owns DEKA Research & Development Corp., the invention factory where Segway was born--expected from his baby. And he has tempered his goals, although he still sees carless downtowns in 10 to 15 years. "As people become more sensitive to the global environment," he says, "and as energy becomes more expensive, people will decide that Segway is a very attractive alternative for certain specific niches." Yet Kamen, like many other inventors, is an inveterate optimist. Segway doesn't need 50% market penetration, he points out. "The niche market for us is anybody with a set of feet. There are 6.2 billion of them out there." He's hoping just 0.1% of them--a paltry 6 million--will spring for a cool set of wheels.
For more on inventor Dean Kamen, go to time.com