A new e-bike drive system in development is aiming to do something pretty radical: get rid of the mechanical connection between your pedals and the rear wheel entirely and replace it with a copper wire. Or more accurately, a few copper wires. Spanish startup Niche Mobility has unveiled a prototype it calls the ADTS (Automatic Digital Transmission System), a pedal-by-wire setup that replaces traditional gearing with a fully digital drivetrain. Instead of turning a chain, your pedaling effort powers a generator inside the motor unit, which then feeds electricity to a second motor that actually drives the wheel. In other words, you’re no longer mechanically connected to the bike’s drivetrain at all. If the system is off, pedaling doesn’t move the bike. It’s not the first time we’ve seen pedal-by-wire concepts, but this version is trying to bring a more refined, production-ready approach that can be integrated into countless e-bikes by major manufacturers. And the big pitch here is simplicity: no gears, no shifting, no drivetrain maintenance in the traditional sense. Advertisement – scroll for …