 This is Dante Durazzi with The Verge here at CES 2014 and we just got to see the first Formula E all-electric racing car. Come this September, the open-wheel car is sponsored by Qualcomm. The car is completely electrical powered and it has up to 20 minutes of battery life. Promoters say that the cars in the series are able to reach close to 150 miles per hour. It's not quite Formula 1 speeds. They can get up to close to 200. These cars will have no fuel, of course, and Lucas de Grassi, the driver who used to drive a Formula 1, he says that the acceleration is simply breathtaking and the throttle response is unbelievable because it's an electric vehicle and it's not a combustion motor. The promoters behind Formula E hope that this series will help change perceptions of electric vehicles. Hopefully no longer there will be slow and expensive cars that don't have much range. They're hoping to show that these cars can compete with some of the greatest racing vehicles around. They're particularly focused on young race fans. They're doing this new thing where they'll be offering fans to vote online for their racers and during the race they'll actually be able to give a boost somehow to the vehicles using communication technologies. It's not clear how significant this will be, but they are saying that this is the first time that fans will be able to directly interact with the race itself. Series promoters have considered adding artificial sound while they're driving down pit road to ensure safety. There are a number of teams on board, including Richard Branson's Virgin as well as Leonardo DiCaprio's backing another team. The car that we saw today is a Spark Renault that was made in conjunction with great racing companies like Williams, McLaren and Michelin, which you'll know well if you're familiar with Formula 1 and other racing series. The first Formula E race is set to begin this September in Beijing and there will be a number of races going throughout the rest of 2014 and 2015. We'll definitely hear a lot more about Formula E in the coming months as it looks to become the premier electric racing series.
 This is Dante Durazzi with The Verge here at CES 2014 and we just got to see the first
 Formula E all-electric racing car.
 Come this September, the open-wheel car is sponsored by Qualcomm.
 The car is completely electrical powered and it has up to 20 minutes of battery life.
 Promoters say that the cars in the series are able to reach close to 150 miles per hour.
 It's not quite Formula 1 speeds.
 They can get up to close to 200.
 These cars will have no fuel, of course, and Lucas de Grassi, the driver who used to drive
 a Formula 1, he says that the acceleration is simply breathtaking and the throttle response
 is unbelievable because it's an electric vehicle and it's not a combustion motor.
 The promoters behind Formula E hope that this series will help change perceptions of electric
 vehicles.
 Hopefully no longer there will be slow and expensive cars that don't have much range.
 They're hoping to show that these cars can compete with some of the greatest racing vehicles
 around.
 They're particularly focused on young race fans.
 They're doing this new thing where they'll be offering fans to vote online for their
 racers and during the race they'll actually be able to give a boost somehow to the vehicles
 using communication technologies.
 It's not clear how significant this will be, but they are saying that this is the first
 time that fans will be able to directly interact with the race itself.
 Series promoters have considered adding artificial sound while they're driving down pit road
 to ensure safety.
 There are a number of teams on board, including Richard Branson's Virgin as well as Leonardo
 DiCaprio's backing another team.
 The car that we saw today is a Spark Renault that was made in conjunction with great racing
 companies like Williams, McLaren and Michelin, which you'll know well if you're familiar
 with Formula 1 and other racing series.
 The first Formula E race is set to begin this September in Beijing and there will be a number
 of races going throughout the rest of 2014 and 2015.
 We'll definitely hear a lot more about Formula E in the coming months as it looks to become
 the premier electric racing series.