Onyx Motorbikes is back, one year after its owner died leaving the company in shambles

A year after Onyx Motorbikes owner James Khatiblou died suddenly, leaving customers with unfulfilled orders and millions in unpaid debts, the brand has been revived by its original founder.

“I’m excited to announce I have resurrected my original brand Onyx with incredible backers!” founder Tim Seward wrote in a LinkedIn post on Monday. “Onyx is literally back to the future now!”

The company is selling only about 100 RCRs electric dirtbikes to start. It’s not clear if those are newly produced units, or if these are part of the batch of e-bikes made earlier this year by Onyx’s Chinese supplier that were being held in limbo after Khatiblou’s death.

Seward did not respond in time to TechCrunch to provide information on the company’s resurrection and what investors he secured to back the company.

Seward, who has designed e-bikes for Bird and Ubco, built what would be the first Onyx e-bike, the RCR, in 2016. After launching the company with an Indiegogo campaign two years later, that design became a hit among a cult following of customers who loved the made-in-the-USA feel, the 1980s appeal of the design complete with a wooden body, and the powerful capabilities of the bike.

In 2019, Seward offloaded his stake in Onyx to his friend and former co-worker, Khatiblou, who stumbled as a first-time owner as he tried to scale the company. Many of the decisions he made created a web of legal and financial troubles that still hasn’t been untangled. Khatiblou died with no will and no succession plan, a complication that ground all operations, including customer deliveries and payments to suppliers and creditors, to a halt. 

Oxygen Funding, an Orange County-based creditor, has claimed it is owed $2.2 million in debt. In May, Oxygen attempted to petition the Los Angeles County probate court to become the administrator of Khatiblou’s estate, which would allow it to control Onyx’s remaining assets and, ostensibly, sell those assets to repay itself. 

Oxygen CEO Adam Lomax told TechCrunch on Tuesday he had no knowledge of Onyx’s revival under Seward. He also noted that Oxygen’s petition to control Khatiblou’s estate is still in limbo, pending an as-yet unassigned court date, and that his company still has not been paid back. 

Oxygen wasn’t the only creditor fighting for a piece of Onyx. Per a 2019 operating agreement, Kenneth Ames, a former engineering and sourcing executive in the LED lighting business based in Simi Valley, and Troy Smith, a self-employed accountant based in Carlsbad, hold a 37.5% percentage interest in Onyx LLC. Onyx LLC is also the entity that owns Onyx’s branding, according to a trademark assignment agreement. 

It’s not clear whether Ames and Smith are involved in Onyx’s revival. TechCrunch has reached out to Ames, Troy, and their counsel to learn more.  TechCrunch will update the article if they respond.