RushOwl, a Singapore-based smart mobility startup, has raised S$650,000 (~US$479,000) in a seed financing round led by Silicon Solutions Partners, an investment firm focusing on servicing and accelerating startups in the smart city sector, Vulcanpost has reported.
Other backers include existing investor Seeds Capital (the investment arm of Enterprise Singapore) and Workplace Accelerator (an HRtech accelerator).
RushOwl plans to utilise the capital to extend its ride-sharing service RushTrail across the Asia Pacific region, including expansion into mass markets like Vietnam and India by 2022.
“We believe that our service will scale exponentially in 2022 because more people are looking at how they can reduce their carbon footprints through their everyday rides,” said Shin Ng, Co-Founder and CEO of RushOwl.
The RushTrail app will be integrated with electric vehicle networks and new mobility products to support the company’s smart commute ecosystem.
Also read: How electric mobility startups are tackling climate change in Asia
Launched in 2018, RushOwl provides on-demand shuttle rides by collaborating with fleet owners, smart cities, and governments worldwide. It aims to build digitised transportation infrastructures that offer flexible and environmentally-friendly ride-sharing for commuters.
By combining ride requests through routing algorithms and employing AI to automate transportation plans, the smart mobility firm bridges first-mile and last-mile journeys of passengers based on their specific schedules via the RushTrail app.
“Our goal is to help cities tackle inaccessibility, road congestion and air pollution through shared mobility leveraging on our technology and traction, “Ng said.
The firm says it facilitates approximately 3,000 daily trips around the island. It boasts of having recorded a 400 per cent surge in ridership since the onslaught of the pandemic as commuters seek a transportation alternative from home to work.
RushOwl also provides a corporate solution for businesses looking to develop more efficient and flexible staff commute schedules. This can serve as an extra employee perk that results in higher performance and job retention.
The startup has reportedly won an employee transportation contract worth over S$700,000 (~US$516,000) in a recent public tender organised by Sentosa Development Corporation.
According to MarketsandMarkets, the market for mobility as a service is expected to grow to US$40.1 billion by 2030, up from US$3.3 billion in 2021. The growth is driven by increasing smart city initiatives, expanding acceptance of on-demand mobility services, CO2 emission reduction effort, enhanced 4G/5G infrastructure, and smartphone penetration.
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Image Credit: RushOwl
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