Thomas
von der Ohe

Co-Founder, CEO

WHAT DRIVES ME

You come across an opportunity to positively impact societies around the globe maybe once in your lifetime. An opportunity to truly make a difference. Our unique approach to autonomous driving gives us this chance: redefining how people move in a better way. Building and shipping a product with this great team is what drives me day and night.

BACKGROUND

Launched Zoox’ first self-driving vehicle on public streets as leading Technical Program Manager in Silicon Valley, launched Amazon’s first Echo as leading Technical Program Manager on Device Software, Founded two (funded) mobility companies. M. Sc. Computer Science & Product, Stanford University.

Fabrizio
Scelsi

Co-Founder, VP Engineering

WHAT DRIVES ME

Building products together with an amazing team based on cutting-edge technology to serve a greater purpose and solve problems – for the people, for our planet.

BACKGROUND

Manager of an engineering team in Silicon Valley to build autonomous shuttles, built teams and various mobility products: electric race cars, e-motorcycles, light electric vehicles, electric passenger vehicles, including one of the most successful electric delivery vehicles in Germany. RWTH Aachen, Imperial College London.

Bogdan
Djukic

Co-Founder, Director Engineering, Teledrive Experience

WHAT DRIVES ME

Vay is aiming to launch the first vehicle without a safety driver on public roads in Europe. This involves exciting engineering challenges, many of which have never been worked on before, ranging from autonomous vehicle technology, cybersecurity, backend, machine learning and safety-critical SW. Coming up with engineering solutions to these topics is something that I’m super excited to work on at Vay.

BACKGROUND

Team Lead at Microsoft, Senior Software Engineer at Skype. M. Sc. in Computer Science from Belgrade University.

Mariona
Bosch

Director of Engineering Operations

WHAT DRIVES ME

Working closely with people from different cultures and professional backgrounds (hardware, software, operations, etc.) gives me the chance to learn new ways of approaching projects, structuring teams, and setting up processes every day. The results of this incredible teamwork are hugely rewarding, and visible in each step of our product.

BACKGROUND

Part of the management circle at AUDI AG, responsible for the implementation of prototypes at early development stages of new products (innovation vehicles, concept and pre-series vehicles, show cars, design models, testing single parts, PoCs, 3D-printing)

Hans-Leo
Ross

Director of Safety

WHAT DRIVES ME

All my professional life I have been working for the protection and safety of people and the environment. I want to further provide safe and user-friendly automation systems for our future mobility needs.

BACKGROUND

25+ years experience in system safety at Conti., Mando, Bosch. Led the VDA working group in Germany to create ISO 26262 and influenced worldwide safety standardization. Author of several text books on functional safety.

Justin
Spratt

VP - Business & Corporate Development

WHAT DRIVES ME

What drives me is to work on goals that have a big impact on society. Additionally, I wanted to work with the smartest and most innovative people in the tech world. That’s better at Vay than any other company I’ve spoken to recently.

BACKGROUND

Was CEO and chief growth officer at Quirk. Began his professional life at Morgan Stanley as a fixed income trader after studying economics and finance. Built the first startup incubator in Africa in 2002 and has been mentoring founders of technology startups for over ten years. He is an angel investor in software technology and holds board positions in some of these companies.

Friederike
Reuter

Director of Expansion

WHAT DRIVES ME

Solving complex problems with ambitious and talented people who don’t accept the status quo. And having fun at the same time.

BACKGROUND

Political theorist turned economist turned venture builder. I hold degrees in economics from Harvard and Oxford, where I was a Rhodes Scholar, and spent a couple years as a consultant incubating and advising digital businesses at BCG.

Christian
Hertlein

Director of Product Design and Brand

WHAT DRIVES ME

Building the future of mobility, which is sustainable and truly serving the needs of people, by creating a holistic experience, a relatable brand and shaping services that are going to make a difference to how we move within and between cities.

BACKGROUND

Head of Global Design at N26, Senior Lead Designer at IDEO, in-car interactions for Volkswagen.

David
Gossow

Engineering Lead

WHAT DRIVES ME

After having worked in autonomous robotics research for a long time in the Silicon Valley, I am thrilled to be working at a company that is finally bringing this technology into people’s everyday lives.

BACKGROUND

Tech Lead at Google Tango in Mountain View, Research Engineer at Willow Garage, yoga instructor since 2018.

Vladimir
Bilonenko

Senior Engineering Manager

WHAT DRIVES ME

Helping engineers to do their best and most important work. Elegance in software. Bringing ideas from books to real life and from one domain to another. Going from A to B fast.

BACKGROUND

Software Generalist. Maps and Mobility Geek (Lon, Lat not Lat, Lon). High Load at Yandex, Geo Analytics and Last Mile at HERE Maps, Mobility Platform at Daimler. Conway’s Law Enthusiast.

Beatrice
Tîrziu

Software Engineer

WHAT DRIVES ME

The people around me. Seeing the team have such drive, determination and passion is unique and certainly contagious.

BACKGROUND

Having a B. Sc. and M. Sc. in Computer Science, I joined Vay as a Software Engineer in the company’s first months and early in my career. Still growing and learning together two years later.

 

ALINA
PRESTI

Teledriver

WHAT DRIVES ME

A car enthusiast, driven by cars, driving and technology.

BACKGROUND

Nursery school teacher. Driver at Skoda’s start-up Caredriver.

Anja
Rechtsteiner

Head of Communications

WHAT DRIVES ME

What drives me is to start something from scratch and use all my experience to find the best way to communicate our exciting story. I believe my work can have an impact on how people feel about more sustainable transportation options.

BACKGROUND

Worked in leading communication agencies for 15 years such as fischerAppelt and Ketchum in Germany and the UK for various brands and companies from FMCG to travel to mobility. Holds an MBA in Communication & Leadership from Quadriga University as well as a Master degree in History, Sociology and Media & Art Studies from University of Constance.

Johanna
Loomis

Lead Industrial Designer

WHAT DRIVES ME

What drives me at Vay is the enthusiasm and passion for a vision that is tangibly embedded in the company culture, and at the same time the discipline in its implementation.

BACKGROUND

Industrial Designer and Team Lead at TEAMS Design GmbH for over six years, started as a Trainee in Shanghai, China. Worked as Industrial and Product Designer at Lothar Böhm Associates, Lutz Herrmann Design and Werksdesign. Completed the GROW Design Leadership & Management Training and is an IF-Award jury since 2022.

A new approach to driverless mobility

Join the journey

The Journey Begins

With its first service, Vay aims to remotely bring and remotely park electric cars for its customers.

Unique about Vay is its teledrive-first approach to autonomous driving. Vay’s teledriving technology enables a person (“the teledriver”) to control a vehicle remotely (“teledriving”). Vay aims to gradually introduce autonomous driving functions in the system as it is safe and permitted to do so.

Teledrivers remotely drive vehicles

Vay’s teledrivers control all vehicle functions including steering, braking and throttle, and make all driving decisions ensuring convenient, safe and reliable journeys. All teledrivers are professionally trained and follow defensive and safe driving styles.

Redundancies in the system

Vay’s use of multiple cellular networks combined with proprietary hardware on both telestation and the vehicle side ensures the safety of our system.

Safety features plus human capabilities

The driver’s visual perception is reproduced via camera sensors and transmitted to the screens of the teledrive station. Road traffic sounds, such as emergency vehicles and other warning signals, are transmitted via microphones to the teledriver’s headphones.
In the event of an emergency, the vehicle automatically puts itself into a safe state within milliseconds by coming to a safe stop in the same lane.

Vay’s Services

Customers order an electric vehicle via the Vay app. A teledriver brings the car directly to a valid pick-up location for the customer - remotely controlled from the teledrive center. Upon arrival of the car, the customer then physically drives themselves to their destination. Once the customer has arrived at their destination, a teledriver takes over the vehicle once again at a valid drop-off point. This eliminates the time-consuming search for a parking space.

Customers get access to a unique service that promises peace of mind: Your fully electric car is delivered within a few minutes. There is no need to search for a vehicle or parking spot and it is an affordable alternative to car sharing and existing door-to-door solutions.

Safety first.

At Vay we strive for high safety in everything we do. The first company rule is “safety first,” the second rule is “safety first.” Vay develops its teledrive technology in order to fulfill applicable safety requirements and to provide customers a reliable mobility service.

Safety is also at the core of the teledrive training process, the Vay Teledrive Academy. All our teledrivers undergo extensive professional training. Safety also plays a key role in day-to-day operations. Teledrivers work in a teledrive center, which is designed to ensure high safety. They work regular hours, take frequent breaks and are free from distractions.

Teledriving as a new path to an autonomous future.

A human-machine collaboration.

Vay is developing an alternative approach to autonomous driving called teledriving.

With its teledrive-first-approach, Vay aims to offer a sustainable and safe service that can be an alternative to existing mobility services. Vay aims to gradually introduce autonomous driving functions in the system as it is safe and permitted to do so.

Human
Machine

IT’S SAFE

Our teledrive system is being designed to be as safe as having someone in the driver’s seat.

CLEANER AIR

Teledriving technology allows Vay's electric fleet to be highly-utilized. This can help to reduce the overall amount of cars in cities, CO2 emissions, and air and noise pollution.

MOBILITY FOR EVERYONE

Our mission is to bring our sustainable, affordable and door-to-door mobility services to your city.

OUR VALUES

What we believe in

We pioneer
change

At Vay, we’re doing work that has never been done before. This comes with challenges, frustrations and failures along the way. We embrace these challenges through perseverance and innovation, delivering creative solutions to overcome them.

We fuel
collaboration

At Vay, we work as a team and strive for a common goal. We celebrate diversity and encourage different opinions. Our teams and partners communicate and collaborate openly. Together we build, improve, and grow.

We drive
action

At Vay, everyone takes pride and commitment in their role for every task and every challenge. We are biased towards action and get behind the steering wheel, even when there is none. We are empowered to take initiative and drive it to completion.

We build
trust

At Vay, we consistently do the right thing, and follow through on our commitments to stakeholders, users and society. We understand their expectations and always respond in a way that feels human and respectful. We always put safety first and safety second.

We create
magic

At Vay, we don’t just make things that work, we build products people love. We create unexpected and delightful moments for our riders. We design end-to-end experiences that leave a lasting expression.

Learn more about Vay

Meet the team

Employee Spotlight

Thomas
von der Ohe

Co-Founder, CEO

Fabrizio
Scelsi

Co-Founder, VP Engineering

Bogdan
Djukic

Co-Founder, Director Engineering, Teledrive Experience

Mariona
Bosch

Director of Engineering Operations

Hans-Leo
Ross

Director of Safety

Justin
Spratt

VP - Business & Corporate Development

Friederike
Reuter

Director of Expansion

Christian
Hertlein

Director of Product Design and Brand

David
Gossow

Engineering Lead

Vladimir
Bilonenko

Senior Engineering Manager

Beatrice
Tîrziu

Software Engineer

ALINA
PRESTI

Teledriver

Anja
Rechtsteiner

Head of Communications

Johanna
Loomis

Lead Industrial Designer

Job Board

We would love to get
you on board

News

Find out what we have been up to lately!

Aug 8, 2022

Die Ära der autonomen Autos auf deutschen Straßen beginnt

Autonom fahrende Taxis sind eines der großen Versprechen der Industrie. Doch es wird noch Jahre dauern, bis sie sicher fahren. Für den Übergang haben Start-ups eine denkbar einfache Lösung gefunden – die schon bald starten soll. Auch dabei sitzt kein Fahrer im Auto.

Artikel lesen

Jul 22, 2022

So fühlt sich der Telefahr-Service von Vay an

Das Berliner Start-up Vay steht mit seinem Telefahr-Angebot kurz vor dem Markteintritt. Die Automobilwoche hat sich chauffieren lassen – von einem Fahrer, der gar nicht im Auto saß.

Artikel lesen

Jul 22, 2022

Carsharing-Revolution in Hamburg: Autos kommen zu Ihnen nach Hause – per Telefahrer!

Vom Sandtorkai aus soll bald ganz bequem aus dem Büro die Verkehrswende in Hamburg mit vorangetrieben werden. Der Fahrdienst Vay verspricht ein neues Carsharing-Modell – und dabei entsteht gleich ein ganz neuer Job: der des Telefahrers.

Artikel lesen

Jul 22, 2022

Dieses Carsharing-Auto fährt selbst vor

Das Berliner Start-up Vay hat schon 111 Millionen Euro von Investoren eingesammelt. Der Plan: mit einer neuen Technik soll der Stadtverkehr revolutioniert werden! Carsharing-Autos von Vay fahren von selbst zum Kunden, gesteuert von sogenannten „Telefahrern“. Diese sitzen meilenweit entfernt in einem Büro.

Artikel lesen

Dec 14, 2021

German mobility startup Vay raises $95m

German mobility startup Vay said on Tuesday it had raised $95 million from investors such as Kinnevik, Coatue and Eurazeo, as it planned to launch its first car-rental service in Hamburg next year. A customer could use a mobile app to book an electric car that would be delivered to the pick-up location by a driver steering the vehicle remotely. The customer could then drive it like a normal car and the remote operator moves to steering a different car.

Read article

Dec 14, 2021

Start-up Vay: 84 Millionen Euro für ferngesteuerte Autos im Straßenverkehr

Mit ferngesteuerten Autos, die sich durch den Stadtverkehr bewegen, will das Berliner Start-up Vay eine völlig neue Art des Taxis erfinden. Dafür hat das Unternehmen neue Investoren gefunden und eine zweite große Finanzierungsrunde über 84 Millionen Euro abgeschlossen. Das Gesamtinvestment in die Firma beläuft sich nun auf 128 Millionen Euro. Vay ist damit das bestfinanzierte Unternehmen Europas im Segment des autonomen Fahrens.

Artikel lesen

Dec 14, 2021

Robocar Startup Vay Plans To Bring Remotely-Driven Cars To Hamburg

Vay might be able to skip for now some of the expensive, and technical heavy lifting, of using Lidar lasers, radar and cameras to teach an algorithm to drive but relying on a remote driver presents major challenges of its own. The startup’s vehicles are designed to pullover automatically if they lose connection with the control room but the issue of lag delaying reaction times in a busy city centre has plagued other self-driving startups.

Read article

Dec 14, 2021

Self-driving startup Vay to launch commercial teledriven service in Hamburg in 2022

Vay, a company that is trying to get self-driving car services to market faster by pursuing a teledriven approach, has raised a $95 million Series B round to help it launch its first commercial service in Hamburg, Germany sometime in 2022. The startup plans to offer a transportation service where a user can order a car to be delivered to their door, drive the car themselves to their destination and then just hop out, leaving the job of parking it to the remote operator.

Read article

Oct 15, 2021

Riesenvorteil, wenn man den Fahrer vom Fahrzeug trennt

Im Podcast sprechen Thomas von der Ohe und Handelsblatt-Reporterin Larissa Holzki über die Sicherheit der Technologie, die Herausforderungen bei Entwicklung und Zulassung und die Frage, wie man damit Geld verdienen kann.

Artikel lesen & Podcast hören

Oct 10, 2021

Hamburg und Vay starten 2022 weltweit ersten und einzigartigen Telefahr-Mobilitätsservice ohne Fahrer im Auto

Wir teilen Hamburgs Vision, Mobilität von Grund auf neu zu denken, mit den Bürgerinnen und Bürgern sowie dem Umweltschutz im Zentrum der Überlegungen. Zudem sehen wir das Potenzial, den Hamburger Bürgerinnen und Bürgern einen Service anzubieten, der sie komfortabel, umweltfreundlich und preiswert in die Arbeit, zur nächsten Bus- oder Bahnhaltestelle oder zum Ziel ihrer Wahl bringt.

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See more

Supporters

Look who already
joined the journey!

Coatue

Gustav Söderström

CPO/CTO (Chief RnD Officer) at Spotify

Kinnevik

Niall Wass

CEO, SVP, COO, CCO at various tech enabled consumer start-ups. Former SVP International, Uber across 50 countries. Investor at Atomico & currently on 5 boards including Vay.

Atomico

Patrick Pichette

Partner at Inovia Capital, chairman of the board at Twitter, former global CFO at Google.

Nico Rosberg

F1 World Champion and Greentech Investor / Entrepreneur.

Cristina Stenbeck

Board member of Spotify, chairwoman of the board at Zalando, former executive chairwoman of Investment AB Kinnevik.

Creandum

Niklas Zennstroem

Founder of Skype, Kazaa and Atomico.

La Famiglia

Jeannette zu Fürstenberg

Founding Partner at La Famiglia, Member of the Digital Supervisory Board of Lufthansa, Investor into Lilium, the leading EVOTL company, Kodiak Robotics, the market leader for autonomous simulation software.

Signals

Qasar Younis

Co-founder and CEO of Applied Intuition, former COO and Partner of Y Combinator.

Eurazeo

Founders of FlixMobility

Mobility/Tech Investors and Entrepreneurs. 

Visionaries Club

Robert Lacher

Founding Partner of Visionaries Club & La Famiglia. 

System One

Project A

Invested

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