- Teledriving startup Vay is partnering with Ush, a Belgian operator of driverless vehicles, and car-share provider Poppy, the largest provider in Benelux – both subsidiaries of D’Ieteren.
- The partnership will illustrate how car-share operators can leverage teledriving technology, via a roll-out of remote driving tech across Poppy’s 2,300-strong fleet.
- This will showcase how vehicles can be delivered on demand, redistribute and taken to cleaning and charging – in the most cost-effective way.
- The partnership will help Poppy improve fleet operations efficiency, maximize vehicle occupancy, and attract new customers with novel teledrive-enabled service features.
Brussels / Berlin – 5th June – Vay, the developer of automotive-grade technology for teledriving, is partnering with Ush and Poppy – subsidiaries of D’Ieteren, to rollout remote driving in Poppy’s 2,300+ car-share fleet.
The partnership will demonstrate how teledriving can boost margins and market size for car-share operators. This tie-up will focus on increasing fleet operations efficiency, and launching new teledrive-enabled convenience features. This includes vehicle redistribution and maintenance.
The partnership will also highlight how teledriving can increase overall electric vehicle occupancy. The adoption of teledriving can increase the amount of time vehicles are in use by as much as 200%, allowing car-share operators to service more demand without increasing fleet size.
The launch is subject to permit approval. The intention is to begin on-road operations in Belgium this year.
Vay’s teledriving technology enables a person (“the teledriver”) to drive a vehicle remotely (“teledriving”), via a console at a local teledrive center. Vay is the first company to drive cars without a person inside on public roads in Europe, and globally, only the second company currently operating a commercial service.
Teledriving is set to revolutionize the business model for car share companies, turning a traditionally challenging operation with razor-thin margins into a highly profitable one. Moreover, it will broaden the total addressable market (TAM) by providing novel and superior customer experiences that attract users currently opting for alternative transportation methods.
The transformative power of Teledriving lies in its ability to significantly reduce the costs associated with vehicle movement, impacting the business in two pivotal ways:
- Enhanced Maintenance Efficiency: Vehicles can be taken to facilities for cleaning, charging, and repairs, which cuts maintenance costs and ensures that cars are in optimal condition when customers use them. This capability supports a premium service model that can command up to 30% higher prices at lower costs.
- Direct-to-Customer Delivery & Collection: car-share vehicles can be ordered by the customer, and then delivered to their location – without the user having to travel to a specific pick-up or drop-off location. Creating a frictionless, easy-to-use and affordable transportation solution. For car-share companies, this delivery-first model reduces the need for a costly retail footprint. The new service experience increases share and car-as-a-service TAM by roughly 3x by adding customers who otherwise opt for ridehail, public transport or private vehicle ownership to the consideration set.
Justin Spratt, Chief Business Officer at Vay, commented: “teledriving is the missing piece of the puzzle for car-share business operators. We’re working with Poppy and Ush to unlock the full value that car-share needs to drive up efficiency and effectiveness for customers, and showcase how remote driving can increase profitability in a sector known for fine margins.”
Pierre de Schaetzen, CMO at Poppy, commented: “Vay’s best-in-class teledriving technology will help us increase efficiency, and improve the user experience for our car-sharing programme. We’re excited to partner with them to get the most out of our fleet – and to provide our customers with an exceptional service.”
Max Levandowski, CEO at Ush, commented: “we strongly believe that teledriving has the potential to unlock a new layer of value for car-as-a-service operators. Implementing remote driving can save vendors money, provide consumers with an invaluable service, and tackle inefficiencies. We’re thrilled to partner with Vay – who lead globally on remote driving technology and safety protocols.”