Alliance Ventures Invests in Coord, a US Mobility Data Platform

AutoInformed.com on Alliance Ventures invests in data ecosystem for shared transport services

In 2010 The Alliance entered into a strategic cooperation agreement with Daimler (Carlos Ghosn Alliance Chairman R, Dieter Zetsche of Daimler L) on the next-generation small cars – the Renault Twingo and Smart Fortwo, including electric versions as well as expanding both model ranges.

Alliance Ventures, the corporate venture capital fund of Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi, the world’s largest automotive group by unit sales**, announced that it led a $5 million Series A investment in investment in Coord, the US mobility data platform. The latest investment by Alliance Ventures is also supported by additional funding from Trucks, Urban.Us, DB Ventures and Joshua Schachter. They join Alphabet’s Sidewalk Labs, a previous investor in Coord.

Initially focused on reaching developers with a  suite of APIs*, Coord intends to use this new financing to scale geographic coverage and build a comprehensive solution to enable enterprise customers to optimize their use of transportation infrastructure such as roads, curbs and parking lots. 

*Application programming interface – API – is a set of tools for MAKING software from defined methods of communication between various components. A strong API makes it easier to develop computer instructions by providing separated pieces, which are then put together by the programmer.

Currently a Coord API provides pricing for over 80% of tollways across the US it’s claimed. Using real-time information – transit schedules and bike-share availability – a Coord API stitches together multiple modes so the best routes for users are available. New bike-share and scooter systems are appearing in cities all over the country. With the Coord API, one can find available bikes and scooters from docked and dockless systems across the US.

“We’re excited to support Coord in their mission to make cities more livable by enabling seamless mobility for everyone,” said Ryan Armbrust, Partner at Alliance Ventures. “Coord is building a vital digital infrastructure that not only helps existing transportation modes operate more efficiently, but also enables rapid experimentation with new modes like scooter-share and autonomous vehicles.”

Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi

Groupe Renault, Nissan Motor Company and Mitsubishi Motors are the world’s largest automotive alliance. It is the longest-lasting and productive cross-cultural partnership in the auto industry, it’s claimed. **Together, the partners sold more than 10.6 million vehicles in nearly 200 countries in 2017. The member companies are focused on collaboration and maximizing synergies to boost competitiveness. They have strategic collaborations with other automotive groups, including Germany’s Daimler and China’s Dongfeng.

This strategic alliance is arguably the industry leader in zero-emission vehicles and is developing the latest advanced technologies, with plans to offer autonomous drive, connectivity features and services on a wide range of “affordable” vehicles.

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