VANCOUVER, B.C., Nov. 30, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Announced today, Vancouver-based connected car cloud platform company, Mojio, has secured $30 million CAD in Series B funding to accelerate the global growth of its carrier-grade connected car solutions. Despite multiple offers from global investors, Mojio has deepened its Canadian roots by selecting Toronto-based Kensington Capital as lead investor. The company’s Series B round attracted new investment from Trend Forward Capital and innogy Ventures. All current investors participated again, including the Amazon Alexa Fund, BDC IT Venture Fund, Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners and Relay Ventures.
The connected car movement is accelerating as consumers demand more from their cars. While some new vehicles roll off the assembly line with built-in connected car technology, a huge gap remains for the drivers of the over one billion unconnected cars, who are eager for a user-friendly and affordable upgrade.
“People don’t want to wait for their next vehicle to access valuable safety and security features, let alone another 10 to 15 years for the promise of self-driving cars,” explains Mojio CEO Kenny Hawk. “But they are willing to spend $10 to $15 per month to access actionable, real-world data that empowers smarter decision making around family safety, driving behavior, vehicle maintenance, and that offers a hassle free Wi-Fi hotspot that doesn’t drain your smartphone.”
Currently operating in five countries with seven wireless carrier customers, including the big three in Canada (Bell, Rogers and TELUS), Mojio’s business model leverages the brand and distribution of major wireless network operators to deliver greater access to affordable connected car services through the combination of a plug and play device and a handy mobile app. The Series B funding will accelerate Mojio’s roll-outs with network operators across the globe. The funding will also fuel product innovation and patent development, including the advancement of machine learning initiatives, ensuring that Mojio’s growing team of engineers, designers, and developers continue to preempt the needs of drivers worldwide.
Mojio had the luxury of selecting its funding partners based on strategic merit, not just access to capital. The company chose Canadian firm Kensington Capital to lead the round based on close alignment with Mojio’s core values and growth strategy.
“We are excited to be leading the Series B financing for Mojio, which is exactly the kind of company that we want to partner with," said Rick Nathan, Managing Director of Kensington Capital, “From its Vancouver headquarters, Mojio is building a world class team with an innovative technology platform gaining rapid customer traction, scaling a global business at the intersection of the IoT and automotive industries.”
Mojio has already connected over 500,000 vehicles around the world, ranging from an almost ancient 1996 Audi A4 to a brand new 2018 Volvo V60. Drivers, families and small businesses use Mojio’s apps to keep their vehicles safe, stay coordinated, and cut down on costly, time-consuming issues associated with car ownership. Common use cases include:
- Getting notified about engine issues to make informed decisions on service and repairs
- Monitoring car location and status to help with ride coordination and cut down on distractions
- Receiving critical recall notices to ensure remedial action is taken to improve safety
- Locating a stolen vehicle to inform the authorities and have it recovered
- Logging business trips to maximize mileage expensing and tax returns
- Using on-demand roadside assistance to get help fast
In addition to delivering valuable experiences for drivers, Mojio has already collected over 5 billion miles of driving data. Mojio uses machine learning to generate insights that will shape the future of mobility, making the driving experience smarter, safer and less expensive.
About Mojio
Open, scalable and hardware agnostic, Mojio is the cloud platform of choice for the deployment of secure connected car apps and services. Mojio’s platform delivers a smarter, safer and more convenient driving and vehicle ownership experience to subscribers of major network operators, including Bell Canada, Deutsche Telekom, Rogers Communications, T-Mobile and TELUS.
With real-world data gathered from more than 5 billion miles of driving, Mojio provides a big data analytics framework that uses machine learning to generate actionable insights and unlock new revenue streams for companies throughout the automotive value chain.
Founded in 2012, Mojio is on a mission to give every vehicle a voice. With growing teams in Vancouver, Palo Alto and Sofia, and some of the world’s biggest brands as customers, partners and investors, Mojio is a career-accelerator for driven tech professionals looking to shape the future of mobility. To learn more about Mojio or to join our team please visit Mojio’s careers page.
About Kensington Capital Partners
Kensington Capital Partners is a leading Canadian investment firm in alternative assets, with over $1.1 billion invested to date in venture capital, private equity, hedge funds, and infrastructure. Founded in 1996, the firm is employee owned and fiercely independent. Based in Toronto, with additional offices in Vancouver and Calgary, Kensington’s active management approach and relationship based business has generated top quartile returns for investors, consisting of institutional investors such as pension and endowment funds, foundations, corporations, wealth managers and individuals. For more information, visit www.kcpl.ca
Media Contact:
Natalie Burgwin
Nat@talkshopmedia.com
604.738.2220