Parking a car can cost up to $500 per month in San Francisco or $100,000 for a space in the South Beach neighborhood. Additionally, owning a car is an expensive maintenance task that requires expensive insurance, maintenance and fuel costs.
Kyte, headquartered in San Francisco, allows people to order cars on demand for all rides longer than a traditional taxi.
$60M Series B Funding
US-based InterAlpen Partners invested $60 million into Kyte in a recent round of growth funding. The company’s founder, Stephen George, is an early investor in Tesla and SpaceX. Kyte also gained another board member as a result of this development.
Additional investors included Urban Innovation Fund, Urban Innovation Fund, 1984 Ventures, FJ Labs, Citi Ventures and Valor Equity Partners. DN Capital joined existing investors in backing Stoïk, Rentle and YuLife. Additional new investors included Anthemis, which backed Stoïk, Rentle, YuLife and Locket.
The Series B round follows a $30 million Series A in 2021 and $200 million in asset-backed debt earlier this year in Goldman Sachs and Ares. With this funding round, Kyte’s total equity and debt total nearly $300 million.
Plans To Grow Its EV Fleet
The startup will use the funds to further his mission and free the freedom to go places. The company will triple its existing fleet and expand globally into new and existing markets, while creating new products for those seeking alternatives to car ownership.
Additionally, the company plans to expand into new product categories and add new vehicle categories, including aggressively expanding its electric vehicle fleet.
Co-founders Nikolaus Volk and Ludwig Schoenack said: “We are committed to being a leader in transportation – on-demand car delivery is just the beginning of Kyte’s journey. This funding will allow us to better enable us to become the largest shared, electrified and long-term goals for autonomous fleet operators.”
“The InterAlpen Partners team looks forward to supporting Kyte’s next phase of growth and working together to deliver a much-needed industry shift in the automotive market. I am delighted to join the company’s board and trust that the InterAlpen Partners team will not only complement the management of DN Capital’s Kyte and Steve Schlenker, It will also help the team expand into more growth and product vehicles,” said Stephen George, founder of InterAlpen Partners, who led the expansion financing.
Effective Alternative To Car Ownership
Nikolaus Volk, Ludwig Schoenack and Francesco Wiedemann co-founded Kyte in 2019. The company’s headquarters are located in San Francisco. Kyte believes that cars can be more effectively utilized with a more sustainable approach. Additionally, their approach decreases the amount of cars on the road to reduce CO2 emissions and increase public safety. This also saves customers time and money.
Customers can schedule a time and location for their car delivery through the mobile app, website or Android and iOS app. This is possible through various lengths of weeks, months and even days. Kyte Surfers provide a car sanitization service where the customer can specify a time and place to pick up the car. When Kyte Surfer is ready to deliver the vehicle, he dispatches one of Kyte’s delivery drivers.
It has offices in Munich, Germany, branches around the world, and currently employs 100 people.
