Smartcar, Inc. Explained

Smartcar, Inc.
Founded:January 2015
Founder:Sahas Katta,Sanketh Katta
Hq Location:Mountain View, California
Area Served:United States
Num Employees:50
Num Employees Year:2022

Smartcar, Inc. is a software company based in Mountain View, California.[1] It allows software developers to locate, unlock, and read data from vehicles using an API.[2] [3]

History

Smartcar was founded in 2014 by Sahas and Sanketh Katta.[4] [5] In December 2014, the company raised $2 million in seed funding led by Andreessen Horowitz.[6] [7] In March 2018, the company announced a series A round of $10 million led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA) with participation from Andreessen Horowitz.[8] [9]

In July 2018, Smartcar emerged from stealth and launched documentation and SDKs for integrating Smartcar’s API into mobile apps and web applications.[10] [11] [12]

In April 2019, Smartcar accused rival startup Otonomo of API plagiarism.[13] [14]

As of June 2020, venture capitalists Forest Baskett (NEA) and William Krause (Andreessen Horowitz) were serving on Smartcar’s board of directors.[15] [16]

In January 2022, the company announced a Series B round of $24 million with John Tough of Energize Ventures joined the board of directors along with NEA and a16z reinvesting.

API

Smartcar’s API can be integrated into mobile and web applications.[17] The app requires the user to agree to share specific vehicle telematics information with the mobile or web application which, according to Smartcar, allows the user to locate and unlock the vehicle, check its mileage, fuel level and electric-vehicle battery remotely from the application without the need for an on-board diagnostics device.[18] [19] Smartcar’s customers include Samsung SmartThings, Turo, the state of Utah, and Aventi.[20] [21] [22] In August 2020, Smartcar and Canadian firm Pitstop entered into a partnership to create hardware-free maintenance tracker for fleet vehicles.[23]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Smartcar . CB Insights . 24 November 2021.
  2. Web site: Kosche. Charlotte. Smartcar. 2020-06-26. ProgrammableWeb. en.
  3. Web site: Smartcar accuses $50M-funded rival Otonomo of API plagiarism. 2020-06-26. TechCrunch. en-US.
  4. Web site: Smartcar Company Profile: Valuation & Investors PitchBook. 2020-06-26. pitchbook.com. en.
  5. Web site: Krause. Bill. 2018-03-08. Smartcar. 2020-06-26. Andreessen Horowitz. en-US.
  6. Web site: Smartcar. AngelList.
  7. Web site: Hernbroth. Megan. This pitch deck convinced Andreessen Horowitz to invest in unusual autonomous driving technology. See why the legendary firm led Smartcar's $2 million seed round.. 2020-06-26. Business Insider.
  8. News: Davis. Alexander. 2018-03-01. A Connected-Car Platform Fuels Its Tank With NEA, Andreessen. en-US. Wall Street Journal. 2020-06-26. 0099-9660.
  9. Web site: Top of the Morning. 2020-06-26. Axios. en.
  10. Web site: Katta. Sahas. 2018-07-18. Smartcar: The car API for developers · Smartcar blog. 2020-06-26. smartcar.com. en.
  11. Web site: Integrate Smartcar Connect · Plan your integration · Smartcar docs. 2020-06-26. smartcar.com.
  12. Web site: Harris. Richard. Creating connected car apps just got easier. 2020-06-26. App Developer Magazine. en-US.
  13. Web site: Startup Smartcar Claims Otonomo Stole its Intellectual Property . 2020-09-28. www.digitaltrends.com. 23 April 2019 .
  14. Web site: Solomon. Shoshanna. US startup Smartcar accuses Israeli rival Otonomo of plagiarism. 2020-09-28. www.timesofisrael.com. en-US.
  15. News: 2018-03-01. BRIEF-Smartcar Announces $10M Series A Funding From NEA And a16z. en. Reuters. 2020-06-26.
  16. Web site: Smartcar NEA New Enterprise Associates. 2020-06-26. www.nea.com.
  17. Web site: 2018-03-01. Smartcar raises $10 million from NEA and Andreessen Horowitz for developers to build apps for connected cars. 2020-06-26. VentureBeat. en-US.
  18. Web site: Samsung's SmartThings app will soon connect to your car too. 2020-06-26. Engadget. en.
  19. Web site: Krok. Andrew. Turo's Smartcar partnership brings wireless locking, unlocking to P2P car sharing. 2020-06-26. Roadshow. en.
  20. Web site: Gitlin. Jonathan M.. 2020-01-03. To replace gas taxes, Oregon and Utah ask EVs to pay for road use. 2020-06-26. Ars Technica. en-us.
  21. Web site: 2020-02-10. Introducing RUC to Norway. 2020-06-26. Traffic Technology Today. en-GB.
  22. Web site: 2020-01-09. Samsung SmartThings app will soon offer Smartcar integration. 2020-09-28. SlashGear. en-US.
  23. Web site: Janssen-6. Allan. 2020-08-24. Smartcar and Pitstop partner on fleet maintenance solution. 2020-09-28. Auto Service World. en-US.

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