Beam, Asia-Pacific’s leading micromobility operator, announced that it has raised a Series A funding round of US$26 million. The round was led by Sequoia India and Hana Ventures with participation by Cherubic and AppWorks.
Beam is forging a new path for micromobility in contrast to the established dockless model that allows scooters to be parked anywhere on city streets. For Beam, the future is docked. Having a “virtual docked” model that ensures riders have to park in predetermined parking spots by being incentivised through the Beam mobile app.
“We’re grateful to our incredibly supportive investors who believe in our unique ‘virtual dock’ approach to micromobility and continue to support us through a very uncertain macroeconomic environment. I’m really excited about our new technology and its ability to reduce the problems associated with randomly scattered scooters around a city. This helps us to further improve our industry-leading vehicle retention rates, reduce operational costs, and most importantly, benefits communities by keeping city streets neater” said Beam Co-Founder and CEO Alan Jiang.
As the Beam footprint grows the operational and engineering focus will continue to be on city amenity. To do this Beam will be progressively rolling out features that are focused on keeping Beam e-scooters safe for pedestrians when parked on city streets, which also helps to minimize vehicle losses.
“Beam has to work as hard to limit the downsides of e-scooters for non-riders as they do to enhance the upside for riders. The success of any new technology depends on mass acceptance, and the quicker and better we can ensure e-scooters are used and parked where they should be, the more welcoming city residents will be. We have designed our business and our product around that insight, and it is what makes us different,” Deb Gangopadhyay Co-Founder and CTO added.
“We were very impressed with the team’s high calibre of execution. Their rider-centric approach and superior technology have enabled Beam to swiftly deploy e-scooters all across the region in a safe and sustainable manner. Moving forward, we believe the team is well-positioned to completely redefine the micro-mobility experience for millions of riders, across both Taiwan and APAC,” said AppWorks Partner Jessica Liu
In addition, Beam will use the fresh capital to support expansion across all markets with a strong focus on growing APAC’s largest mobility fleet in Korea, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, and Taiwan.
Beam will continue to make the safety of riders and pedestrians its top priority by enhancing its industry-leading “Beam Safe Academy” initiative; introducing a number of online training tools, and further expanding the only real-world e-scooter rider training program in the APAC region.
Beam will also accelerate the introduction of its new third-generation e-scooter, the Beam Saturn, to all markets. Rigorously tested with the highest safety standards, the Beam Saturn is custom-built for sharing. It features swappable batteries, an innovative aviation-grade aluminium frame, 25-centimeter tubeless safety tyres, high grip rear-wheel drive, and a dual mechanical and electronic braking system.
Beam is the only e-scooter operator from the APAC region to be officially Climate Neutral Certified. Beam worked with Climate Neutral, an independent non-profit organization, to measure its 2019 carbon emissions and offset that entire carbon footprint. To do this, Beam has invested in projects that either prevent carbon from being emitted, like renewable energy or helps to remove carbon from the atmosphere, like planting trees. As part of its commitments, Beam will continue to dramatically reduce its emissions in 2020 and beyond.
In light of the ongoing concern of Covid-19 Beam has implemented stringent cleaning and operations practices to limit the possibility of virus transmission. Shared open-air mobility, like e-scooters, remains a safe affordable transportation option as communities emerge from Covid-19 responses.
About Beam
Beam is Asia-Pacific’s largest and fastest-growing shared micromobility company and the first micromobility company to use virtual docking to reduce city clutter. We’re on a mission to turn little drives into better rides and make cities flow better for everyone.
Shared micromobility is one of the fastest-growing industries globally, and we are leading the way in Asia-Pacific, with fast-growing operations in Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Taiwan and Malaysia, with many new city launches underway.
Learn more @ www.ridebeam.com
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