Zimride operates Lyft, a ride‑sharing service that connects riders and drivers. The company is preparing to expand beyond its initial San Francisco market, launching in the Santa Monica and Venice sections of Los Angeles and planning to add cars and drivers across other parts of the city and new regions. Zimride recently closed a $15M round of funding to support that expansion. It also struck an interim agreement with the California Public Utilities Commission, which waived previously levied fines and allowed the company to continue operating while new rules are considered. Since being founded in 2007, Zimride had previously raised about $7.5M, including a $6M Series A in September 2011. Competitive pressures cited in the article include Uber, SideCar, and traditional taxi‑hailing apps such as Flywheel and Taxi Magic. Zimride operates a ride-sharing platform that helps people with spare seats and those seeking rides connect within closed networks such as universities and businesses. The service lets users arrange carpools, sell seats on long drives, and optionally pay each other directly through the site. It is currently used in 120 networks and the company says, for example, that 35% of Facebook employees are using the service within that network. Zimride charges universities and businesses directly for access to the platform and may later take a cut of transactions processed through its payments system. The company plans to grow its network count from 120 to 300–400 by the end of next year and expand product features like spontaneous mobile-app ridesharing and event ride coordination. The business has raised funding to support these growth plans, including a recent Series A and an earlier seed round. Zimride offers customizable tools to companies and universities to encourage carpooling, letting users create profiles with preferences and search for matches within their organization. Profiles capture details like favorite music, ride frequency, and location (users can hide their exact address), and the service integrates with Facebook. Founded in 2007, the company says it now has more than 50 customers, including Stanford, USC, Harvard, and Esurance. USC reported increases in carpool permit sales and improved air quality scores after joining the service. Zimride raised a $1.2 million seed round and will use the financing to improve user experience, build mobile applications, and add support for other forms of transportation. Logan Green is a cofounder and chief executive, and the company is focused on expanding its product and mobile offerings.

Total raised

$22M

Funding rounds

3

Latest round

Equity

Latest activity

Jan 2013