What role will IoT/AI play in transforming the mobility space post-COVID-19
IOT and AI adoption is now being utilised to scale up contactless, affordable, and highly accessible self-drive rental services across cities.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a shift in the priorities and travel patterns of daily commuters has been observed. With safety now a top priority, commuters are expected to move away from public transportation to personal mobility options that do not require being near other commuters/drivers.
Therefore, self-driving two-wheeler rentals are uniquely positioned to address the key concerns of commuters, with a safe, reliable, and affordable service that is not shared with other commuters/drivers.
Self-drive scooter rental is a decade-old business in India. It was primarily used in tourist hotspots such as Goa, where hotels would rent out 20-30 scooters per day to customers. However, even at a smaller scale, operators faced problems such as inability to monitor the usage of vehicles, driver behaviour, frequent theft, etc.
Today, scooter rental companies have expanded their fleets to thousands of scooters, and consumer use cases range from daily work commute and chores to food delivery, leisure activities, tourism etc. The key enabler for this rapid expansion has been widespread IoT adoption by two-wheeler fleet operators.
