Twelve months ago, GM announced the launch of their own car-sharing program and application, Maven. The premise was simple: Maven allowed people to locate and to reserve a vehicle via the app as well as unlock and start the vehicle at a distance. The program launched in New York, where it served 5,000 residents, as well as in Chicago. In New York, the integration of the Maven app even allowed condo dwellers to have private access to a fleet of vehicles, shared with all the residents of the same building. The system was meant as a step away from traditional transportation and towards the new definition of mobility that extends way beyond cars.
Julia Steyn took the stage at the NAIAS for a press conference. The topic: an update on her group's latest achievements. The focus of her presentation was the Millenials as they are the ones to redefine the notion of mobility. In fact, she explained that 78% of Maven members were Millenials aged between 18 and 36 years old. Via their three services, Maven Home, Maven City and Maven Business, the group has grown to 20,000 members across North America.
Mrs Steyn explained that the pillars to their concept are for one, the fleet of cars they offer as she believes the models made available to the car-sharing service are cars people are excited to drive, as well as the in-car technology that allows seemless integration with the driver's smartphone. Thanks to the vehicles' 4G LTE wifi connectivity and the available Apple CarPlay and Android Auto apps, whether the driver requests a Volt or an Escalade, the vehicle will become an extension of their smartphone.
In twelve months, Maven Home has expanded to five cities, serving 8,000 residents and allowing them to share their private fleet not with strangers but with neighbours. Maven City that started in Chicago can now be found in a dozen cities as a more traditional car-sharing service. Julia Steyn explained that depending on the city serviced, the cars were "personalized" to what the local audience might require. Finally, Maven Business has been allowing Lyft and Über service providers to have access to vehicles in order to be on the road, earn money, without having to worry about owning a car.
Maven makes it easy to get into a car and to use it as the customers do not need to get insurance and have no membership fees to pay. Maven even takes care of the parking for them! With such encouraging results, Mrs Steyn is hoping to see Maven grow and expand even further in 2017, hoping more users will stop missing out and will "be there" when they need to be.
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