General Motors has launched a new car-sharing service called Maven. The move follows GM’s recent announcement that it will invest in ride-share start-up Lyft and suggests increased momentum in the company’s drive to address the emergence of new mobility models.
Maven customers can use its app to search for and reserve a vehicle by location or car type and unlock the vehicle with their smartphone. The app also enables remote functions such as starting, heating or cooling. GM says that customers can “bring their digital lives into the vehicle through Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, OnStar, SiriusXM radio and 4GLTE wireless”. Each vehicle, the company claims, will provide an “ownership-like experience with the convenience of car-sharing”.
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The company says Maven’s mission is to give customers access to highly personalised, on-demand mobility services. The global Maven team includes more than 40 dedicated employees from the connected car technology industry as well as ride- and car-sharing professionals from Google, Zipcar and Sidecar.
“GM is at the forefront of redefining the future of personal mobility,” said GM President Dan Ammann. “With the launch of our car-sharing service through Maven, the strategic alliance with ride-sharing company Lyft, and building on our decades of leadership in vehicle connectivity through OnStar, we are uniquely positioned to provide the high level of personalised mobility services our customers expect today and in the future.”
