The development of sustainable and innovative transportation systems is now a major challenge in harmonizing mobility in Europe. To meet this challenge and support European mobility start-ups, the Chairwoman of the European Parliament’s Transport Committee, Karima Delli, has joined forces with the consulting firm The Boston Consulting Group and the start-up accelerator specializing in new forms of mobility, Via ID, to implement the European Startup Prize for mobility. This unprecedented European initiative aims to support innovative and sustainable startups that are moving the mobility and transportation sector.
And it is to Euros / Agency, recognized for its expertise in the fields of start-ups, technology and mobility, that the communication strategy of the event in France and at the European level has been entrusted. An exciting task, as the prize must quickly gain credibility and notoriety from its first edition in order to become a must-attend event in Europe.
For Karima Delli, «The fruit of this cooperation, the European Startup Prize for mobility, aims to build a truly prosperous and dynamic ‘European valley’ by responding to the accelerating challenges of European mobility startups. Our aim is to make Europe the new playground for startups, and to trust them to meet the two major challenges of tomorrow: the fight against climate change and the co-construction of a Europe of projects. »
Nearly 500 startups responded to the call for applications to participate in the European Startup Prize for mobility. Ten of them were selected to participate in a tailor-made European support program. On Thursday 22 February, a European Startup Prize for mobility award ceremony was held in Brussels, during which large groups, startups, politicians and experts in the field of technology and transport came together. On this occasion, the ten nominated startups presented their concept to a jury of ten experts and many key personalities from the mobility and innovation sector. Among them were Gilles Babinet, Digital Champion of France for the European Commission since 2012, Bertrand Piccard, President of Solar Impulse, Violeta Bulc, European Commissioner for Transport, Frédéric Mazzella, CEO of Blablacar, and Tanja Kufner, head of Startupbootcamp, one of Europe’s most powerful accelerator.
Cargonexx, Cocolis, Klaxit and MaaS Global stood out and won this first edition of the European Startup Prize for mobility. They will thus benefit from a European tour to meet investors and establish themselves on the European market. At the same time, they will benefit from tailored support to strengthen their business plan, develop their international deployment strategy and analyze legal and statutory regulations at the European level.
European Startup Prize is also a revelation of the most promising startups on the European continent. As a token of its support, the jury awarded an honorary prize to three European nuggets, Txfy, Drivy and Stuart, who have already shaped tomorrow’s mobility thanks to the success of their development strategy on a European scale. Txfy is the perfect example; this Estonian startup offering a mobile application for ordering a cab or private driver is already used by more than 5 million customers. Founded just five years ago, Txfy is now present in more than 20 markets. Drivy is another example of this European success story. Indeed, this car rental platform has enabled more than 1.5 million users to rent vehicles close to home. Today, Drivy is the leading car rental marketplace in Europe.
Following the success of this first edition of the European Startup Prize for mobility, we are giving all European startups an appointment next year to integrate the 2019 promotion and build a new European mobility ecosystem.
