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Voi has launched its City Innovation Fund, a $3 million commitment to support cities as they embrace safe, inclusive micromobility.
The fund seeks to expand and grow private- and public-sector projects that improve road safety, parking and the sustainability of micromobility vehicles and operations. The company said it hopes to supplement its own resources with additional external funds to ensure the ‘greatest impact’.
The fund will prioritise engaging in expanding parking options that reduce pavement clutter to make cities more accessible; road safety innovations focusing on novel approaches to infrastructure, rider education, and vehicle technology; and projects that improve the sustainability of operations, including support for research and advocacy.
The first projects Voi has engaged in include:
– Oonee, a company offering modular and secure public parking solutions for e-scooters and bikes. The funding will be used to build a new parking pod in New York to benefit the city’s essential workers
– MaaSLab at University College London, which will use the funding to further research in net-zero-carbon, on-demand transport
– Nortical, a software company that collects and analyses battery usage, which will support Voi in improving lithium-ion battery circularity (second-life applications and recycling) through a pilot programme
A committee of internal and external advisors will work together to select projects and track impact. Voi will be looking to add external funding sources on top of its own resources to the cause and will continually announce and showcase further collaborations and projects as they materialise.
