More than 100 projects launched

“The company that provides the software and the company that uses the software are on the same boat. Both can move forward only with the same understanding,” says Milad Mahmoudyan. Last autumn he launched his e-scooter sharing business Qick in two mid-sized cities in Sweden. Milad recalls that he nearly missed the opportunity to be the first to enter the market due to an unsuccessful collaboration with another software provider, but then he found Atom Mobility.   

Launch date: November 2019

Country: Sweden, four cities

App downloads: More than 100 000

App rating: 4.7/5

Fleet: few hundreds of Segway Max scooters and few hundreds of ACTON scooters

Web page: https://www.qickscooters.com

App Store: https://apps.apple.com/ca/app/qick-scooters/id1480390337?l=fr

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=qickscooters.app&hl=en_US

When everything was nearly set up, problems with the trackers started to appear. “Luckily, we started to have issues before the launch – we could not integrate the hardware with the software. We had a setting in the configuration that caused a lot of headaches. It was not working as it should. We knew that we had competitors coming in, so we had to be the first in the city. With the help from Atom Mobility, we managed to launch before them,” explains Milad. “It took us three days of onboarding. We are probably still the fastest launch that Atom Mobility has had so far.”

A Strong Belief in Shared Mobility Drives the Business

Milad also has another business, but he always believed in shared mobility, so he decided to create the Qick platform: “Originally, we thought of establishing a cab company, but we knew that the electric scooter sharing service will eventually come to the city which would affect our business. It is just a better way of transportation than a standard taxi. So, we started to look at how we could be in front of this movement instead of being affected by it.”

Milad invested money from his existing business and took out a loan. He was not afraid as he considered it to be a safe investment. Milad says that among younger people the demand to have their own car or even use a cab is decreasing significantly. They require other means of transportation. They are looking for solutions that are super easy and fun. And now it is hard to find better transportation than the electric scooter. “Especially downtown, an electric scooter is faster and more fun to drive. Otherwise, people must drive a car, pay for parking, and sit in traffic jams. You can avoid all of that by using an electric scooter. People get this and are increasingly using scooters,” observes Milad.

Even during the pandemic, there was a proper demand for electric scooters in the city. Qick felt the decline in rides for the first two weeks after everything started to go into lockdown. They kept scooters outside as there were people that preferred to use them: “People always had disinfection liquids with them. We also paid special attention to the disinfection of handlebars. In a few weeks, everything proceeded as usual. Mainly because people saw e-scooters as a better option than riding on public transport,” concludes Milad.

The Advantage of Being Small

Quick is currently a team of six people operating in four mid-sized Swedish cities. They have one big competitor, but Milad says that sometimes being small is a competitive advantage: “The main difference between Qick and the big player in the market is that we are a local company here in the city. Big companies do not necessarily value day to day work. A small company like us puts a lot of effort into solving everyday issues. By that, I mean relocating and keeping track of electric scooters. We are constantly able to deploy at hotspots because we are familiar with the city. Also, Qick focuses a lot on customer support, service, and helping out when something is not working but it should.”

Milad’s advice for other electric scooter service providers who are willing to start their own businesses is to pay attention to the quality of vehicles. This is important as they should be able to serve long term. And customers appreciate the comfort and quality that reflects the service provider’s attitude towards them.

All Sharing Options on One Platform

What about expansion plans? Milad is willing to continue what he has started and even come back to the idea of cabs. The only difference is that he would like to exclusively work with electric vehicles in his fleet. Atom Mobility software will also allow him to integrate other means of transportation into an app, so in terms of the software, he will not require any additional investments.

“Another important aspect regarding Atom Mobility is their understanding of the business. If they help their partners grow, this will be also their opportunity to develop and grow. I saw this immediately after the first few minutes of talking to the company’s CEO Artur Burnins. They really value their customers and see potential in every cooperation. Atom Mobility is constantly working on new functions and features. We have not even mentioned that we need them, but they develop solutions. It is also good that we can ask them for additional functions and features that we would like to offer to our end users,” says Milad.

Together, Qick and Atom Mobility have built a strong business partnership. Both companies plan to continue expanding and developing their services by providing even more convenient ways in which people can enjoy shared mobility.

“We spent two years developing a car-sharing app in-house. And even after all our efforts it still wasn't half as good as ATOM Mobility's platform.” – Peter Mraz, GreenGo's Manager, shares how he found the perfect partner in ATOM Mobility. 

Launch date: May 2021
Country: Slovenia, operates in 4 cities
Web page: https://greengo.city
App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/greengo-by-t2/id1618782932
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=greengo.app 

GreenGo is a green vehicle-sharing company based in Slovenia that currently focuses on electric cars. 

The company's story is unique in that it's a project that spun out from its parent company T-2, d.o.o., a local telecom provider with over 400 employees. T-2's owner was enthusiastic about green mobility and set out to bring his vision to life – and succeeded. Today, you can find GreenGo's Renault Zoes and Twingos, Cupra Borns, and VW ID.3s in four cities – Ljubljana, Kranj, Trzin, and Logatec. 

However, the man who's running the show is Peter Mraz, GreenGo's Manager. While he does enjoy access to the parent company's resources, Peter is single-handedly overseeing the entire project and responsible for its success. 

“I do have backup from designers, legal, accounting and so on. And there are maybe 3-4 people who help manage the cars and maintenance. Everything else – it's on me. Thanks to ATOM Mobility, I have been able to manage everything from project start to launch pretty much on my own,” says Peter.

GreenGo's early challenges

Orginally, the idea was to develop the GreenGo car-sharing app in-house – a decision Peter grew to regret.

“It took us two years to develop the app. Even then, it did the job, but it wasn't perfect and it didn't quite go the way we wanted it to. And even after all our efforts it still wasn't half as good as ATOM Mobility's platform,” he shares. 

Indeed, this ongoing struggle pushed GreenGo to explore alternative options on the market and, after some market research, they landed on ATOM Mobility. ATOM Mobility ticked their two most important checkboxes – it offered the core functionalities they required and offered fast time-to-market. 

Originally“Once we made the switch, we launched in 3 months, though we did already have the cars at the ready, which certainly helped,” Peter continues. 

Admittedly, ATOM Mobility didn't immediately fulfil all their needs. 

“We had a very specific vision and requirements. ATOM Mobility was great, but didn't have everything we wanted when we started out. But the platform is evolving quickly. Their team develops something new every 2-3 months and it's very good for us. Since they develop for other companies, too, we also benefit from the updates. Now, ATOM Mobility has everything we need and more,” Peter says.

Still, early on, GreenGo were facing an uphill battle with fierce competition. Slovenia already had one high-profile electric car-sharing company that had established itself in the market, had more experience, and was well-respected among its customers and the general public. 

What was GreenGo's strategy for finding a foothold in the ecosystem? 

A brilliant idea for entering a busy market 

GreenGo carved out its market share by leveraging a strategic partnership with Slovenian Railways. 

“You see, a lot of tourists arrive in Ljubljana and other cities by train. Either internationally or from the airport. So we started off by placing our vehicles in railway stations, allowing us to be the easy choice top of mind for anyone arriving in the city,” Peter explains.  

To further improve convenience for potential customers, GreenGo integrated ATOM Mobility with a local MaaS platform. This allowed people to purchase credits for GreenGo's car-sharing app through the city's own mobility solution. 

Not only did this solidify GreenGo as the most accessible solution for any tourist who used the city's app to buy a train ticket, it also connected it to all the local residents that use the city's mobility app in their day-to-day. 

Now, you'll find GreenGo in four cities and their customers love them, as suggested by the high app ratings and continuous positive feedback. 

In most of the cities, they're using a station based model – where the cars need to be picked up and returned at certain points. However, in the capital they're currently running a hybrid model featuring both free-floating and station-based vehicle sharing. 

GreenGo expects to have to switch to a fully station-based model in Ljubljana, too, as the city is pulling the brakes on free-floating vehicle sharing. But they're not too fussed, as this model is easier to manage and can be a better choice for a still-up-and-coming company. 

Looking to the future – more vehicle types and a focus on B2B

As any company, GreenGo is eyeing growth and expansion. 

‍“Our vision is to become a leading force in the sharing economy,” Peter highlights.

Expanding their fleet with different types of vehicles, specifically – electric micromobility solutions – is one of the avenues GreenGo is exploring. 

In terms of business development, GreenGo has an interesting strategy for the upcoming year, namely, focusing on expanding into the business-to-business (B2B) segment with corporate sharing schemes. 

‍“With B2C, you need a lot of cars, a lot of investment. Electric vehicles are very capital intensive, which poses challenges for a growing company. B2B offers the opportunity to make the maximum from your existing fleet, which will allow B2C expansion later on. Plus, we already have a sort of successful B2B pilot project under our belts,” says Peter, referring to a corporate sharing scheme they launched with their very own parent company. 

They made four cars available to T-2 employees, which they can take out under certain conditions and packages for a few hours, a day, or a weekend. This sharing scheme proved to be very popular among employees, and Peter is certain other large companies will also be keen to test out this modern benefit for their workers. 

With some ups and downs, GreenGo is steadily carving out its spot in the market. 

What would Peter do differently if he had to do it all over again? 

‍“Choose ATOM Mobility from day 1 and save everyone a lot of headaches and resources,” he laughs. “But, seriously, the time-to-market is so fast, I think you could launch a mobility company from zero in one month.”

“Being small allows Go Green City to be responsive and offer solutions tailored to a particular environment. Flexibility and agility are our advantages and that's why I wanted a software partner with the same qualities” – Jose Tavares, the founder and CEO of Go Green City, explains why he chose to partner with ATOM Mobility. 

Launch date: August 2021
Country: Switzerland
Fleet size: 200 e-mopeds
Web page: https://go-greencity.ch
App Store: https://apps.apple.com/ch/app/id1583947739 
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ggc.app 

Jose began building Go Green City, a Swiss electric moped sharing company, with another well-known software provider on the market. Still, he quickly grew disillusioned after experiencing delays in communication and a generally passive attitude. Moving quickly is a key advantage of starting a new enterprise, and being held back by outside parties was unacceptable. This became clear early on in Jose's journey, when he was still just validating the viability of his solution. 

“The initial partner company was just too big and took too long to react,” explains Jose. “I wanted a partner that can match my pace and with whom I could establish strong foundations for a long-term partnership.” 

After tasking his son with finding an alternative provider, Go Green City quickly landed with ATOM Mobility as it met Jose's criteria – professional, responsive, and not too big. The two companies have been working together ever since, with a shared outlook toward the future, and, as they say, the rest is history.

It's not about getting from A to B, but rather from B to C

For Jose, Go Green City is about giving back. Having had a career in the automotive industry for most of his life, Jose wanted to create something that improves the lives of city folk and helps the environment. An electric alternative for urban last-mile mobility is his answer. 

“We considered and tested electric car sharing and scooters, before landing on mopeds. The problem I wanted to solve was to get people from B to C. Not A to B, because I would compete against public transport and create more traffic and congestion. I firmly believe that public transport is the best and greenest solution that should serve as the backbone of urban transit,” says Jose. “That's why I'm focusing on a last-mile solution. My goal is to get people into the bus and then onto the electric moped, rather than replace the bus.” 

Go Green City started operating in 2022 and today its 200 e-mopeds have done over 120,000 km inside the city with zero emissions. But for Jose, that's just the beginning. Looking to grow his fleet more than tenfold and launch next year in Portugal, Jose is steadily carving out his place in urban mobility through smart partnerships and sheer grit. 

A one-man army

Jose has built Go Green City from the ground up almost single-handedly. Up until now, the company's operations were virtually 100% outsourced, save for the considerable efforts of Jose himself. “I've done my job when I can go on a vacation and everything runs smoothly without me,” Jose shares. 

Today, Go Green City demands around 2 hours of Jose's time a day, but this is the result of 5 years of hard work and long nights. “To be a good leader, even to freelancers, you have to know every nook and cranny of the business and have to be willing to do the hard work yourself. You can't ask more of others than you do of yourself.”

Over the years, there have been a lot of hiccups – from vehicle hacks to delivery problems due to the Suez canal's blockage – but having trusted partners at your side and extensive industry knowledge helped Jose navigate all the ups and downs right up until the launch and beyond.  

The launch of Go Green City happened without much fanfare. The idea was to launch smoothly and quietly, to avoid antagonizing competition and give citizens the opportunity to discover the advantages of Go Green City themselves. It was a tremendous success that was quickly amplified further through word-of-mouth marketing. 

People were eager to engage with the new and convenient e-mopeds and became loyal customers once they discovered that it was the cheapest mobility option available. This also encouraged people to share feedback, all of which was quickly managed on the other end by Jose himself to further improve the service and foster a sense of community. 

“I wanted people to feel heard and make them feel like a part of the business. That's why I always ended my communications with 'Thank you for being part of our club'  and that really resonated with people.”

Nuggets of wisdom for aspiring entrepreneurs

After an illustrious 30-year career in the automotive industry and a strong start with Go Green City, Jose's advice to future entrepreneurs is “don't talk, just do it”. Don't tell people where you are going, but announce when you've arrived. 

“Sharing your plans and ambitions will only make people question you and you'll spend a lot of energy and time arguing and justifying yourself to friends, family, and partners,” explains Jose. “Sometimes, don't even tell your wife”. 

“People have amazing ideas and initiatives, but they seek validation and support from acquaintances who can never really give you what you need. Usually, they just make you question yourself. Instead, just do it. Try. Even if you fail, the most important thing is that you've learned and you'll do better next time,” concludes Jose. 

Thanks to an alignment in business philosophies, ATOM Mobility and Go Green City collaborate like a well-oiled machine. And Jose can continue his entrepreneurial mission of improving the lives of travelers and contributing to the well-being of the environment.

The ride-hailing industry has revolutionized urban mobility, but not without its challenges. While consumers enjoy affordable rides and seamless booking experiences, drivers often shoulder the challenges of the trade-off. In Sweden, where the cost of living is high, many drivers working for major ride-hailing platforms like Uber and Bolt have faced increasingly difficult conditions, from lower earnings per trip to rigid and punitive policies. We got in touch with Samual Nygren, Co-Founder of Fair, to discuss how a driver-first ride-hailing platform has emerged as a beacon of change.

‍

Launch date: June 2023

Country: Sweden

App downloads: More than 20 000

App rating: 4.9/5

Web page: https://fairtaxi.se

App Store: https://apps.apple.com/se/app/fair-taxi/id6450279161

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=fair.app

‍

The origins of Fair: A movement born from protests
Fair’s story begins with a series of driver-led protests in Sweden a few years ago. Disillusioned by shrinking incomes and unfair practices, drivers took to the streets of Stockholm, blocking traffic with their cars and holding up signs to demand change. Among them was a group seeking to create a nonprofit organization to advocate for better conditions. The founders of Fair became involved through a personal connection, seeing the drivers' struggles firsthand and recognizing an opportunity to support their cause.
Initially approached to help develop a website for the organization, Fair’s founders quickly saw an opportunity to go beyond advocacy and create something actionable: a competitive, driver-focused ride-hailing service. This marked the birth of Fair, a platform designed not just to offer rides but to redefine what fairness looks like in the gig economy.

‍A fairer model: Drivers in the driver’s seat
At its core, Fair operates on the principle of empowerment. Unlike traditional platforms where drivers often feel like disposable assets, Fair positions drivers as majority stakeholders in the company. This means they have a say in how the platform operates and directly benefit from its success. Key features of Fair’s model include:
- Lower platform fees: By keeping fees as low as possible, Fair ensures drivers retain a larger share of their earnings.
- Generous terms: Unlike major platforms where declining too many ride requests can result in penalties or even bans, Fair’s policies are designed to accommodate the realities of drivers’ lives.
- Nonprofit principles: Fair’s nonprofit orientation underscores its commitment to prioritizing drivers over profits.
This model has resonated deeply with drivers in Stockholm, where Fair first launched. With the success of its pilot, the company is now expanding into smaller cities across Sweden, taking its mission of fairness to a broader audience.

Beyond rides: Advocating for labor rights
Fair’s mission extends beyond providing a ride-hailing service. It aims to shine a spotlight on the working conditions that gig economy workers face – not just in ride-hailing but also in food delivery and other sectors. Historically, Sweden has been a stronghold for labor rights and fair pay, but the gig economy’s precarious working conditions have exposed gaps in this framework.
By raising awareness and leading by example, Fair seeks to spark a broader conversation about fairness in the gig economy. Its success could pave the way for similar initiatives in other industries and countries.

‍Partnering with ATOM Mobility: A platform built for change
Fair’s innovative approach is supported by its partnership with ATOM Mobility, a technology platform that powers mobility businesses around the globe. Through this collaboration, Fair has been able to focus on what matters most – supporting drivers and redefining fairness – while leveraging ATOM Mobility’s expertise to handle the technical complexities of running a ride-hailing service.
ATOM Mobility provides the infrastructure that allows Fair to offer seamless booking experiences for users and operational efficiency for drivers. This partnership ensures that Fair’s resources are directed toward growth and advocacy, rather than reinventing the wheel technologically. By working together, Fair and ATOM Mobility demonstrate how technology and purpose-driven businesses can create lasting impact in the gig economy.

Looking ahead: Building a fairer future
While Fair is still growing, its impact is already evident. By putting drivers first and demonstrating that fairness and profitability can coexist, Fair is challenging the status quo of the gig economy. The platform’s expansion into smaller cities and its growing driver community are testaments to the demand for a more equitable alternative.
As Fair continues to scale, it stands as a powerful example of how even small players can drive meaningful change. With its driver-first principles and commitment to fairness, Fair isn’t just a ride-hailing platform – it’s a movement.