Soon many commuters have the ability to book a Lime electric scooter using the Uber app.
Despite a rivalry between Uber and Lime’s dockless bikeshare services, the two transportation companies announced an extraordinary partnership Monday tied to Lime’s new $335 million investment round. Uber is one of the investors and as part of the deal, Lime will make its electric scooters available in the Uber app.
Under the new partnership, Lime scooters will be co-branded with Uber logos. The two companies declined to share additional details about the deal, which is still being finalized.
“The partnership adds to Uber’s vision of becoming a transportation platform for people around the globe,” Lime CEO Toby Sun said in a blog post Monday.
Lime launched in 2017 with fleets of dockless, shared bicycles in several cities, including Seattle. In February, the company started rolling out electric-assist bicycles as part of its strategy to move beyond traditional bikeshare. In the spring, Lime-S electric scooters began appearing in select cities. Seattle law doesn’t allow for scooters yet.
Not to be left out of the new mobility revolution, Uber bought bikeshare startup JUMP in April. That acquisition put Uber in direct competition with Lime’s core service, making the partnership announced Monday all the more remarkable.
“We’re committed to bringing together multiple modes of transportation within the Uber app — so that you can choose the fastest or most affordable way to get where you’re going, whether that’s in an Uber, on a bike, on the subway, or more,” Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said in a blog post announcing the JUMP acquisition.
Uber is one of several investors in Lime’s whopping new round of funding. GV, the venture capital arm of Alphabet, led the $335 million round with participation from IVP, Atomico, and Fidelity Management and Research company. Lime has raised $467 million to date.
