This week was another busy one for companies that operate in alternatives to vehicle ownership, as announcements arrived from Autonomy, Kyte and FINN.

Beginning first with Autonomy, the electric vehicle subscription company offering consumers what executives believe is the cheapest, fastest and easiest way to get into a Tesla Model 3 is now expanding its service to the San Francisco Bay area of California.

The company announced it now has pick-up locations planned in San Jose and San Francisco.

“Northern California is famous as an early adopter market that embraces disruptive new technologies that improve quality of life,” Autonomy chief executive officer and founder Scott Painter said in a news release.

“We launched commercially in Los Angeles in January and immediately saw a third of our demand from the San Francisco Bay area,” Painter continued. “Our digital first and EV focused approach to mobility clearly struck a chord, so it made sense to expand our operations and footprint.”

Autonomy also rolled out new pricing, offering an even lower monthly subscription for a Tesla Model 3, which the company said now costs less than Tesla’s own lease or an installment contract.

Autonomy said subscribers can reserve the Model 3 via Autonomy’s app or website with a $100 refundable deposit. The new subscription price includes a flat monthly payment of $490 and $4,900 start payment.

Consumers also have the ability to use Autonomy’s payment dial to customize their payment structure from as low as $490 a month with $4,900 start payment to $1,000 a month and as low as $1,000 start payment.

Autonomy said a refundable $500 security deposit is required at the time of subscription activation.

The company noted Autonomy’s subscription includes traditional ownership costs, including annual registration and license fees, routine maintenance, roadside assistance costs, and tire wear and tear, whereas consumers would have to incur all of those costs for a lease or a loan.

“The savings get even bigger if we factor in the fuel costs for a gas-powered vehicle,” Autonomy said. “With average gas prices in California at $5.79, a consumer driving a 25 mpg ICE vehicle at 15,000 miles per year will spend $281 on fuel every month, or $3,376 annually.

“To compare, electricity expenditures on an EV are $0.248 per kWh, which results in $77.50 monthly, or $930 annually, a 72.5% savings on fuel,” the company continued. “When you add the monthly payment to the monthly gas bill, as well as routine maintenance and other fees, an Autonomy Tesla Model 3 subscription represents a savings of about $500 a month.”  

In addition to the potential lower price point and savings, Autonomy highlighted that it also offers consumers the flexibility to subscribe month-to-month after only a three-month hold period.

Autonomy added that it has vehicles in-stock and available for delivery, so consumers do not have to wait six to nine months as they do for a new Model 3.

“Cheaper, faster, and easier are values that resonate with every consumer,” said Georg Bauer, co-founder and president at Autonomy. “Our new, lower prices are driving increased EV adoption and have set the stage for expansion into the San Francisco Bay Area today, as well as other markets outside of California in the coming weeks and months.”

Autonomy recently received $83 million in debt and equity financing in support of the expansion.

Kyte secures $200M asset-backed financing facility

Kyte, the company pioneering vehicles delivered to users on-demand, announced the closing of an asset-backed credit financing of up to $200 million from Goldman Sachs and the Ares Global Management Alternative Credit Team

According to a news release, the facility will accelerate the company’s fleet growth and margin expansion.

Kyte and its financing providers said they will create a more robust trip economy that services a more demanding customer with a shared vision of an electrified, autonomous future.

“We are building a real business with real assets in the real world. To get this right, we needed a debt capital provider that shares our ambitious vision and can put real money behind it. The credit facility from Goldman and Ares will catalyze our growth as we build towards the future of transportation,” Kyte co-founder Ludwig Schoenack said in the news release.

“The problem Kyte is solving is giving access to cars to people that live in cities. These cars are a core element that we wanted to get right, and we’re committed to being a leader in customer-centricity and technology-powered operational excellence,” Schoenack continued.

Kyte explained that customer expectations have drastically increased in recent years, as more convenient on-demand options have replaced brick and mortar incumbents in the grocery, restaurant and FMCG spaces.

Building on the same set of hypotheses, Kyte explained that it is creating a more accessible solution for people to get vehicle on-demand and bridging the massive gap between elevated consumer expectations and frustrating existing experiences.

An end-to-end product, Kyte said it is redefining transportation by delivering and retrieving vehicles, bypassing the “inconveniences of car ownership, car leasing, and the familiar hassles of traditional car rental.”

Kyte insisted that the next 10 years will bring about a dramatic shift in vehicle sales toward electric fleets. As a result, Kyte said it will regularly integrate new vehicle models into its fleet, and this funding ensures the capital to evolve with the industry while expanding upon its tech-forward product offering.

Currently operational in more than a dozen cities, Kyte was founded in 2019 by Schoenack, Nikolaus Volk and Francesco Wiedemann

“We are excited to support Kyte in its next phase of growth,” said Felix Zhang, managing director in Ares Alternative Credit. “With a shared vision for the future of the transportation industry, this capital solution demonstrates Ares’ focus on innovative businesses that are disrupting traditional business models.”

FINN to expand US presence

FINN, one of Europe’s fastest-growing vehicle subscription platforms, announced that it will expand its offering to western Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Washington D.C., following its initial rollout in the United States in December.

The company initially launched in eastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey at the end of last year. And according to a news release, FINN said it will continue its expansion to additional markets throughout this year.

FINN said it is trying to transform the new-vehicle experience through its innovative subscription model, making it fun, sustainable and convenient to change vehicles every six or 12 months.

Further, FINN said it uniquely provides customers the ability to subscribe to a broad selection of new vehicles with no hidden fees, as the price online includes insurance, maintenance, roadside assistance and various term options.

Through FINN’s vehicle subscription service, customers will have access to different car brands including but not limited to Tesla, Jeep, Chevrolet and Nissan.

“Just months after FINN launched in the United States, we are experiencing significant demand for our services and are excited to bring our offerings to more Americans seeking freedom to choose a vehicle that fits their changing lifestyle,” FINN chief executive officer and founder Max-Josef Meier said in the news release.

“We developed FINN as a way to bring the ease of online shopping to the car industry and we are committed to providing the most convenient new car experience for our users; this expansion will help do just that,” Meier continued.

FINN’s U.S. expansion comes on the heels of a successful year in Germany, as the mobility platform reached 10,000 subscriptions.