British start-up Immense joins Addison Lee Group’s mVentures programme to improve fleet efficiency

LONDON, 15 October 2019 — Addison Lee Group, the global premium car service, and Immense, the intelligent mobility simulation provider, today launch a partnership under mVentures, Addison Lee Group’s innovation programme, which will use simulation to explore more efficient and environmentally friendly ways of getting drivers and customers to where they need to be.

The partnership will initially be a three-month trial to benchmark the way Addison Lee Group currently allocates its 5,000-strong fleet during a given week against a simulated allocation for the same week. The simulation will be able to highlight whether efficiency could be increased by optimising use of the fleet, therefore positively impacting the Group’s service at scale for passengers, drivers and the cities in which it operates in.

To achieve this, the simulation will test different sets of rules to identify the allocation and dispatch strategy which simultaneously creates efficiencies in the system, reduces passenger wait times, ensures fulfilment of customer requests in dispatching the right vehicle at the right time, creates more efficient journeys and maximises earning potential for drivers through allocating jobs that are on drivers’ route to and from home, and optimises vehicle usage to reduce wasted miles and CO2 emissions.

Immense were selected out of seventy applications from companies keen to join the mVentures partnership programme. Immense have built an AI-powered mobility simulation platform to enable better, faster decisions about future transport systems – through this mVentures trial, Immense will, for the first time, apply and test this software at scale through Addison Lee Group’s fleet, helping to inform and find efficiencies for the Group’s operational strategy.

Under the mVentures partnership programme, Addison Lee Group searches for and quickly evaluates third party products or service innovations that play to the strengths of the business. Selected participants gain access to the Group’s business to demonstrate how their product or service can deliver value. If successful, a number of options are then explored to put in place a longer-term partnership or commercial arrangements.

Paul McCabe, Corporate Director at Addison Lee Group, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with Immense on this mVentures trial, which has the potential to provide significant benefits to the Addison Lee Group operating model, the cities we operate in, our drivers and our customers.

 At Addison Lee Group, we champion British innovation, and we know that in collaborating with Immense to deliver a viable Proof of Concept for simulated allocation, we are further strengthening the UK’s capability in the intelligent mobility sector.”

Robin North, CEO of Immense, said: “We are excited to work alongside Addison Lee Group on their innovation programme, mVentures. It is a crucial period for the mobility industry, with increased competitive pressure amplifying the focus on improving customer service and driver experience.

We are proud to support Addison Lee Group with tools to address these challenges and make better, faster decisions about their fleet operations, keeping British mobility solutions at the forefront of this evolving industry.”

Upon completion of the three-month programme, the benefits of increased operational visibility and fleet efficiency savings to drivers, passengers and the city authority will be assessed. If successful, full platform roll-out will enable Addison Lee Group to rapidly improve fleet operational efficiency across all existing operating locations and test fleet solutions in potential future service locations, de-risking real-world implementation for drivers and passengers.

Through mVentures, Addison Lee Group is already partnering with some of the world’s most innovative companies – from global mobility brands such as Audi, to British start-ups such as Oxbotica. Immense previously worked with Addison Lee Group in 2017 on a government-backed initiative, MERGE Greenwich, which simulated how autonomous passenger service could compliment today’s modes of transportation – the first simulation of its kind globally.

Most recently, Addison Lee Group and consortium members, including Immense, officially launched Project Endeavour – a £15 million project, backed by the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV), which aims to bring the first autonomous ride-share passenger service to London by 2021.

-ENDS-

About mVentures:

mVentures is Addison Lee Group’s mobility innovation programme, which focuses on five core areas: electrification, autonomous vehicles, new business models, connected cars and big data. The mVentures partnership programme leverages Addison Lee Group’s established mobility platform and operating model to accelerate new mobility ideas, products or services to market. Through this programme Addison Lee Group collaborates with organisations of all sizes, from established, global mobility brands to start ups, to test and trial new mobility solutions. Interested parties looking to scale up their mobility innovations can apply for the mVentures partnership programme at: https://algmventures.com/apply/