Presto is building Stripe for EV charging

Charging electric vehicles to the public can be the best time or the worst time.

An EV driver can be charged and can go back to a smooth street 20 minutesBut they can face broken charger, reaction without touchscreen and blocked stalls, they can all do one FrustrationThe

It can be a headache for everyday customers. For fleet or ride shares drivers, a broken charger can lose money.

These disappointments encouraged Raina to leave their jobs in Ashwin Dyas and JJ in JJ, where they tried to electrhe the ride -shares drivers’ vehicles and began PrestoAn app that indicates the Fleet Driver the best charger.

“From a Uber background, we think there is a dynamic marketplace where we can help to smooth everything to match different needs with different supplies,” said Rainner. This means that the sensitive drivers are quick and more reliable during price-sensitive drivers, but the price sensitive drivers wait 30 minutes to open a cheap charger while guiding it to the primer stalls.

Presto recently raised a $ 15 million seed round led by Union Square Venture, the company exclusively informed TechCrunch. The rounds of initiatives, jetstream and power house venture were also included in the round.

The team is starting with the fleet, because they drive many miles.

“Uber drivers, who are driving for 4 hours a week, are if we need to be electrified quickly and have an impact, if we need to be on an EV,” Startup CEO Dyas told Techchen.

This pair planned Uber to solve the problem in the driver app, but it was realized that it could not be really solved by any company.

This is partially due to the expansion of the EV charging stalls installing and running companies.

“Charging is becoming more fragmented in the United States,” said Rainner. Last year, about 60% of all new DC fast charger in the United States came from more than 40 different networks. “We went to people from three or four big players that we never heard,” he said.

Both sides of the equation feel the pain of this section.

Fleets will benefit by connecting directly to the charging network software, but the charging networks do not want to support an API for dozen or hundreds of customers. On the flip, the fleet does not want to integrate with the growing number of charging networks.

Prestore software is something that both sides can connect. It gives fleet and charging networks to one partner to work with more customers and access – a classic platform play.

“In some senses, we think of the transaction as a stripe in some senses.”

The startup provides its own application and API, which can integrate with companies; It can also manage the payment.

The combination gives Presto its machine learning recommended the engine to get different data, the drivers tell them which chargers should be used and where the networks instruct their maintenance crew. For example, let’s say that a network reports that a charger is online, but a charge session starting via Presto fails. Presto can take the drivers away from that stall and report the problem to the network.

According to Dies, rentals were the primary adopters of the Prestore platform, including Hartz, Avis and Jipcar. Uber drivers also use the app, which alerts them to networks that provide discount charging.

Other fleets like delivery companies are accepting the app, Dias says, even if they have a chargers in the depot. “Sometimes the chargers do not work or have more vehicles than the charger,” he said.

Presto’s main goal is to run the API integration, though, encouraged the expedition to add startup recommendations between their own applications and dashboard. “I don’t think that we customers would like to download one more app,” said Dies. “

Rionor said the company was contacted by the main automackers, but it has now focused on the fleet. Anyone who had their part Bad charging experienceI hope it will change soon.