Two of the region’s leading mobility pioneers CAFU and ekar are to partner in what they describe as the ‘next gen’ of connected car technology services.
In a statement, CAFU explained that the partnership with ekar forms the first step towards a range of new partnerships making a leap forward in its “relentless ambition for delivering a new predicative era for car services, driving its momentum of innovation to be better connected to its customers, and harnessing further the power of technology to be more responsive for the world today.”
The two firms recently completed a successful trial of automating the fuelling process between CAFU and ekar’s fleet of cars.
The process itself is fully automated through a shared interface where CAFU sends an automatic refuelling push alerts via ekar’s Mobility OS during low-usage periods.
Vehicles with 25% or less fuel in the tank are flagged to CAFU which then leads to an automated order generation. Once refuelled and marked completed by a CAFU pilot, ekar’s Mobility OS instantly reflects the new fuel level within the App for users to see ahead of their next booking.
Through CAFU’s technology combined with ekar’s Mobility OS software, ekar’s entire fleet of cars will always be full or at least above 25% of fuel consumption, “providing the driver with convenience and sparing them the long wait in refuelling queues at petrol stations”.
This “first of its kind technology integration in the region” will reap benefits for both CAFU and ekar, as well as customers, said the firms: “For ekar, the simpler and smarter refueling system will allow added focus towards customers through real time fuel level monitoring and automated refueling timelines.”
“The deepening of this partnership between CAFU and ekar marks another milestone as it aligns with our mission to enable convenience in motion,” said Rashid Al Ghurair, CEO and founder, CAFU. “This disruptive approach works towards our long-term vision of always using the collective power of intelligence – both human and machine – to create a better world through connected mobility to enable consumers access a superior unmatched product experience.
“ekar is a like-minded partner placing the focus on convenience-based solutions for customers and we will be using our technology to evolve this even further.
Vilhelm Hedberg, founder, ekar, said his firm was proud to be the world’s first Self Drive Mobility company to natively integrate automated mobile refueling.
“We are constantly working to improve our customers’ experience, and with our integration with CAFU, ekar carshare customers know that they will always have a fueled car ready to drive.”
