Today it was announced that the newly established venture capital firm, NordicNinja VC, has made its first startup investment to the Finnish MaaS Global, the company behind the all-in-one mobility service application called Whim.
Whim was launched in Helsinki in 2017 and has since then expanded to two other cities in Europe. The company was the first mover using the term “Mobility as a Service” (MaaS) offering an all-inclusive service of variety of transportation alternatives within one app including taxis, public transport, car rental and bicycles.
“We are extremely excited to be part of the MaaS Global’s growth goals, as there was already great amount of international interest towards the investment round.” says Tomosaku Sohara, the Managing Partner of NordicNinja VC.
Mobility gains traction globally as the time has come to reimagine urban lifestyle. With millions commuting hours on a daily basis, the traffic conditions are becoming unbearable: according to the World Economic Forum, commuters in Bogotá, topping the list, spent an average of 272 hours stuck in traffic last year. The situation is not better in Europe either: drivers in Rome lost 254 hours of their time to congestion.
Europe is at the forefront of a range of progressive measures to offer sustainable and smart alternatives to everyday car usage. In Copenhagen, bikes already outnumber cars, Amsterdam plans to ban all petrol and diesel cars and motorbikes by 2030 and Helsinki simply wants to make them become obsolete by 2025.
Mobility as a Service revolutionizes users’ travel habits, in favor of sustainable modes. Whim allows users to journey where and when they want with public transport, taxis, cars, and many other options, all under a single monthly subscription.
At the upcoming Arctic15 conference in Helsinki, NordicNinja will give you more exclusive insights on stage about their recent investment to MaaS – joined by their partners, for example Honda, who will also share their view on mobility.
Mobility in all forms will be discussed: be it personal and public movement, driving, logistics or aviation. Get to know more about the global landscape, recent investments and the state of autonomous driving at Arctic15’s Mobility Track, brought to you by NordicNinja VC.
NordicNinja VC started with over 100 million euros in January 2019 and is backed by Japanese blue-chip companies, Honda, Omron, and Panasonic, as well as the Japan Bank for International Cooperation. It aims to support scale-up goals in the Nordic and Baltic region through supporting the region’s startups expand into and develop business opportunities in Japan.
Join us on 6 June in Helsinki, get your tickets here.
The event is held at the Cable Factory. To get there, you can choose to take city bikes, electric scooters or public transportation and track them in an easy-to-use app – all great examples of sustainable mobility in Helsinki.
