Wunder Mobility Podcast

Wunder Mobility Podcast

By hosted by Gunnar Froh, CEO & FounderBusinessNewsTechnologyTech News
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Wunder Mobility Podcast episodes

  • #73 Rainer Becker, Business Development Director, MOIA
    From launching car2go in Hamburg to self-driving ride pooling at MOIA: what changes when the car drives itself, and when a car sharing operator should get involved.
    • Test it on the street. car2go's biggest lesson: plans meet real people, and people do things you don't expect. Calgary started as a side project and became one of the best cities.
    • Damages are the biggest cost. Back then only around 20% of damages could be charged to a customer, because there was no proof of who caused them. Cameras in today's cars change that.
    • 100,000 customers in a few months. Why car2go Chongqing grew so fast, and why keeping those customers was the harder part.
    • Why carmakers left mobility services. Selling cars through dealers did not prepare them for hundreds of thousands of direct customers and small invoices, or for waiting years for a profit.
    • MOIA today. Around 500 human-driven ride pooling cars in Hamburg since 2017, and since July a passenger pilot with self-driving ID. Buzz vehicles. MOIA now offers the technology to local operators such as public transport and taxi companies.
    • No standard model yet. Every city and every customer is still different, from snow in Oslo to how far an operator has gone digital.
    • Advice for car sharing operators. Watch autonomous driving closely, since it will change the business model. With low margins or investor money, wait until the market settles, likely in two to five years.
    • Robotaxi or pooled shuttle by 2030? Cities want pooled shuttles, but the robotaxi companies have the capital. Rainer's view: cities should run their own pooling service and make it better.
      • 41 min
    • #72 Cornelius Kiermasch, Head of Shared Mobility, Deutsche Bahn Connect
      Inside Deutsche Bahn's shared mobility business: a 90% cut in service costs, Flinkster in profit, and what German city tenders get wrong.
      • The turnaround, in numbers. Customer service cost cut by 90%, a 70+ person team wound down, Flinkster brought to profit, and Call a Bike rides growing double digit at the same time.
      • Scale without free-floating. Roughly 80 cities and about a million registered users on the bike side; 800+ Flinkster stations, 15+ partner operators and service into NL, CH and AT.
      • The car2go lens. What he saw building car2go's B2B business before free-floating car sharing in Germany was largely sold off, and how station-based compares.
      • City tenders are the bottleneck. Ten-year contracts with fixed fleet sizes leave operators unable to respond to demand; the Dutch OV-fiets is the model worth copying.
      • The Deutschlandticket squeezes the funding. A 63 euro national ticket changes what cities can afford to pay for shared mobility on top.
      • Distribution beats an app. Call a Bike now sits inside DB Navigator, with no separate download and no separate registration, which moves the customer relationship to the rail app.
      • Growth has to pay for itself. Deutsche Bahn's CEO is on record that first and last mile services continue only if they make money.
        • 56 min
      • #71 Slavko Bevanda, Chief Product & Technology Officer, Necture
        The intelligence layer behind shared fleets: utilization math, demand prediction, and the gig crowd that keeps free-floating car sharing moving.
        • Profitability in free-floating car sharing starts at 4–7 rides per car per day. In strong cities like Berlin or Milan, 7–9 rides per car per day are realistic.
        • Utilization in free-floating remains structurally low. Even in best-case scenarios, vehicles are in use only 25–35% of the time — leaving real upside for autonomous repositioning.
        • Walking distance is the silent KPI. 300–500 meters is the sweet spot; beyond 1,000 meters, willingness to use the service drops sharply.
        • Fleet density matters more than headlines. Roughly 5–15 cars per square kilometer, scaled to city size and density of public transport hubs.
        • Pricing innovation is moving beyond minutes and hours. Kilometer-based pricing (popularized by Miles), day-based rentals, dynamic and zone-based pricing, drop-off fees and insurance upsells are now the real margin levers.
        • Upsells punch above their revenue weight. A €1 deductible reduction on a €10 trip is "only" 10% more revenue — but can double trip-level margin.
        • Necture's intelligence layer combines many data sources. Historical movement, mobile network operator data, weather, public transport hubs, events and app openings feed individualized hot/cold zones per city.
        • 24-hour demand forecasts land within ~10–15% accuracy. Enough to drive relocations, dynamic pricing and meaningful revenue uplift of 25–50%, in some cases higher.
        • Street Crowd turns the intelligence into action. A community-based gig network — e.g., ~5,000 users in Dublin — handles relocations and operational tasks at fulfilment rates around 90%.
        • Relocation is not about chasing single rides. It's about freeing vehicles from cold zones where they would otherwise sit idle for a day, and managing parking-cost hotspots like airports.
        • Autonomy will reach scale in 2–3 years, not next year. Only a few bold operators will deploy autonomous or tele-operated vehicles in 2026 — mainly to learn about utilization, customer access and parking.
        • Car sharing operators are well positioned for the autonomous era. Fleet management, maintenance, customer identification and density know-how translate directly into AV fulfilment.
          • 51 min
        • #70 Lukas Neckermann, Co-Founder, Urban Places Lab
          Zero emissions, zero accidents, zero ownership—and why Europe's mobility future is still being written
          • The "three zeros" framework: emissions, accidents, ownership—still relevant after a decade
          • Automotive industry pushback against electrification and autonomy is intensifying
          • Globalization under pressure: European firms rethinking US and Chinese partnerships
          • Public transport operators emerging as key players in autonomous mobility
          • Investment appetite for autonomous mobility startups is growing
          • Fleet management and maintenance as underrated business opportunities
          • Car sharing operators hold transferable skill sets for the autonomous era
          • Europe's path to AV deployment: different from the US, but full of potential
          • European AV Summit as a catalyst for cross-sector partnerships
            • 34 min
          • #69 Oliver Mackprang, CEO of MILES Mobility
            Car sharing at scale: iteration, EV economics, and why teleops won’t be the endgame
            • Iteration at scale: fast decision cycles and rapid correction loops
            • Backend complexity drives competitive advantage
            • Market share feels dominant—but growth vs. private car ownership remains enormous
            • EVs are the future, but not yet the cost breakthrough many expect
            • Cities must align EV expectations with private car policy
            • Teleoperations ≠ the endgame; autonomy is the structural shift
            • Europe’s constraint is regulation more than technology
            • Fleet operators may become key AV fulfillment partners
              • 39 min
            • #68 Bojan Jukic, Co-CEO of Wunder Mobility
              A deep dive into how shared mobility matured in 2025—and what operational excellence, city control, and autonomy mean for the industry in 2026.
              • Shared mobility is shifting from “VC case” to infrastructure. 2025 accelerated consolidation and profitability-first strategies.
              • Cities are taking more control. Longer, stricter contracts and SLAs are increasingly defining who wins tenders.
              • **Utilization is the north-star metric. **Operators are optimizing rides per vehicle, downtime, and rebalancing—not just fleet size.
              • **Software is overtaking hardware as the innovation frontier. **Predictive maintenance, fraud prevention, automation, and pricing are key levers.
              • Regional champions are rising. Local operational excellence and city-specific know-how outperform “global brand” ambitions.
              • Wunder is refocusing on depth, not breadth. Fewer use cases, stronger support for sophisticated operators with engineering capacity.
              • Velocity must be paired with stability. In mission-critical mobility systems, uptime and monitoring are product features.
              • 2026 may bring public-transport-like regulation—without subsidies. Expect “public responsibility with private risk.”
              • **Packaging will evolve toward subscriptions and bundles. **More integration with public transport passes and MaaS-like offerings.
              • **AVs introduce new strategic questions. **Early pilots in 2026 could accelerate convergence between vehicle sharing and ride-hailing, and intensify debates about public vs. private market structures.
                • 48 min
              • #67 Michael Schrezenmaier, Host @Mobility Mavericks Podcast, Partner at Incharge Capital
                How Software, AI, and Autonomy Are Reshaping Shared Mobility Economics

                Takeaways

                • Shared mobility success is driven by availability. For users, proximity and reliability matter more than brand—matching supply and demand at street level remains the core challenge.
                • The real complexity of mobility lives in the backend. Apps are only the visible layer; fleet management, vehicle integrations, billing, payments, and operations create most of the technical and operational burden.
                • Shared mobility is maturing from growth to optimization. As markets saturate, operators are shifting focus from expansion to profitability, utilization, and operational efficiency.
                • Autonomous vehicles are a potential efficiency game-changer. Self-repositioning fleets could significantly improve service levels while reducing required fleet size and operating costs.
                • Carsharing and ride-hailing are likely to converge. With autonomy, the distinction between booking a car and being picked up blurs, leading to shared fulfillment models across platforms.
                • Mobility remains a fundamentally local business. Regulation, daily operations, and local advantages prevent strong global network effects and keep markets fragmented.
                • Software is becoming the decisive competitive layer. Scalable, API-first platforms enable operators to manage complex fleets, integrate partners, and innovate faster than in-house solutions alone.
                • Revenue management in mobility is still underdeveloped. Dynamic pricing, personalized offers, and data-driven subscriptions lag behind industries like travel and e-commerce—leaving significant upside untapped.
                • AI can turn data into a strategic advantage. Conversational analytics lower barriers to insight, enabling faster decision-making and hypothesis testing across teams.
                • Two-wheelers and public transport remain central to urban mobility. Especially in European cities, bikes and micromobility often outperform cars in speed and efficiency, with improving economics through better operations and refurbishment models.
                  • 1 hr 6 min
                • #66 Matteo Forte, CEO & Founder of SWITCH
                  How AI, simulation, and smart forecasting are setting a new standard for the next era of urban transport.

                  Takeaways

                  • Switch is focused on using AI to improve urban mobility.
                  • The transition from shared mobility to city simulation was driven by COVID-19.
                  • Simulation helps predict the impact of new mobility services before implementation.
                  • Wayla achieved 92.46% accuracy in simulation, leading to significant cost savings.
                  • Urban Copilot and Urbiverse are key products for fleet optimization.
                  • The future includes standalone AI agents that assist in decision-making.
                  • Switch is generating revenue and has a clear business model.
                  • Local governments are seen as partners rather than clients.
                  • Competition includes both legacy providers and new AI entrants.
                  • Domain expertise is crucial for building competitive advantages.
                    • 44 min
                  • #65 Martin Trillig, Managing Director of book-n-drive carsharing
                    A deep dive into book-n-drive’s journey, growth, and lessons from over two decades in shared mobility.

                    Takeaways

                    • Martin Trillig has been in the shared mobility industry for over 20 years.
                    • book-n-drive started with 70 cars and has grown to over 1,000 cars.
                    • The company focuses on providing cars for people who want to drive but not own a vehicle.
                    • Collaboration with city-owned housing companies has been crucial for growth.
                    • Operational challenges include rising costs and managing a diverse fleet.
                    • Fraud prevention is a significant concern in the car sharing industry.
                    • Customer experience and engagement are vital for retention.
                    • Simplicity in the business model is essential for success.
                    • The competition primarily comes from personal car ownership.
                    • Future growth will focus on understanding customer needs and expanding product offerings.
                      • 43 min
                    • #64 Morten Munch-Olsen, CEO of bilkollektivet
                      Bill Kollektivet: Norway's Largest Non-Profit Car Sharing Service
                      In this episode of the Wunder Mobility Podcast, Gunnar speaks with Morten Munch-Olsen, CEO of bilkollektivet, Norway's largest non-profit car sharing service. They discuss the unique non-profit model, the loyal user base, and the various membership benefits. Morten explains the pricing models, the challenges of managing demand during peak seasons, and the technological advancements that have modernized operations. They also explore the future of mobility, including the potential for tele-operated vehicles and the importance of emotional branding in car sharing.
                      40 min

                    About Wunder Mobility Podcast

                    From the publisher's feed

                    Welcome to the "Wunder Mobility Podcast". Every two weeks we will provide you with exciting insights around the Future of Mobility. Tune in as we invite thought leaders from the mobility sector to share their vision, products, successes, and setbacks.