Vay
Vay is a Berlin-based teledriving technology company that operates a consumer on-demand electric car rental service in Las Vegas and licenses remote driving technology to automotive, trucking, and mobility partners worldwide.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2018
- HeadquartersBerlin, Germany
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Vay does
Vay is a Berlin-headquartered teledriving technology company founded in September 2018 that enables the remote operation of vehicles by human Remote Drivers operating from station-based control systems. The company operates a consumer-facing on-demand electric car rental service in Las Vegas where vehicles are delivered and retrieved remotely by Remote Drivers while customers drive themselves, priced at approximately half the cost of ride-hailing services via per-minute and per-mile usage fees. The core technology stack consists of proprietary Remote Driving Stations meeting ISO 26262 and ISO/SAE 21434 automotive-grade safety and cybersecurity standards, multi-network cellular connectivity with end-to-end encryption, camera-based perception with selective Lidar/Radar redundancy, and AI components including the integrated Nexar BADAS predictive safety model. Remote driving sessions generate training data for end-to-end AI driving models via reinforcement learning with human feedback.
Vay monetizes through two streams: a direct-to-consumer usage-based rental service (mobile app, $0.25/minute driving plus $0.60/mile, with stopover and delivery fees) and B2B technology licensing across at least five verticals: autonomous trucking (partnership with Kodiak AI), car sharing and rental operators, premium automotive manufacturers, light commercial fleet operators, and public transport agencies. The company has raised over $200 million across Series A ($14M, March 2019), Series B ($95M, December 2021 led by Kinnevik, Coatue, and Eurazeo), an EIB debt facility (€34M, October 2024), and a strategic Grab investment of $60M with up to $350M in milestone-based follow-on (November 2025). Vay achieved a regulatory first in January 2023 as the only company to drive a vehicle on public streets in Europe without a safety driver inside, launched commercial operations in Las Vegas in January 2024, and serves customers in the United States, Germany, Belgium, and is expanding into Southeast Asia via Grab.
Vay firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Vay
- Legal name
- Vay Technology GmbH
- Website
- https://vay.io
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2018
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Vay is a Berlin-based teledriving technology company that operates a consumer on-demand electric car rental service in Las Vegas and licenses remote driving technology to automotive, trucking, and mobility partners worldwide.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Vay industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Teledriving / Remote Driving Technology
- NAICS
- Passenger Car Rental (532111), Taxi and Ridesharing Services (48531), Automotive Equipment Rental and Leasing (5321)
- SIC
- Services-Auto Rental & Leasing (No Drivers) (7510)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Pre-Booked Private Hire / Chauffeur (PHV/Limo) (THAIAGAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Consumer P2P Car Sharing Marketplaces (THADABAA), Chauffeur / Black Car & Executive Car Services (TLAFAHAD)
Keywords
Where Vay is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Berlin
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
Vay business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Consumer Car Rental: On-demand car rental service where users pay per minute for driving ($0.25/min + $0.60/mile) plus optional delivery fees. Cars delivered remotely by Remote Drivers, customers drive themselves, then cars are retrieved remotely.
- B2B Technology Licensing: Licensing remote driving technology to automotive manufacturers, trucking companies, car sharing/rental services, light commercial fleet operators, and public transport agencies. Partnerships include autonomous trucking, privately owned cars, car share/rental, commercial vehicles, and public transport applications.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Base Rental - Time and Distance |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Stopover Mode |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Driverless Delivery |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Vay product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Vay operates a teledriving platform that enables remote human operators to control vehicles from a Remote Driving Station for driverless delivery and retrieval. The company runs a direct-to-consumer on-demand car rental service in Las Vegas (rent by the minute via mobile app) and separately licenses its remote driving technology to B2B partners in autonomous trucking, car sharing, privately owned vehicles, light commercial fleets, and public transport.
Product overview
Vay is a remote driving technology company that operates a consumer teledriving car rental service alongside B2B solutions for autonomous trucking, car sharing, privately owned vehicles, and fleet management. The core consumer product is Vay Teledriving, which uses remote human drivers operating from stations to deliver vehicles to customers who then drive themselves. The B2B portfolio includes Remote Driving Solutions for autonomous trucking, car sharing and rental companies, privately owned premium vehicles, light commercial fleets, and public transport. The company also partnered with Nexar to integrate predictive AI safety capabilities into its remotely driven fleet. Vay positions its remote driving technology as both a commercial service today and a foundation for eventual full vehicle autonomy.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Vay Teledriving Service (Consumer) On-demand driverless car rental service where users request vehicles via the Vay mobile app, Remote Drivers deliver electric vehicles to the customer's location, the customer drives the car themselves, and the vehicle is retrieved remotely via Remote Valet. Priced at approximately half the cost of ride-hailing services.
- Autonomous Trucking Remote Driving Solutions B2B technology licensing enabling autonomous trucking companies to deploy Remote Drivers for short segments autonomy cannot yet handle, such as distribution center navigation and complex urban zones. Reduces idle time at delivery hubs by over 90%.
- Privately Owned Cars Remote Driving Solutions B2B technology integration for premium automotive brands offering driverless vehicle delivery, concierge services, and autonomous valet functionality. Generates recurring services revenue for automakers and provides a pathway to Level 4 autonomy.
- Car Share & Rental Remote Driving Solutions B2B technology enabling car sharing and rental operators to dynamically reposition vehicles through remote driving, deliver vehicles directly to customers, maximize fleet utilization, and reduce physical retail footprint.
- Light Commercial Vehicle Fleets Remote Driving Solutions B2B technology for last-mile logistics operators enabling remote vehicle repositioning to reduce idle time by over 90% at delivery stations and optimize fleet and labor deployment for light commercial vehicles.
- Public Transport Remote Driving Solutions B2B technology for transit agencies and municipalities to deploy remotely operated vehicles as practical, scalable alternatives to private cars. Reduces labor costs by up to 70% compared to traditional driver-based models with over 90% lower upfront sensor costs than fully autonomous shuttle systems.
Quantifiable outcome
- Half the price of ride-hailing services (Uber/Lyft)
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Vay
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
Vay technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
AI capability6 records
Feature6 records
Vay partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and strategic.
- GoodwrxminorVay partnered with Goodwrx as part of Las Vegas growth acceleration. Details of partnership scope not fully specified in available materials.
- NexarcoreNexar and Vay partnered to integrate Nexar's BADAS predictive AI safety model into Vay's remotely driven car rental fleet in Las Vegas. This represents the first known deployment of a large-scale real-world incident prediction model specifically designed to support Remote Drivers operating vehicles on public roads.
- Kodiak AIcoreVay and Kodiak partnered to incorporate assisted autonomy technology into Kodiak's fully autonomous technology stack. Vay's Remote Drivers handle edge cases that autonomous systems cannot manage, enabling true end-to-end driverless trucking. Partnership described by Kodiak CEO Don Burnette as partnering with 'the industry leader' in remote assistance.
- Ush and PoppycoreVay partnered with Ush and Poppy to launch Belgium's first remote-driven car service at Port of Antwerp-Bruges. This represents Vay's first commercial deployment in Belgium using its remote driving technology.
- BayanatstrategicVay and Bayanat announced partnership to expand teledriving solutions in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific regions. Bayanat is a leading provider of mapping and geospatial data in the region.
- Verizon BusinesscoreVerizon Business partnered with Vay to provide 5G, LTE, and IoT connectivity for Vay's connected-vehicle operations. The partnership enables ultra-reliable, low-latency communication for remote driving technology, supporting Vay's growth in the US market.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves11 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Vay competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Cruise: GM's autonomous vehicle subsidiary that operated commercial robotaxi service in San Francisco. Competes with Vay in the consumer driverless-mobility category and represents a deep-pocketed incumbent racing toward the same end-state.
- Zoox: Amazon-owned autonomous vehicle company building purpose-built robotaxis. Directly comparable to Vay's consumer mobility ambitions and shares talent lineage (Vay CEO previously launched Zoox's first self-driving vehicle on public streets).
- Waymo: Alphabet's autonomous-mobility subsidiary operating commercial robotaxi service in multiple US cities. Competes with Vay for urban consumer mobility trips and is the most credible full-L4 alternative to teledriving in Vay's markets.
- Aurora Innovation: Public autonomous-driving company pursuing both robotaxi and autonomous-trucking commercialization. Comparable in applying autonomy to passenger and freight mobility, with overlapping B2B licensing opportunities for Vay's teledriving stack.
- Kodiak AI: Autonomous trucking company partnered with Vay to use Remote Drivers for edge cases. Closely comparable in autonomous-trucking strategy and a direct counterparty whose roadmap drives Vay's autonomous-trucking licensing thesis.
Emerging players
- Nuro: Autonomous delivery-vehicle company focused on low-speed goods movement. Adjacent to Vay's light commercial fleet and public-transit use cases, and competes for similar B2B mindshare around driverless urban mobility.
- Pony.ai: Autonomous driving company operating robotaxi pilots in the US and China with significant fundraising. Competes with Vay for driverless-mobility mindshare and OEM partnerships, particularly relevant for Vay's Bayanat partnership covering APAC.
Broad incumbents
- Turo: Largest peer-to-peer car-sharing marketplace in North America. Comparable consumer-facing vehicle-rental marketplace model, but without Vay's remote-driving delivery/retrieval layer; represents an alternative path to flexible urban car access.
- Mobileye: Intel-owned supplier of advanced driver-assistance and autonomous-driving technology to global OEMs. Competes indirectly with Vay's automotive-grade remote-driving stack and is a likely alternative for OEMs Vay targets with its privately-owned-cars solution.
- Uber: Global ride-hailing super-app against which Vay explicitly benchmarks its 'half the price of ride-hail' promise. Represents the incumbent alternative Vay must displace on price and reliability in every consumer market it enters.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Vay social profiles
Digital presenceVay compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Vay financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Vay leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Vay funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds6 records
Investors13 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Vay M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Vay
What does Vay do?
Vay operates a teledriving platform that enables remote human operators to control vehicles from a Remote Driving Station for driverless delivery and retrieval. The company runs a direct-to-consumer on-demand car rental service in Las Vegas (rent by the minute via mobile app) and separately licenses its remote driving technology to B2B partners in autonomous trucking, car sharing, privately owned vehicles, light commercial fleets, and public transport.
Is Vay a public or private company?
Vay is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Vay founded?
Vay was founded in 2018. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Vay based?
Vay is headquartered in Berlin, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does Vay make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Consumer Car Rental is the primary driver. The others are B2B Technology Licensing.
Who are Vay's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Cruise, Zoox, Waymo, Aurora Innovation and Kodiak AI. Emerging players are Nuro and Pony.ai. Broad incumbents are Turo, Mobileye and Uber.
Does Vay have an API?
No public API is recorded for Vay.
What industry is Vay in?
Vay's product category is Teledriving / Remote Driving Technology. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAIAGAD, Pre-Booked Private Hire / Chauffeur (PHV/Limo), with a secondary code of THADABAA, Consumer P2P Car Sharing Marketplaces. Its NAICS code is 532111 and its SIC code is 7510.