Sidecar

What Sidecar does

Sidecar (Side.cr) is a private US-based transportation-focused media and software business with two distinct operating histories that share a common brand. The original Sidecar ridesharing company was founded in 2011 and operated a peer-to-peer ride-hailing platform that competed with Uber and Lyft across multiple US markets (San Francisco, San Diego, Chicago, Washington DC, and Boston). Its core technology was a real-time routing and matching algorithm that paired riders with drivers, distinguished by a driver-set pricing model, GPS-tracked rides, and $1 million per-incident liability insurance on every ride. Sidecar expanded into same-day package and meal delivery in 2015, launching a combined rides-and-deliveries platform that integrated passenger transportation with logistics for business customers such as restaurants and grocers.

The business monetized through transaction fees on rides and deliveries, plus ancillary driver-side tools (custom pricing, ride-request filtering, pickup radius settings, and a 100%-referral-fee driver recruitment program). Between 2011 and 2014, Sidecar raised approximately $35.5 million across at least five funding rounds from investors including Google Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Union Square Ventures, Avalon Ventures, Lerer Hippeau, Huron River Ventures, Spring Ventures, SV Angel, First Step Fund, Pegasus Tech Ventures, Vast Ventures, Tekton Ventures, and Virgin Group (Richard Branson led a $15 million round in September 2014). The company acquired HeyrideHQ in February 2013 and signed a strategic delivery partnership with EAT24 in March 2015.

Under the same Side.cr brand, a separately incorporated entity founded in 2017 and based in Utah currently operates a transportation news and content platform that publishes ridesharing, automotive, mobility, and adjacent consumer content (legal, financial planning, roofing, etc.), monetized via sponsored articles and affiliate referral partnerships. The data indicates an apparent brand succession from the 2011-vintage ridesharing operator to a content-led media property, with David Johnson (Co-founder) and Melissa Thorson (Co-founder, CTO) leading the current organization.

Name

Sidecar

Legal name

Side Car

Website

https://side.cr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Sidecar (Side.cr) is a US transportation-focused company that historically operated a peer-to-peer ridesharing and same-day delivery platform competing with Uber and Lyft, and now operates a transportation news and content website monetized through sponsored articles and affiliate partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Transportation News & Mobility Media

NAICS

Taxi and Ridesharing Services (48531)

SIC

Transportation Services (4700)

akta.pro primary industry

Peer-to-Peer Ridesourcing (Private Car Marketplace) (THAIAGAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

On-Demand Private Ride-Hailing (Solo Rides) (THADADAA)

Keywords

• Transportation news
• Ridesharing platform
• Same-day delivery
• Mobility content
• Driver tools

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Ride Commission/Fare Revenue: Commission from ridesharing services where drivers set their own prices and riders pay through the app
2. Delivery Service Fees: Same-day delivery platform fees from business customers including restaurants and retailers
3. Sponsored Content: Transportation news website monetized through sponsored articles and content. All posts on the site are sponsored unless otherwise noted.
4. Affiliate Revenue: Referral partnerships with third-party services mentioned in content (car loans, insurance, legal services)

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Sidecar (side.cr) operates a transportation news and content platform covering ridesharing, automotive, autonomous vehicles, micromobility, electric vehicles, and logistics, published through side.cr. Underlying this media layer is a peer-to-peer ridesharing marketplace that lets drivers set their own prices, a same-day business delivery service (used by clients such as restaurants and on-demand vendors), and a dedicated driver-tools platform. The combined offering serves individual riders, drivers, business delivery customers, and readers of transportation news.

Product overview

Side.cr operates as a unified transportation news and content platform with integrated ridesharing and delivery service offerings. The core product is the Side.cr news platform, which publishes transportation, automotive, and mobility-related content. This is supplemented by Side.cr Deliveries, a same-day delivery module leveraging a driver network, and Side.cr Driver Tools, a set of pricing and operational tools for rideshare drivers. The platform was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Utah.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Side.cr Side.cr is a transportation news, press release, and editorial platform that publishes articles, native sponsored content, and affiliate content covering ridesharing, automotive, autonomous vehicles, micromobility, electric vehicles, and logistics. It serves individual readers, the gig-economy driver community, and brand advertisers seeking to reach mobility-focused audiences.
• Side.cr Deliveries Side.cr Deliveries is Sidecar's same-day delivery service that uses the Sidecar driver network to fulfill business delivery orders for restaurants, on-demand vendors, and other commercial customers. It targets SMB business customers that need flexible on-demand fulfillment without owning a delivery fleet.
• Side.cr Driver Tools Side.cr Driver Tools is a software offering for rideshare and delivery drivers on the Sidecar platform, providing tooling to manage rides and deliveries, set their own prices, optimize earnings, and access driver-focused content and rates resources. It targets independent drivers supplying rides and deliveries to the Sidecar network.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 50% savings on shared rides
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• EAT24coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 March 2015EAT24, a popular food order service, partnered with Sidecar for rideshare delivery of office takeout orders. Results included 100% successful delivery completion, 50% reduction in delivery times, and 2x output increase for EAT24 restaurants.
• AutoCrazeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAffiliate partner mentioned in automotive content selling KMC wheels
• Tulsa roofing contractor (Pilgrim Heat & Air)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal service partner mentioned in sponsored content about storm damage roof inspections
• Inspire Financial PlanningminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFinancial planning partner mentioned in content for trade business owners

Scale indicators7 records

Broad incumbents

• DoorDash: DoorDash is the dominant U.S. on-demand restaurant delivery platform, and was a downstream peer of Sidecar's same-day delivery product (the EAT24 partnership produced 2x output and 50% faster deliveries). Comparable on a transaction-fee delivery business model serving restaurants and consumers via a driver marketplace.
• Uber: Uber is the global rideshare incumbent Sidecar competed against in 2014-2015; the WSJ named Sidecar the 'clear winner' in head-to-head testing. Comparable as a multi-product ride-hailing and delivery platform with the same driver-app, rider-app, and dynamic-pricing mechanics that defined Sidecar.
• Autoblog: Autoblog is one of the largest automotive news sites in the U.S., covering cars, reviews, and ridesharing industry developments. Comparable to side.cr as a long-tail automotive content publisher, though backed by a much larger parent (Yahoo/Verizon Media) and broader editorial scope.
• Lyft: Lyft is one of the two dominant U.S. rideshare platforms and was Sidecar's primary direct competitor during 2012-2015. Comparable as a peer-to-peer ridesourcing marketplace serving individual riders with cashless app-based ordering, dynamic pricing, and shared-ride options — directly mirroring Sidecar's product wedge.

Emerging players

• Hitch (ridesharing): Hitch operated a long-distance/intercity peer-to-peer ridesharing marketplace connecting drivers and riders between cities. Sidecar historically explored long-distance and shared rides as a cost-reduction lever; comparable as a P2P ridesourcing operator with driver-set prices.
• Wingz: Wingz is a private-ride, scheduled airport-ride platform with driver-set pricing models, comparable to Sidecar's on-demand private ride-hailing product. Both emphasize booked, pre-priced trips (especially airport runs) over street-hail dynamic pricing.
• Turo: Turo is the largest peer-to-peer car-sharing marketplace in North America, letting individual car owners rent their personal vehicles to riders. Sidecar positioned some of its product along the P2P mobility continuum and used the same peer-supplier economic model, though Sidecar's drivers supplied labor, not cars.

Direct peers

• Jalopnik: Jalopnik is a digital media property covering cars, transportation, and mobility — directly comparable to side.cr's current core product of automotive and transportation news published via blog and SEO. Both monetize via advertising and operate as content-first properties targeting car culture enthusiasts.
• Via (ride-sharing): Via is a shared-ride, on-demand transit platform operating in cities worldwide with algorithms that pool riders into shared routes — directly analogous to Sidecar's 'shared rides' offering that delivered 'up to 50%' savings. Both emphasize algorithmic shared routing rather than solo ride-hailing.
• The Drive: The Drive is a digital automotive media outlet covering cars, mobility, EVs, and ridesharing with sponsored content. Side.cr is a near-direct comparable as a transportation news site reliant on sponsored posts and affiliate revenue rather than subscription.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sidecar
• Facebookfacebook.com/sidecr
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/side-cr-sidecar-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds5 records

Investors14 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sidecar