44: Self-driving scooters are coming! - Talking autonomous micromobility with Dmitry Shevelenko, CEO of Tortoise

In this episode, Oliver interviews Dmitry Shevelenko, CEO of Tortoise, an autonomous scooter software company about the potential of self driving scooters in clearing clutter, improving economics and unlocking the suburbs for shared micromobility.Specifically we dig into:- Dmitry's background at Uber leading business development in micromobility, and how that led him to coming across his co-founder.- The promise and potential of self rebalancing micromobility networks, and how that is appealing to operators and regulators.- Why they're pursuing a horizontal strategy in the space, and why that's required based on the industry structure.- Why the simplicity of the tech stack/operations, low cost and high levels of vehicle replacement make this a well suited space for the rapid iteration of the tech space.- What the discussions with regulators has been like, and the key considerations that they have.- The competitive landscape for autonomous micromobility and where Dmitry sees the threats in the space.- Their go to market strategy using teleops first, moving towards increased levels of autonomy over time.- What are the KPI's that are important for them, especially around operations.- What is the funding environment like now that scooter companies are in the trough of disillusionment, and how investors are thinking about the bet on them.Thanks to this week’s sponsor Particle. Particle provides an end-to-end IoT platform, from device management to connectivity to hardware for connecting micromobility vehicles to networks and reducing complexity as operations scale. For operators that I’ve talked to, they’re a godsend in the world of highly complex and competitive operations.Visit Particle.io/micromobility to learn more and request a free IoT development kit. All podcast listeners will also receive a free consultation. Visit Particle.io/micromobility today. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit micromobility.substack.com/subscribe