A Canadian Startup Is Experimenting an EV Idea That Could Replace Personal Cars

The vast majority of U.S. households own at least one car. Those same vehicles, however, are only used on average for just over an hour a day—meaning that, for 95 percent of the time, they simply remain parked. For Scott MacWilliam, the founder of a Canadian startup focused on sustainable transportation, this business proposition just “doesn’t make sense.” MacWilliam heads Kite Mobility, a Toronto-based initiative looking to alter the public perception of personal vehicles as a “security blanket.”

Kite’s mission centers around establishing electric vehicle (EV) access across residential buildings in major cities. Through the creation of EV hubs containing bikes, scooters and electric cars from Tesla (TSLA), BMW (BMWYY) and Volvo that can be rented through Kite’s mobile app, MacWilliam is hoping to enhance mobility for residents, replace the need for parking infrastructure and make dense urban areas greener. The company already has pilot programs in place across Canada and is gearing up for a U.S. expansion in 2025.

Besides getting more cars off the road in traffic-filled cities, MacWilliam says his startup helps real estate developers save money on parking for residential projects. A singular parking spot costs around $100,000 on average to develop, according to the founder, which adds up to $40 million to $50 million for a typical parking layer with 400 to 500 spots. Kite, which is looking to replace the need for additional layers of parking floors with its EV hubs, says these funds can instead directly benefit building residents.

A portion of the savings will be used to fund the startup’s promotional programs, offering free access to the company’s fleet of EVs—provided that users give up their personal vehicles. “This is going to change or facilitate the way that buildings are built going forward, because it’s cutting out a lot of cost, it’s faster time to market and it’s offering a clear and distinct benefit to the end user,” said MacWilliam.

These promotions are expected to last for six months to a year, after which users will have the choice to begin paying for a monthly subscription in the $200 to $400 range. Kite’s active pilots are currently taking place in eight residential buildings located in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa and Calgary, where MacWilliam says the startup has already seen 25 percent of building residents use Kite’s EV hub at least twice. Initial user feedback has led to updates in Kite’s EV app like a reservation feature, which allows users to book vehicles ahead of time for particular dates and times.

Bringing EVs to an older population

Specific transportation offerings of Kite’s mobility hubs differ depending on their location. “If the building is skewing a little bit older or younger; more affluent or less affluent, we’ll put in cars that match reasonably that demographic profile,” said MacWilliam. Younger residents, for example, have demonstrated interest in e-scooters and e-bikes. For a hub located in an Ontario retirement home, meanwhile, the startup decided not to use the flashier Tesla but instead provide the reliable Volvo XC40.

The benefits of Kite’s program are more substantial in settings like retirement homes where car usage is even less frequent, according to MacWilliam. “The car is actually sitting there 96 percent, 97 percent, 98 percent of the time but they’re still paying for it,” he said. Besides aiding users in understanding how to operate an EV, he noted the use of Kite’s app as one of the biggest barriers for older residents, some of whom don’t have smartphones.

Established in 2020, Kite last year raised $3.5 million from investors like Good & Well and Enlightened Building Technologies. It plans to raise additional capital going forward to bolster the startup as it begins expanding within and outside of Canada, with plans to start operating pilot programs in four U.S. states next year.

MacWilliam is confident that, regardless of their location, Kite’s EV hubs will offer a new model for a world looking to solve congestion and move towards more sustainable methods of transportation. “The same problem exists in the U.S. In fact, the same problem exists in most of the developed world,” said MacWilliam. “My hope and dream is that every new building going forward in every major city has a mobility hub—ideally a Kite Mobility hub.”