Ex-Uber exec lands US$6.4mil to bring e-scooters to Singapore

• Will invest heavily in building the core infrastructure for its platform
• Sharing mobility, especially the e-scooter market, is expanding rapidly across the world

BEAM, a Singapore-based startup bringing innovation to the personal mobility sharing space, on Oct 23 announced it has raised US$6.4 million (RM26.6 million) in a seed funding round led by Sequoia India, Founders Fund, ZhenFund, and Class 5 Global. Other backers include Arbor, Insignia, 500 Startups, Gobi, K2 Global, Pascal Capital, Maloekoe Ventures, and Cherubic Ventures.

With this seed funding, Beam will invest heavily in building the core infrastructure for its platform, including initial e-scooter purchases, development of the Beam mobile app, and growing the team for its imminent roll out in Singapore.

The team at Beam has experience in app development, mobility, operations, and technology. Chief executive officer Alan Jiang (pic, right) led the APAC operations of ofo, the world’s largest bike-share operator, and played a key role in launching Uber across Asia, including China, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam.

Deb Gangopadhyay, chief technology officer, is a founder and engineer who led successful SaaS tech startups in Silicon Valley and managed some of the world's top grossing mobile products while at Pocket Gems.

Sharing mobility, especially the e-scooter market, is expanding rapidly across the world, and Beam aims to become not just a leader in the sharing space across Asia, but also a champion of safety and the communal aspects of the sharing economy.

The Beam founders are committed to distributing and maintaining their fleet of vehicles responsibly, storing customer data securely, and working collaboratively with governments to build and improve transportation infrastructure as well as being involved in creating a mobility framework for cities.

Jiang said, “We want to change the fundamental way that people move around Asian cities. Our goal with Beam is to create a shared mobility platform focused on providing real transportation options. We are fortunate to have support from some of the most forward-thinking VC firms, all of which recognize the opportunity that exists across Asia to grow an organization in the transportation space."

Abheek Anand, managing director, Sequoia Capital (India) Singapore added, “Shared personal mobility is a promising solution to the largely unsolved problem of first and last mile transportation. The founders of Beam have a deeply relevant background and a compelling vision for what urban transportation should look like. Sequoia India is excited to partner with them as they bring their product to the APAC market.”