With the incorporation of novel technologies, the sharing economy is expanding and developing new use cases. In this article, we will shed light on 10 new sharing economy companies that stand out with their innovative solutions. First up is the field of electric vehicle (EV) charge sharing, where companies are using mobile platforms and the internet of things (IoT) to make private charging stations more accessible, hence reducing the infamous charging bottlenecks. Second, blockchain is assuring transparency and security in transactions is booming the peer-to-peer (P2P) money lending industry, changing how people get and provide personal loans.
The lodging industry is also seeing a growing need for AI-based rental verification solutions, which utilize machine learning to quickly and precisely confirm user identification and creditworthiness, therefore boosting confidence and lowering fraud. Last but not least, traveler-friendly sites to temporarily keep baggage are being offered by luggage storage rental businesses. Every one of these solutions demonstrates how emerging companies are leveraging technology to improve many facets of the sharing economy, increasing the availability, security, and effectiveness of services while also promoting circularity.
Continue reading to gain up-to-date and data-driven insights on:
- Profiles of 10 Emerging Sharing Economy Companies
- How to Scout the Best Sharing Economy Companies Easily
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Key Takeaways
Drawing insights from the Big Data & AI-powered StartUs Insights Discovery Platform that provides data on over 4.7+ million emerging companies globally, we explore the evolving landscape of the sharing economy industry. This sector is marked by key trends and a substantial workforce, shaping its future. We updated this report 5 days ago. Missing information? Contact us to add your insights. Here are some key insights at a glance:
- Current Sharing Economy Trends: Some of the major trends advancing the sharing economy are electric vehicle (EV) charge sharing, peer-to-peer money lending, identity verification solutions, rental platforms, open network
- Sharing Economy Industry Stats: With an annual growth rate of 26.03%, the global sharing economy industry encompasses 30K+ organizations and has a workforce of 2.2M people. Out of these, 1.7K+ new sharing economy companies were founded in the past five years with an average founding year of 2020. Each of these organizations employs about 13 people and the average funding received by them per round is USD 8.3 million.
- 10 Top Sharing Economy Companies to Watch:
- Powandgo – EV Charge Sharing
- Spotiz – Collaborative Mobility Platform
- Rayy – Open Network for Sharing Economy
- Trustmatic – Remote Identity Verification
- Plata – Peer-to-Peer Money Lending
- zuyu – Currency-less Commodity Sharing
- Sherpo – Luggage Storage Rental
- Brick – Powerbank Sharing
- trustd.ai – AI-based Rental Verification
- Readzle – Book Sharing Platform
Meet 10 out of 1.7K+ New Sharing Economy Companies
In this section, we highlight a list of 10 recently founded sharing economy companies that are providing innovative applications to advance a variety of industries. They specialize in platforms for sharing commodities and improving access to necessities through simplified digital services. Using data analytics, sophisticated visitor screening for short-term rentals guarantees dependability and safety in host-guest interactions.
IoT is included in mobility service-sharing systems to provide effective, real-time transportation choices. Using smart contracts and encryption, peer-to-peer money lending platforms facilitate safe, direct financial transactions. Read on to explore more such companies and learn how they maximize sharing economy concepts to enable sustainability and better service delivery.
Note on Signal Strength
One of the unique metrics we feature for each company is Signal Strength, a proprietary data point generated by our Discovery Platform. It gauges the extent to which a company’s influence has permeated the global ecosystem of startups, scaleups, and emerging companies. This proprietary metric serves as a valuable guidepost for understanding a company’s standing in the broader market landscape.
1. Powandgo
- Founding Year: 2023
- Employee Range: 11-50
- Location: Italy
- Signal Strength: Medium Strong
- What they do: Powandgo offers a charge-sharing network where users of electric cars find charging stations using the company’s app. Users are able to plan travels by including charging stops, find public charging stations, book private charging sites specified by people or companies, and even seek emergency mobile charging. Through its app, the company allows private owners of charging stations to list them for sharing with other owners of EVs and make money. The app shows all relevant data such as station type, power output, availability, and price, making this procedure easier. Moreover, Powandgo provides a range of wallboxes namely the Smart GoWay, PowEco, and Pow03 Premium series. These offer various power ratings and features, are made using eco-friendly materials, and are shareable — respectively.
2. Spotiz
- Founding Year: 2021
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: Switzerland
- Signal Strength: Strong
- What they do: Spotiz develops a collaborative mobility platform that links car owners with parking spaces and service providers through its app. Using the app, drivers are able to book private parking spots advertised by people or companies, find public charging stations, and schedule emergency mobile charging. The company allows people with spare parking spaces to earn money by listing their spaces on the app and renting them out to other drivers. To simplify the process, the app provides the users with critical information such as station type, power output, availability, and pricing. Thus, through the integration of underused private parking spaces, Spotiz addresses infrastructure constraints and reduces charging costs by expanding the number of charge stations available to EV users.
3. Rayy
- Founding Year: 2023
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: USA
- Signal Strength: Strong
- What they do: Rayy builds an open-source network for sharing economy platforms. The solution makes it easier for consumers and suppliers to transact on various sharing platforms. By using blockchain, the protocol enables safe data storage and open communication. With the decentralized search engine RayySearch, customers are able to investigate and contrast products on several platforms. Atlas is another product that uses smart contracts to forecast the best price for assets and shared services. By producing portable user profiles and reputation scores, the blockchain-based identity management system CANVAS builds trust inside the network. Moreover, the company offers Rentalcoins, an ERC-20 token that advances its inventory distribution network (IDN). When the stakeholders use the decentralized solutions built on Rayy’s IDN, they get rewarded with Rentalcoins as the unit of account and store of value.
4. Trustmatic
- Founding Year: 2020
- Employee Range: 11-50
- Location: Slovakia
- Signal Strength: Very Strong
- What they do: Trustmatic creates a remote identity verification system for the sharing economy. The software extracts biometric data and finds forgeries by analyzing over 12,500 ID variants from 240 countries using AI-powered document verification. To counter presentation attacks, it then uses face recognition with liveness detection to analyze various aspects of a selfie to confirm that users are genuine individuals. Finally, it searches external databases to identify blacklisted individuals or compare them against previous onboarding sessions, further mitigating fraud risk. Thrustmatic thus enables sharing economy platforms to streamline user onboarding, enhance security measures, and comply with regulatory requirements.
5. Plata
- Founding Year: 2019
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: Denmark
- Signal Strength: Very Strong
- What they do: Plata makes a platform that facilitates peer-to-peer money lending. Borrowers seeking to refinance loans with fair to good credit (1-4 star rating) are able to connect with lenders offering a fixed 8% APR. On the other side, lenders get a 6.4% return on their investment. The process involves borrowers submitting basic documentation and loan requests and lenders assessing creditworthiness and choosing which loans to fund. Online contracts and an external debt collection agency ensure a safe and transparent money lending process. By eliminating established financial institutions, Plata promotes more community-driven finance. Lenders are able to put their unused resources (money) to use, while borrowers get loans at lower rates.
6. ZUYU
- Founding Year: 2022
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: UK
- Signal Strength: Medium
- What they do: ZUYU develops a community platform that facilitates a sharing economy by connecting individuals to exchange goods and services using a virtual credit system. The company’s app allows users to list items or services they are willing to share and browse offerings from others in their locality. Users earn ZUYU coins for sharing their items and services, which are then used to borrow items or services listed by others on the platform. This eliminates the need for traditional currency in transactions, promoting sustainable and community-driven resource consumption.
7. Sherpo
- Founding Year: 2023
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: Italy
- Signal Strength: Medium
- What they do: Sherpo facilitates a sharing economy by connecting users with a network of local businesses called Sherpo Points. Individuals use the mobile app to store items securely at these Sherpo Points, eliminating the need for personal storage solutions. The app allows users to browse available Sherpo Points, list items for storage, and make bookings. Transparent pricing eliminates hidden fees and users can pay per hour, ensuring cost-effectiveness. Sherpo rewards frequent users with a virtual currency called Sherpo Coins that are earned by storing items and are redeemable during future bookings. This peer-to-peer network benefits travelers seeking convenient storage solutions and businesses with extra space looking to generate additional revenue.
8. Brick
- Founding Year: 2019
- Employee Range: 11-50
- Location: Sweden
- Signal Strength: Very Strong
- What they do: Brick uses a franchising model to create a peer-to-peer power bank sharing network. Businesses install Brick Stations in their locations, equipped with portable chargers (Bricks) accessible via the company’s mobile app. This app enables customers to locate stations, rent Bricks for on-demand device charging, and make payments for the same. Brick Stations function as both charging points and advertising platforms, offering businesses a potential revenue stream alongside the benefit of increased customer satisfaction. Consumers, on the other hand, gain convenient access to portable power when needed, eliminating dependence on personal power banks. This symbiotic relationship between businesses and customers fosters a sharing economy within the mobile device charging landscape.
9. trustd.ai
- Founding Year: 2019
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: USA
- Signal Strength: Strong
- What they do: trustd.ai tackles behavioral trust within the sharing economy through its AI-powered guest vetting system for short-term rentals. The software analyzes a guest’s digital footprint across booking sites — the company’s proprietary AI system gathers behavioral data from raw booking activity. This analysis creates a dynamic guest trust metric that reflects a user’s past behavior within the sharing economy. Property managers benefit by using the software with their existing systems or using a self-serve portal to automate guest vetting. To give a comprehensive picture of a potential renter’s profile, trustd.ai uses its behavioral trust metric as well as conventional criminal background checks. The company thus improves safety and reliability within the short-term rental market.
10. Readzle
- Founding Year: 2022
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: India
- Signal Strength: Very Strong
- What they do: Readzle simplifies community-driven book-sharing through its mobile application. Users are able to list physical books in their collection and browse offerings from others within their locality. The company’s technology creates a local book catalog, allowing users to search for desired titles nearby. This eliminates the need to purchase new books and promotes book sharing and reuse, contributing to a more sustainable reading experience. Book owners earn rewards by renting out their books, while borrowers gain access to a wider selection of titles at reduced costs. Additionally, the app facilitates social connections among readers with similar interests, allowing them to connect and participate in discussions. This way, Readzle benefits both book enthusiasts and the environment by promoting book sharing, social connection, and sustainable resource utilization.
Quickly Find New Sharing Economy Companies
Utilizing a SaaS platform like the Discovery Platform for identifying new sharing economy companies provides significant benefits compared to traditional scouting methods:
- Increased Efficiency: The Discovery Platform offers advanced tools that streamline the scouting process. It replaces your hours of conventional desk research, saving time and resources in identifying sharing economy innovations.
- Access to Real-time Insights: Gain a competitive edge with up-to-date information on the latest trends in the sharing economy industry. The platform keeps you informed with near real-time updates on emerging sharing economy solutions and news, enabling you to make swift and informed decisions.
- Precise Scouting: Customize your search to focus on specific niches within the sharing economy sector, such as EV charge-sharing solutions, rental apps, or commodity-sharing platforms. The platform’s diverse filtering options allow you to target your scouting efforts precisely, ensuring that you find the most relevant and groundbreaking companies in the field.
Explore All New Sharing Economy Companies!
We’ve explored the dynamic landscape of the sharing economy industry, examining the latest trends and spotlighting exceptional companies driving innovation. To dive deeper, download our free Circular Economy Report or schedule a demo of the Discovery Platform for a customized exploration of these groundbreaking developments. Partner with us to offer cutting-edge insights into startups and tech. We welcome your input.
