The video discusses the challenges faced by the micromobility industry, focusing on Lime's efforts to win trust and ensure the safety of its users. Lime CEO Wayne Ting explains the company's measures in reducing accidents, such as implementing sobriety tests and creating slowdown zones in high pedestrian areas. The company not only addresses these concerns through safety briefings but also emphasizes engineering innovations in their hardware, making their scooters and bikes lighter and easier to use.

The conversation highlights Lime's expansion strategy and market penetration, particularly its focus on minimizing car emissions and encouraging e-bike usage in cities like London. Despite the demographic discrepancies in e-bike usage, Lime's CEO is optimistic about the shift towards greener urban transportation solutions. By highlighting the lower carbon emissions from bikes and scooters, Lime hopes to convince more people to use these alternatives over cars.

Main takeaways from the video:

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Key Vocabularies and Common Phrases:

1. micromobility [ˌmaɪ.krəʊ.məʊˈbɪl.ɪ.ti] - (noun) - Refers to lightweight transportation vehicles operating at speeds below 25 km/h (15 mph), such as bicycles and scooters. - Synonyms: (personal transport, lightweight vehicles, small-scale mobility)

The micromobility industry has been under fire for a few years now, in part because of some unfortunate accidents and concerns over safety.

2. incident free [ˈɪnsɪdənt friː] - (adjective phrase) - Refers to scenarios where no accidents or disturbances occur during a given period. - Synonyms: (trouble-free, smooth, uneventful)

In that time, 99.99% of the trips were incident free.

3. sobriety tests [səˈbraɪ.ɪ.ti tɛsts] - (noun) - Tests used to determine if a person is sober, commonly used to prevent operation of vehicles under the influence of alcohol. - Synonyms: (alcohol tests, breath tests, intoxication tests)

Sorry, tell me more about these sobriety tests.

4. rider safety [ˈraɪdər ˈseɪfti] - (noun) - Measures and practices designed to protect individuals using transportation devices, safeguarding them from accidents or harm. - Synonyms: (transport safety, travel security, passenger protection)

And we work on things like hardware, rider safety education in app and in person, as well as things like sobriety tests to continuously improve the safety of our hardware and our network

5. proprietary hardware [prəˈpraɪəˌtɛri ˈhɑːrdwer] - (noun) - Technology or equipment specifically designed and owned by a particular company, not available for purchase or use by others without permission. - Synonyms: (patented technology, bespoke equipment, exclusive devices)

We've pursued a strategy of proprietary hardware.

6. carbon free [ˈkɑːrbən friː] - (adjective) - Describes a process, activity, or technology that results in no carbon emissions, contributing to environmental sustainability. - Synonyms: (emission-free, eco-friendly, sustainable)

...affordable, and most importantly, carbon free is because transportation is the number one source of carbon pollution.

7. rule 40 [ruːl ˈfɔːrti] - (noun) - A financial benchmark for evaluating a company's performance, where a combined growth rate and profit margin of 40% or more is seen as favorable. - Synonyms: (financial benchmark, performance measure, growth-profit indicator)

If you look at our growth rate and our margin profile we are a greater than rule 40 company.

8. tech-enabled operations [tɛk-ɪˈneɪbəld ˌɑːpəˈreɪʃənz] - (noun) - Business processes enhanced or driven by advanced technology, improving efficiency or capabilities. - Synonyms: (technology-driven operations, digital processes, automated systems)

The second is tech-enabled operations.

9. gross bookings [ɡroʊs ˈbʊkɪŋz] - (noun) - The total value of all transactions or services booked within a certain period before any deductions, - Synonyms: (overall bookings, total reservations, aggregate sales)

In 2023, we did over $600 million in gross bookings.

10. demand forecasting [dɪˈmænd ˈfɔːrkæstɪŋ] - (noun) - The process of predicting future consumer demand for a product or service based on historical data and analysis. - Synonyms: (predicted demand, future ordering, market projection)

Lime is the global leader, which means we have more data than anybody else, which allows us to do things like demand forecasting better as well

Lime CEO - Improving Rider Safety is Always Top of Mind

Wayne, this is a summit with the theme being trust. So I'm going to hit you with the hardest question first, please. The micromobility industry has been under fire for a few years now, in part because of some unfortunate accidents and concerns over safety, and in part because some people just don't like seeing the scooters and the bikes in public areas. So what are you doing to instill more trust and confidence in governments where you're operating and in the greater public? Yeah, first, Lynn, thank you for having me. And it's an absolutely fair question. And the thing I'll start by saying is that we're actually much more safe than perhaps you perceive. We've done over 700 million trips in the history of Lyme. In that time, 99.99% of the trips were incident free. And we track safety incident every month. I get, we go to, I go to a safety briefing. We look at ways to improve safety. So in 2023, our safety incident rate declined by 42% on an absolute basis, even though our Trips grew by 37 million trips. And we work on things like hardware, rider safety education in app and in person, as well as things like sobriety tests to continuously improve the safety of our hardware and our network.

Sorry, tell me more about these sobriety tests. We had discussed this before, but I'm interested. What does that mean? And what are some of like the actual concrete examples in which you've like addressed safety concerns that we can really latch onto? Yeah, so for example, we work with cities to create like slowdown zones. So there may be some areas where there's a lot of pedestrian walking and we will slow down the bike or slow down the scooters so that to reduce the chance that there'll be a kind of an accident or we would do things like sobriety test is if we're around, let's say at night or in areas where we think there's a high rate of potential alcohol use. We ask you to take a simple test. It's not perfect, but it creates a barrier for you to take a trip. And we remind you, if you've had a drink, make sure you don't take a bike for this trip as a way to reduce the amount of people who may drink and ride, which is something we don't want to see ever. And we also invest in hardware to improve safety. So for example, lime is the only operator in micromobility that develops engineers our own scooters and bikes. So we can do it around rider safety. So we just, we just Launched a new like line bike. And it's a lower center of gravity, so it's easier to step on, step off. It's lighter, so it's. So sometimes we get it. We get the feedback that our line bikes are too heavy. And when it's lower center of gravity, it's also easier to put your foot down if you're trying to stop the bike. And we design it to ensure that we can improve both access for riders of all backgrounds, all gender, all age groups. And we do it to improve the safety of our hardware. It's funny that you should mention the heaviness. I can relate. I am also very short and so I like being close to the ground and staying close to the ground. I don't trust myself on a bike, much less an electric bike or a scooter. And I wondered, like, can you elaborate on the efforts that you are taking to reduce the barrier to entry for people like me who are just naturally nervous about using your service? Yep. Part of it is they're also teaching people how easy it is to use a lime scooter or bike. So we do things like First Ride Academy in City. These are in person events where we go to neighborhoods where people may not have access to E bikes or use scooters and we let them ride for free to experience an E bike. And then I think once you try it, you realize it's far safer and easier to use than perhaps you imagined. We also do things like we work with local advocacy groups like the London Cycling Campaign, LCC to do cycling education, work with boroughs to make sure that there's good cycling paths. Over the last five years, I think London 4x the amount of bike lanes in London, which dramatically improves safety. The last thing I'll say about safety is that it is also, I think a big part of it is also about slowing down cars and preventing cars from going into areas where there's a lot of bike traffic and pedestrian traffic. And so we work with cities to create better regulations and better rules of the road to ensure that our riders are safe.

We've given the audience enough time to answer a very simple yes or no question. And I'd love to bring the poll results up if they aren't already. Just to have a question for you and follow up, the question was, do you use an electric scooter or an electric bike? And I'm seeing 61% of our audience today is saying that they don't use either. London is one of your largest markets. It's one of the biggest for Lyme. What does that 61% tell you about the progress that is yet to be? It says we still have more work to do. And the reason why I think we are so passionate about the push to build a future transportation that is shared, affordable, and most importantly, carbon free is because transportation is the number one source of carbon pollution in the uk it's the number one source of carbon pollution in Europe and the United States. And the vast majority of that is coming from cars and trucks. And if we're going to be serious about meeting the challenge of climate change, then we have to reduce our reliance on cars and improve our adoption of bikes and scooters as a preferred mode of transportation. And I also think maybe this is a reflection of this age group here, because when we look at lendoners, if you do a poll of lenders between 18 and 39, 50% of London residents between 18 and 39 say they use an electric bike every single week. And so. But even 39% using electric bike is really encouraging as cities make that transition into a more green and sustainable future.

But we're not fully there yet. The audience is going to try not to take offense to the demographic observation that you've made. You know, some. Some might say that we've moved past the early stages of the micromobility industry. The ones that have failed have failed. The ones that have survived have survived. Lime has emerged as the largest micro mobility company in the world. And I just wonder, now that you're all grown up, what's next for you? Yep, we actually think it's a. So I think a lot of the funding markets are finally moving on to other things, and I think that's a good thing. When there's too much capital, it encourages bad behavior, encourages companies to lose a lot of money because they can always raise more in the future. And I think it hurts all the other competitors. And while I think other competitors did not invest in the things they need to get to a sustainable business, Lime did. We invest in our own hardware, tech, enable operations, and building strong relationships with cities, which is why Lime is the only profitable operator in the industry. And now we have a chance to continue to expand on that.

I think the biggest opportunity is to deepen in the markets we're in. So in London, for example, we really want to become part of the transportation ecosystem to help more people and more cities transition out of cars. And for us to do that, we got to convince more people like the 61% in this audience who are not riding bikes to start using green Transportation. But that's the biggest opportunity deepening in the markets we're in, getting more people out of cars and into bikes and scooters. I think the second opportunity is expanding into new markets. So this year alone we launch in Japan and Greece and we're going to soon launch in Mexico. And I think there's also opportunities around new modes of transportation, new hardware. Because Lime develops their own hardware in house, we have the opportunity to develop new hardware that, that I would say appeal to different types of riders. So we're testing a new Lime glider in Zurich right now which is a throttle bike so you can put a throttle down. Looks like a lightweight moped which allows people to go longer distances. And if you are wary of pedaling or you don't want to pedal because it's hot outside, it allows you to leverage micro mobility maybe without the feeling of work. Interesting. I'd be interested if I weren't so scared to try that moped financing wise. Sounds to me just based on what you're saying that you're not out there looking for funding, you don't need it. But I would be interested in what Limes exit strategy is at the moment. Like where do you see the company's path going? Yeah, I think maybe this may be surprising to the audience because I feel like if you only read the headlines. I think the perception is a lot of companies in our industry is struggling and that is true. But I think Lime has been the exception. So 2023 we did over $600 million in gross bookings growing at 32% a year. In fact our four year top line CAGR is 30% in last year we did over $90 million. A company wide adjusted EBITDA. Our first year of unlevered free cash flow positive which means that we generate enough profits to fund all of our capital expenditure and growth.

So we are not in need of incremental funding which is very, very helpful given today's funding environment. But I do think if I look longer term, I think the right answer for Lime is to think about going public at some point. I think a lot of that will depend on the macro environment. And I think the IPO market is still quite choppy. So we're waiting for the. I think Lime is ready as a company. If you look at our growth rate and our margin profile we are a greater than rule 40 company which I think is a fantastic place to be as we're looking towards potentially going public. But we're looking for a better, I would say macro environment. Some that is outside of our control. You and everyone else. Yes. Where would you list? We haven't really thought about it, but probably in the United States where our company is based.

All right, the UK audience here will be saying yet another one. I wanted to talk a little bit about your competitors because, you know, we talk about how you're grown up, the industry is more grown up, but you still have some formidable rivals. Tell me a little bit about what you see as your biggest competition and how you're going to continue to work to stand out. Absolutely. Our biggest competition is the car. 60% of car trips in the UK are less than 5 miles. The most common number of passenger in a car is one. Those people should not be driving a car, they should be riding a bike. They should be using micromobility, they should be on public transit. How do we get people out of cars into micromobility? That's our biggest competitor from a people in our, in our industry. I do feel like Lime has, has separated ourselves from the rest of the pack because we've pursued a strategy of proprietary hardware. Everybody else in our industry buys from the same two Chinese manufacturers for their scooters and bikes. And you may walk around and see they all use the same E bike. And the reason they all look the same is because they're exactly the same E bike.

And the problem though with that is that there's a conflict because if my business is to sell, you lend more bikes and more parts and more scooters, then I don't have a lot of incentive to make them last longer, make them more sustainable. And as a result, I think that's why a lot of our competitors struggle to get to sustainability and profitability. When we own our own engineering and design, we constantly track every single spare parts. When does it break, why does it break? And then we see if there's ways to improve the next batch in manufacturing. So we're constantly iterating. It's a, it's a constant feedback loop which allows us to over time expand, extend the life of our hardware and improve it around writeability and safe safety. And that's a big difference between Lime and our competitors. The second is tech enabled operations. Lime is the global leader, which means we have more data than anybody else, which allows us to do things like demand forecasting better as well. Every city we're in, we project the probability of somebody wanting a bike trip or a scooter trip block by block in 15 minute increments. So we have a view of where we think demand is going to come from and then we move our scooters and bikes to meet that demand. You can build an accurate demand forecasting tool if you don't have the data. And Lime investors as far as we can tout 10x more into software hardware technology than our nearest competitor.

And as a result we've really separated the pack from both operational tech and hardware tech. And I think the third piece that separates us is that we strive to be the best partners to cities. Lime wins 90 plus percent of the competitive RFPs that come up and we renew them at 95% rate. This is why Lime today is in almost 300 cities around the world, in 30 countries, by far bigger than any of our nearest competitors. How do you, how do you do that? How do you win those rupees over all the others with the cities, lots of wining and dining or what do you know? I think cities, cities want to see operational experience. And so I think the, the advantage of scale is that the more cities we win, the more other cities see Lime as a safe and reliable choice. There's the saying that nobody's been fired for buying IBM. Lime is the IBM of this industry. And people say, let's Lime to dinner, let's lime. Here we are the verb for biking in London and you do that by doing the right thing again and again and again. And I do think cities also care about hardware. Every city wants to tell their citizens we have the latest, the best hardware and we go to these meetings and everybody else has cheap, poorly made Chinese bikes. And we have something that is unique, that we designed in house for safety, for things like sustainability. And those are the reasons why I think we win 90 plus percent of the RFPs.

Technology, Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Micromobility, Sustainable Transportation, Urban Mobility, Bloomberg Live