Flywheel’s Uber-Inspired OS For Cabs Launches

The taxi cab business in California just got another weapon to use against Uber.

Flywheel, the startup that’s challenging Uber and Lyft in the ride-hailing market with its TaxiOS platform, has rolled out its service across the entire state of California. What started as a pilot program in San Francisco in October saw enough success that it decided to offer the rest of the state’s taxi services the option.

Flywheel proivdes a no-surge smart meter OS for cabs that enables electronic dispatching of cars, payments, navigation and GPS-based metering.

“The pilot program in San Francisco was a huge success for us,” Flywheel CEO Rakesh Mathur told TechCrunch in an interview. “We knew our solution was accurate and easier to use than other options, but having actual drivers provide feedback on what they see in everyday use was invaluable. Because our system is software-based, we were able to take feedback and quickly implement it and will continue to customize our system based on the needs of the industry.”

While the TaxiOS was initially only available for 70 cars in its pilot launch, it recently got approval to expand once the regulation of GPS-based metered taxi services changed in the state.

“Approval to operate in California is huge for us, but it’s just the beginning,” Mathur said in the TechCrunch interview. “The key to TaxiOS has always been its scalability, so we look forward to continuing to gain state approvals — in New York and beyond — and expanding TaxiOS across the country. The NYC TLC has received our application for the pilot, and we expect to be launching in NYC in early 2016.”

Flywheel’s goals are to launch its more than 200 Flywheel-branded taxi cabs in San Fransico in the next few months and has plans for expansion outside the city following that.

“Our strategy for competing in New York and in other markets will be our TaxiOS platform,” Mathur noted in the interview.