Automotive manufacturer General Motors and oil and gas producer ExxonMobil co-led a $13.7m series A round for US-based on-demand car servicing provider Yoshi on Wednesday.
Acclerator operator Y Combinator’s Continuity fund also took part in the round, as did venture capital firm Arab Angel and Durant Company, the investment fund established by basketball player Kevin Durant.
Yoshi’s subscription-based service allows motorists to arrange for their parked vehicles to be refuelled and serviced through a mobile app. Customers can use the app to monitor and schedule routine maintenance requirements such as oil changes or car washes.
Markets in which Yoshi operates include San Francisco Bay, Silicon Valley, Los Angeles, Austin, Nashville, Atlanta and Chicago, and the funding will support its entry into another 25 US cities in the next 12 months.
ExxonMobil has agreed to supply Yoshi with fuel and lubricant products, and will take a seat on its board of directors.
Adam Wariner, fuels and lubricants manager at ExxonMobil, said: “The on-demand economy is changing nearly every aspect of our everyday lives, including consumer expectations about the way fuels and lubricants are purchased, delivered and used.
“We believe the simplicity and convenience of this direct-to-vehicle care service will attract new customers to Exxon and Mobil branded products.”
Yoshi graduated from a Y Combinator program in 2016 and raised $2.1m in a January 2017 round led by VC firm ZhenFund that featured seed-stage VC fund Liquid 2 Ventures and angel investor Ali Rowghani.