DETROIT, Mich. (FOX 2) – The Detroit Smart Parking Lab (DSPL), founded by Bedrock, Bosch, Ford and the state of Michigan, has welcomed four new startups to its plans.
The new startups will operate under the Institute’s recently established Autonomous Mobility Initiative. Leveraging more than $250,000 in grant funding awarded through the Michigan Mobility Funding Platform, over the next six months the startups will deploy, test and demonstrate the latest technologies related to autonomous vehicles and electric vehicle (EV) charging solutions.
“The Detroit Smart Parking Lab fills a critical need in Detroit’s growing mobility scene,” said Kevin Mull, Bedrock’s senior urban strategy and innovation director. “Our goal is to provide a path for early-stage entrepreneurs to achieve commercialization and establish their businesses in Detroit. DSPL will give them a real-world environment to test and deploy their technology and expose entrepreneurs to decision-making leaders across the local mobility ecosystem.”
New startups on DSPL include ALBA Robot, AuTowed LLC, ION Dynamics and Joule Labs. These mobility companies will leverage DSPL to:
- ALBA RobotUsing on-demand AV transportation to travel to and from venues such as airports, hospitals, shopping malls, museums and other community areas, we will test and demonstrate how autonomous personal mobility vehicle (PMV) services can bring flexibility and independence to people with disabilities.
- Autowood LLC: Simplify and solve cargo transportation challenges with an autonomous prototype that connects, disconnects, and parks cargo trailers.
- Ion Dynamics: Providing users with on-demand EV charging. ION Dynamics will demonstrate how its autonomous charging bot can reduce the initial installation costs of EV charging by over 50% compared to traditional fixed charging solutions.
- Joule LabThe company will test and prepare for commercialization of its autonomous charging system, establish a permanent base in Michigan and partner with other Detroit energy companies and commercial real estate firms to further deploy fully autonomous charging service stations across the state.
DSPL was launched in 2021 by Bedrock, Bosch, Ford and the State of Michigan, and operated by NextEnergy and Park Rite, providing the nation’s first live test site for emerging parking, mobility and EV charging solutions at 1701 W Lafayette Blvd.
Over the past three years, the lab has hosted 20 startups and provided nearly $1 million in state-led grant funding. These funds, combined with the lab’s assets and networking opportunities, are helping to lay the foundation for a comprehensive Detroit mobility ecosystem that supports companies at every stage of their growth cycle.
“Detroit has a unique ecosystem unlike anywhere in the world, providing comprehensive support to mobility startups regardless of their stage,” said Carolina Pluszczynski, chief operating officer and head of innovation services at Michigan Central. “We’re proud to be a part of ItsElectric’s story as they grow and scale their business, leveraging the knowledge and insights we’ve gained from our experience at the Detroit Smart Parking Lab and delivering real-world solutions with the support of the Michigan Central community.”
For more information, visit detroitsmartparkinglab.com.
