Demand for electric tuk-tuk travel is booming in Thailand

A Thai startup will nearly triple the number of its electric tuk-tuks this year due to increased demand for travel.

The CEO of Thai startup MuvMi , Urban Mobility Tech, said they will increase the number of vehicles from 350 to 1,000 units.

Krisada Kritayakirana, who is also the co-founder of Urban Mobility Tech, said at a press conference on Friday, January 13, that demand for electric tuk-tuk rides is increasing alongside the growing popularity of electric vehicles (EVs) in Thailand.

"Our initial goal is to provide environmentally friendly vehicles to city dwellers who struggle to find public transportation after leaving the skytrain, subway, and bus stations," he said.

“The majority of our MuvMi customers are workers and university students who take tuk-tuks to and from their homes to nearby shopping malls, offices, restaurants and universities,” he added.

Customers can book an electric tuk-tuk via the MuvMi app for 10 baht, with the price increasing depending on the duration and distance of the journey.

Krisada said the company will increase the number of electric tuk-tuks in the first half of this year, while the second half will focus on expanding the service to cover all of Bangkok and other major cities, such as Chiang Mai , and the tourist island of Phuket .

“We are currently available in 12 major areas of downtown Bangkok, including Sukhumvit, Chulalongkorn University, Samyan, Silom-Sathorn, Ratchada-Rama 9, and Chidlom-Lumpini,” he said.

The company's strength lies in the technology it invented and developed, Krisada said.

Krisada said the company owns the body designs for the electric tuk-tuk and the EV charging points that also use solar power.

Both models are protected by patents, he said.

Artificial intelligence is also being used to control the flow to gain a long-term competitive advantage, Krisada said.

According to him, the company's expansion plan will cost between 600 and 700 million baht.

As the company is in the early stages, part of the funding will come from venture capital and partners.

“We hope to expand nationally and internationally as a 100% Thai ride-sharing service with its own electric vehicles and platform.

We are committed to continuing to develop our technology,” he said.

MuvMi has had approximately 3.7 million passengers since its inception in 2018.

However, as demand increased and some customers complained about long wait times, Krisada said the company decided it was time to expand.

Urban Mobility Tech is a success story for Thailand's National Innovation Agency, which helped launch the company in 2016.

It took him almost two years to develop and manufacture his electric tuk-tuk before launching the service five years ago.

According to Vichian Suksoir, deputy executive director of the National Innovation Agency's Innovation Development Department, the agency wants MuvMi to be a model for other Thai EV startups and related businesses, such as EV charging stations.

They can ask for support from the agency, he said.

EVs and related technologies will be one of six key sectors the agency will allocate funding to this year, Vichian said.

“This year, we have allocated 100 million baht to support EVs and related technologies.

Interested start-ups should submit a business plan to us for review.

We plan to award 10 to 15 grants to startups this year,” he said.

The National Innovation Agency's strategy coincides with the government's efforts to stimulate the growth of the digital economy.

The EV industry is contributing to this effort.

Currently, the Thai government is implementing a number of measures to attract investment from foreign and domestic investors.

At the same time, it is implementing measures to increase demand for EVs in the country.

According to TTB Analytics, the Thai EV industry continues to grow in both production and demand.

The number of new EV registrations with the Department of Land Transport was 15,423 in the first 10 months of last year.

The total number of EV registrations over the previous decade (2012 – 2021) was 11,749.

See also:

Thailand supports electric vehicles

Thailand prepares for a bright future for electric vehicles

Source: The Nation Thailand