Chicago-based SaaS startup, CoPilot is a free downloadable app that empowers car shoppers ready to make their next big purchase with the ability to find the best possible car at the best possible price. How so? CoPilot uses existing search engine-based technology to scour the internet for all publicly listed and available cars for sale online. The differentiator of this app is its independence from dealers or manufacturers. CoPilot does not accept any payments from dealers (i.e. selling leads or ads) out of transparency to the consumers. This is to ensure that the users can feel confident that the results and advice they receive from the app are trustworthy. In addition, the app couples monthly updates and important alerts (i.e. when to change the oil, accuracy of mechanics price quotes, safety recalls) to ensure peace of mind after pulling off the lot.
The purchase journey for high-value items, such as cars or homes, is complicated and often opaque.” said Pat Ryan, CEO and founder, CoPilot, in a press release earlier this year. “Consumers are forced to quickly become an expert in the topic in order to fully utilize existing online tools. At the same time, many of these tools only offer information that sellers wish to provide. We started CoPilot to introduce transparency to the high-value purchase process and provide an expert partner and advisor to consumers for the entire lifecycle of ownership.”
In its current state, the early stage startup does not earn any revenue. Overtime however, the company plans to leverage their growing network of buyers to obtain discounts for their members similarly to an affinity group (i.e. AAA), eventually enabling CoPilot to earn revenue.
Notably, the company raised a $5M debt and equity round in October and a $10M Series A funding round earlier this year in August, led by Next Coast Ventures. To date, the startup has raised $17M in accumulative funding.
“Assisted commerce is the future of high-consideration purchases. We believe that CoPilot will be the leader in empowering consumers to get the most for their money,” said Tom Ball, co-founder and managing partner at Austin’s Next Coast Ventures, in a press release earlier this year. “We are excited to see CoPilot start with a solution that empowers consumers in the highest stress purchase of all: car buying. The fact that CoPilot has already achieved over $500 million in GMV demonstrates the enormous consumer need being filled and the massive potential for the company.”
Founder and CEO Pat Ryan graduated from Northwestern University School of Law and also obtained his MBA from Northwestern University in 1997. Prior to founding CoPilot, Ryan established a name for himself in the startup scene with several other startups such as Incisent Labs and Accelerate Institute.
