wejo, a leading UK technology company which collates data from connected vehicles, tannounced that its technology is now tracking seven million vehicles in 190 countries worldwide and it has acquired a Silicon Valley based technology firm as part of its expansion plans.
Carjojo, which helps consumers negotiate the best deal when they buy a new car in the US, is the first acquisition for wejo, marking a major milestone for the group.
AUTO Connected Car News contacted wejo on Monday and was told it is not clear what wejo will do with the company. They may or may not continue negotiating car deals. We have been contacted by their PR rep to print a retraction and are waiting to talk to someone from wejo to clarify the situation.
Carjojo offered a service that truly was able to get the best price for consumers. Car prices are based on what others are paying in the area. The problem they ran into is that the car dealers didn’t like it when consumers knew what they should be paying for a car. The California New Car Dealers Association (CNCDA) filed complaints about Carjojo to the California Department of Motor Vehicles. It claimed that CarJojo is a car broker and is not allowed to show VIN numbers. Carjojo gave buyers a guaranteed lowest price on cars by using data and AI learning. The prices were way below TrueCar and Edmunds.com and were often lower than even the best negotiators can get on their own. The CNCDA stated that Carjojo shouldn’t be allowed to show VIN numbers while almost every other automotive website showed VIN numbers.
Carjojo filed for bankruptcy in April of this year. We have been contacted by readers who wanted to use the service. and were unable to get help. This is not surprising given the push back that the company received from the dealers.
The database and AI from Carjojo is truly amazing and worthwhile for any company and surely worthwhile for any company in the insurance business.
Here we jojo again. After a request for a retraction and a long conversation with wejo’s PR rep and a promise to speak to their CEO, the story appears to have changed. Could it be that wejo wasn’t aware of the problems Carjojo had with the CNCDA?
Richard Barlow, CEO of wejo, commented in an email statement sent by the company’s PR firm, “We are committed to rebuilding the Carjojo business and are investing in its future success. We plan to relaunch the website next year and make it reflect the fast changing automotive landscape. The consumer experience will be much enhanced and we want Carjojo to have good relationships with consumers, OEMs and dealers alike.”
That doesn’t answer our original question, “Will wejo be offerring car sale negotiations like Carjojo did for a fee?
Since wejo deals with car data and insurance not car sales, it is most likely the website may launch with a different purpose. It is also very strange the the two name both have “jo” in them.
The number of vehicles on wejo’s technology platform, which analyses data from thousands of car sensors, has risen to more than seven million, doubling in just six months.
The data can be used to predict breakdowns, analyse collisions and monitor a car’s impact on the environment. wejo’s strategic ambition, led by CEO and founder Richard Barlow, is to become the world’s leading automotive data business and the acquisition of Carjojo is integral to this plan.
wejo specializes in analyzing car data and with Carjojo it now has access to, and will accrue value from, a new data set giving it insight and intelligence across the full breadth of vehicle ownership and lifecycle in the US. It means wejo has a live, dynamic and comprehensive picture of the automobile market in the US, a key trend-setting automotive market.
The deal also gives wejo an on the ground presence in San Jose, in Silicon Valley with Carjojo’s 10 employees who are expert data architects, programm developers and computer engineers. Going forward they will work closely with wejo’s field-based auto experts in the US.
In addition, wejo has just opened a new office in Manchester which is wejo’s tech hub and tech centre of excellence. As a big data tech company attracting the region’s brightest talent, wejo’s new Manchester office reflects the continued success and growth of the business. Staffed by data engineers, programmers, data architects and analysts, the office will support wejo’s 150 strong team in the US and at the head office in Tattenhall, outside Chester.
Commenting on the announcement, Richard Barlow, chief executive of wejo, previously said in the news release, “The acquisition of Carjojo is a really exciting development for wejo as it enables us to understand even more about the car market in the US and it’s a great fit for the business as we look to create the world’s leading automotive data insights company. In the rapidly evolving car ecosystem, wejo is now even better placed to understand and monetise the data produced by car owners and drivers around the world.
Thanks for your prompt reply Lynn. Happy Holidays!
Carjojo was a Delaware Corporation—the bankruptcy was filed in that state.
Thanks, informative post. From where did you obtain the information that Carjojo had filed for bankruptcy?
We have an association with a creditor who received an official notice of the bankruptcy.
Crazy , seems they didn’t know what they buy at Wejo. If Wejo works with OEM’s and Carjojo competes with them it event make no sense . I bet it was a fire sale and good opportunity for Wejo. Still no strategy