Recurrent

Recurrent (legally Recurrent Motors, Inc.) operates a data platform that measures and reports the condition of electric-vehicle batteries. The company collects telematics and usage data from participating EV drivers — datapoints such as ambient temperature, vehicle age and charging patterns — and converts them into simplified, visual insights including expected range, seasonal range bands, charging speed estimates and monthly fuel-cost savings. Owners receive recurring vehicle reports covering battery health, range projections and the effect of charging habits on long-term value; the company also runs a program through which sellers can list a vehicle with its battery statistics and receive bids from buyers.

On the commercial side, Recurrent sells EV retailing tools to dealerships and supplies battery range scores that are displayed on third-party shopping sites such as Edmunds.com and Cars.com. As of January 2024 the company reported that its scores covered about one-third of used EV sales in the United States, with research spanning 65 EV and plug-in hybrid makes and models and roughly one million miles of driving data ingested per day from about 25,000 enrolled drivers. Its website states the platform is used daily by 30,000 electric car owners and dealerships. The team combines software engineers with battery scientists holding chemical-engineering doctorates.

Founding story

Recurrent launched in 2020 as a spinout of Seattle startup studio Pioneer Square Labs. Co-founder and CEO Scott Case previously spent about ten years as chief operating officer of energy-efficiency software company EnergySavvy, which he helped grow to 75 employees and $10 million in annual revenue before its 2019 acquisition; he also co-founded Ada Developers Academy and served as entrepreneur-in-residence at the University of Washington's Clean Energy Institute. Case co-founded the company with chief technology officer Kyle Rippey, previously at startups including Rover, Estately and Avvo.

Business model

Products are free to consumers, who supply the vehicle data that powers the analytics. Revenue comes from business customers: dealerships that sell used EVs (more than 100 as of January 2024), online sales sites and vehicle auction houses that license or display battery condition and range scores. Recurrent also facilitates seller-to-buyer transactions in which a vehicle is listed with its battery statistics and buyers submit bids.

Paid subscriptions/licensing of EV battery analytics and retailing tools to dealerships, online marketplaces and auction houses, with consumer-facing tools offered free of charge.

Traction

Approximately 25,000 enrolled EV drivers contributing about one million driven miles of data daily as of January 2024, research covering 65 EV and plug-in hybrid models, more than 100 paying dealership customers, battery scores on Edmunds.com and Cars.com, and a stated 30,000 daily users among owners and dealerships. Owners report using Recurrent battery condition reports to negotiate higher trade-in values.

Latest developments

In January 2024 Recurrent closed a $16 million Series A led by ArcTern Ventures with participation from Automotive Ventures, Goodyear Ventures, Wireframe Ventures and Pioneer Square Labs, and said it expected its battery scores to cover most U.S. used EV transactions during that year. Management cited U.S. federal EV tax-credit rules — which favor leasing for new vehicles and provide point-of-sale credits for used EV purchases through dealers — as accelerating the supply of used EVs and demand for battery condition data.