Kyte was a San Francisco, California-based rental car service that delivered cars directly to customers. In March 2023, it was operating in 14 cities across the United States and employed 100 people.[1] Kyte shut down operations in August 2025.[2]
| Industry | Car rental |
|---|---|
| Founders |
|
| Defunct | August 2025 |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, California , United States |
Number of employees | 100 (2023) |
| Website | kyte |
History
editKyte was founded in San Francisco in 2019 by Ludwig Schoenack, Nikolaus Volk and Francesco Wiedemann, all of whom are German immigrants to the United States. In January 2021, Kyte announced that they had raised $9 million from DN Capital and Amplo VC.[3] In August 2021, Kyte began offering car rentals in Seattle, which became the company's eighth city in which it was operating.[4] In March 2022, the company began operating in its fourteenth city, Portland, Oregon. That month, they also announced that they had raised a further $200 million from Goldman Sachs and Ares Management, and that they would use this money to add more vehicles to their fleet.[5] In November 2022, the company announced that it had raised a further $60 million in a Series B venture round of fundraising. In December 2022, Kyte announced that it would offer subscriptions lasting for either three, six, or twelve months. These subscriptions serve as an alternative to shorter-term rentals.[6] In 2025 Kyte faced losses in multiple markets. The company cut nearly half of its workforce.[7] Kyte entered receivership in California and sold its customer list to Turo. This sudden closer left customers with reservations without a rental car and attempting to get refunds.[8]
References
edit- ↑ Kyte (2023-03-07). "Kyte Appoints Barney Harford To Its Board of Directors". PRNewsWire (Press release). Retrieved 2024-01-08.
- ↑ "Kyte, which billed itself as the 'best competitor to Hertz,' shuts down". CrunchBase. 2025-08-15. Retrieved 2025-11-03.
- ↑ Korosec, Kirsten (2021-01-05). "Kyte raises $9 million to deliver rental cars to your doorstep". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
- ↑ Deppen, Laurel (2021-08-06). "On-demand car rental service Kyte brings another transportation option to Seattle". GeekWire. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
- ↑ Bellan, Rebecca (2022-03-24). "Rental car startup Kyte gets $200M loan from Goldman Sachs". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
- ↑ Bellan, Rebecca (2022-12-01). "On-demand car rental company Kyte is now offering car subscriptions". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
- ↑ Vaziri, Aidin (2025-08-18). "San Francisco car rental startup once seen as Hertz rival shuts down". San Francisco Chronical. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
- ↑ Kilroy, Sullivan. "Hertz rival shuts down, leaving customers stuck and angry". The Street. The Strest. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
External links
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