In-car commerce startup Cargo gets a $22m investment

CargoCargo, a startup which brings a convenience store element to ridesharing, has raised $22m in a Series A financing round led by Founders Fund.

The funding round brings the total venture funding in Cargo to $30m. Additional investment in the round came from Coatue Management, Aquiline Technology Growth, CRCM Ventures, Rosecliff Ventures, Kellogg’s eighteen94 capital, RiverPark Ventures, and high-profile names from entertainment, gaming, and technology including Arnold Schwarzenegger’s children Patrick and Christina Schwarzenegger, Steve Aoki, Zynga founder Mark Pincus, ex-Twitch CSO Colin Carrier, former Uber CBO Emil Michael, former NBA commissioner David Stern, and Def Jam Records CEO Paul Rosenberg.

“Our default behaviour in an Uber is to shop, play games, and listen to music on our phone. Riders have ordered more than 2m products and today transact with us every five seconds” said Jeff Cripe, Cargo founder and CEO. “We brought riders instant commerce, now we’ll help them discover and enjoy games, music, and entertainment on one in-car platform.”

Cargo’s platform enables riders in ride-hailing vehicles, such as Uber, to order goods from their driver via their smartphone as they are travelling – turning the vehicle into a moving convenience store. According to the company, which launched in July 2017, it now has more than 12,000 drivers across 10 cities using its service.

Array