Zum (company)

Zum, also written as Zūm, is an American student transportation services company, based in Redwood City, California, U.S.

Zum Services, Inc. provides contract transportation services to school districts across the United States, it provides an app that parents can download to track the location of their children on Zum’s vehicles.

History
Zum was founded by Ritu Narayan, Vivek Garg and Abhishek Garg, after they identified a problem faced by the working mothers. It has developed a technology platform that can optimize school bus routes and improve communications for school bus fleets.

Zum initially started its operations from California in early 2016. In February 2019, BMW i Ventures invested as part of a $40 million investment round in the company to expand its operations outside California. Previously, it has received $19 million in Series B round in 2018 and $5.5 million in Series A round in 2017.

In 2019, Zum entered in a $150 million contract with San Francisco Unified Schools District to operate the transportation system in the district.

In February 2020, Zum began a partnership with Oakland Unified School District to provide transportation services to its students.

In October 2021, Zum, nearing unicorn status, received $130 million in funding led by Softbank Vision Fund 2, with participation from existing investors including Sequoia and BMW i Ventures. The funds were used to expand the company's footprint to new areas and expand its fleet, including adding new electric vehicles.

In June 2022, Zum received a contract from the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), the second-largest school district in the U.S., valued at $400 million.

In July 2022, it was given a three-year contract by the Seattle School Board to provide school transportation services to its students.

In June 2023, Zum announced a contract with the Howard County Public School System in Maryland. During the first week of school, historic school bus driver shortages led to many routes being canceled.

In January 2024, the Wall Street Journal reported that Zum had raised $140 million in a Series E funding round, valuing the company at $1.3 billion. The round was led by the Singapore sovereign wealth fund, GIC.