Airlift raises deliveries services with $10m investment

A local transport startup Airlift on Wednesday raised $10 million from Quiet Capital after the company said it plans to enter into the groceries delivery business. 

“Today, we are announcing our $10m Series A-1 financing led by Quiet Capital, increasing our total investment to date to $24.1m,” the company’s founder Usman Gul shared the press release. 

“At a time of mass turbulence in capital markets, Airlift’s Series A-1 round marks one of the largest capital investments in the region. We are thrilled to partner with investors who share our vision for building decentralized platforms to introduce easier, faster and more efficient ways of moving people and goods around urban ecosystems.”

Airlift’s primary offering of mass transit through its riders has come to a near halt following the enforcement of social distancing due to the Covid-19. The company said that it plans to keep its transit operations intact once the Covid-19-related restrictions are lifted. 

“Our team is excited to resume transit operations once the worst of the pandemic is behind us. In the interim, we have introduced Airlift Grocer — a 45-minute delivery service for all household essentials. You can access Airlift Grocer via the App Store, the Playstore, or on the web,” it said in the press release. 

Gul said that the transit and deliveries landscape is evolving due to the coronavirus. More and more companies are shifting towards digital as the Covid-19 restrictions has placed exceeding curbs on the human-to-human interactions. 

“Airlift understands that the world has changed. Our value to our customers must evolve. Our impact on the communities we serve must adapt accordingly. Our service must adapt to the changing times, providing ancillary offerings that provide additional value to customers,” the company said. 

The company said that the investor — Quiet Capital, based in San Francisco, led the round with TrueSight Ventures (London), RT Ventures (London), Shorooq Partners (Abu Dhabi), and ACE Capital (Taiwan) participating, among other local partners. Existing investors, First Round Capital (San Francisco), Fatima Gobi Ventures (Pakistan) and Indus Valley Capital (Pakistan) also continued their support for Airlift in this financing.