A group of former Grubhub executives is taking on AAA with a newly unified digital roadside assistance platform, following the acquisition of Curbside SOS by Honk Technologies last month. The deal, backed by private equity firm Frontenac, brings together Grubhub co-founder Matt Maloney and former colleagues Adam DeWitt and Eric Ferguson.
The combined entity aims to apply the logistics-heavy model of food delivery to vehicle breakdowns. Curbside SOS focuses on individual motorists via a consumer app, while Honk Technologies operates as a business-to-business service for insurers and fleet managers. Together, they completed over one million jobs last year.
The platform offers transparent pricing upfront, real-time tracking of assistance, and digital payments. Curbside has also started training gig economy workers to perform basic repairs like tyre changes and jump-starts to speed up response times.
The merger targets AAA, the non-profit motor club with over 60 million members that has dominated the US market since 1902. Maloney's pivot follows his departure from Grubhub in 2021, after the company struggled against rivals like DoorDash and was sold at a reduced valuation.
The new company will trade under Honk Technologies for corporate operations, while retaining both the Curbside and Honk brands for their respective markets.
