New Traffic App Slated for iPhone

By Amy Gilroy -- TWICE, 5/15/2009

Palo Alto, Calif. —Aha Mobile, a new start up led by a former executive of Dash Navigation, said it will release this summer an iPhone application for traffic and other driver information, and has secured $3 million in financing.

The underlying technology for the upcoming iPhone App to be submitted to the Apple App Store this summer, will eventually be applied to other products including aftermarket car products, said the company led by president and CEO Robert Acker, formerly SVP marketing for Dash Navigation and a seven year veteran of XM Radio.

Aha said it secured $3 million in Series A financing from Venrock, a venture capital firm.

The application, under development since last fall will be beta tested for 30 days, said the company.

The product does not use technology from Dash Navigation, which pioneered user-generated traffic reports in portable GPS devices, but has since left the portable GPS market.

Acker said, “Our goal is to safely provide drivers with just the relevant pieces of information they need, letting them focus their attention on driving. We’re proud to be backed by Venrock, a visionary fund that has been focused on automotive innovations…”

A spokeswoman noted, “Apple told us we’re the first to design something [for the iPhone] with driver safety in mind. It’s intended to connect you to the world outside your car; give you road information and traffic flow that tells you why… and other information, but to say exactly how we will do that I can’t go into details.”

She said Aha hopes to refine its technology through the iPhone App “before we move on to other products.”