Fast-growing Danish tech scaleup empowers their community to lead product development: OOONO introduces CO-DRIVER NO2

Closing in on 2 million sold devices, the CO-DRIVER NO1, a traffic safety device produced and sold by the Danish tech scaleup OOONO, has been well-received - especially amongst German drivers. The community-driven device enables drivers to share and receive relevant traffic information, such as speed cameras and road hazards, for a safer and more predictable journey. Now, the massive community is put in the driver’s seat and has been given the task of leading the product development of the successor: CO-DRIVER NO2.

Community as the driving force behind product development

How do you make sure that whatever you’re developing actually has a place in this world? According to OOONO, you ask the ones who are using your products each and every day:

“The CO-DRIVER is a community-driven device. The drivers from our community are the ones keeping each other informed and safe on the road by sharing the incidents they encounter. They’re the ones giving the product its real value. Therefore, it was a no-brainer for us to include as many inputs as possible from them when developing the successor,” Christian Walther Øyrabø explains, CEO at OOONO A/S.

The development approach has been multifaceted, but most importantly it has had users at the center from the very beginning. This has been done by collecting qualitative data through multiple interviews with users and quantitative data through e.g. a survey with more than 10.000 respondents. Also, OOONO is constantly learning from its users through various online forums that the users are voluntarily creating to discuss traffic related matters.

Increased focus on traffic safety and intuitive use

With OOONO’s vision of creating a safer everyday life, most upgrades on the CO-DRIVER NO2 revolve around increasing traffic safety and making the CO-DRIVER an even more preventive tool in traffic. A specific example is the introduction of speed limit warnings; OOONO believes that speeding is rarely intentional. With speed limit warnings, you’ll be able to be warned when you're exceeding the local speed limit and thus the CO-DRIVER goes from helping you in certain traffic situations to helping you improve your overall driving behaviour. Other examples include the visual and audio improvements of the warnings that’s developed specifically to ensure the driver knows what’s coming up ahead without distracting the driver. In terms of traffic safety, not distracting the driver is naturally a high priority and has dictated the hardware upgrades:

“We’ve thought long and hard about how to implement new features and meet the wishes of our community, without compromising our overall vision of increasing traffic safety. That’s for example the reason behind not introducing a display. We simply do not want to add another distraction element, but rather improve the simple and intuitive design that requires the absolute minimum for the driver.” Christian Walther Øyrabø says.

From NO1 to NO2: Rechargeable battery, in-car assistance and hardware updates

While most CO-DRIVER NO2 upgrades have had safety as a starting point, others have revolved around convenience and intuitivity. Such features include a rechargeable battery and the opportunity for recharging the device directly in the car, meaning users will never run out of battery and thereby never run out of live traffic information. Other features include Apple CarPlay/Android Auto compatibility and navigation, which 78% of users asked for.

The introduction of Apple Carplay/Android Auto also sees the Danes exploring new business models to meet the expectations of the community. Christian Walther Øyrabø explains:

“We acknowledge the demand from our community to integrate with Carplay/Android Auto and navigation. And we naturally want to accommodate those needs. However, implementing these features forces us to depend on third-party suppliers, which comes with a cost. There's nothing we want more than to be able to provide the services for free and we keep exploring options to do so. For starters, all CO-DRIVER NO2 devices will have access to the feature free of charge for a year and later at a small add-on cost. Simply to cover the operational costs and give the community what they ask for. All core features will still be available without additional costs.”

Other improvements on the CO-DRIVER NO2 include magnetic mounts, improved visual and audio for easier recognition of the different warnings, and an additional button. The latter can be used to dismiss outdated warnings, which is also a new feature and opens up for the community improving warnings in an entirely new way.

The introduction of another device improves both devices

Even though OOONO now launches the long-awaited successor, the development and improvement of NO1 continues. Both devices will run on the same engine, meaning that coverage, algorithms, database of warnings, number of users, and the like will increase and improve for both products. In other words, the products enforce each other making both even stronger. Naturally, both hardware and feature sets will be updated continuously to ensure the best possible driving experience.

Pre-order starts end of September

The CO-DRIVER NO2 is not yet available for sale, but anyone interested in the device can sign up and get the chance to preorder the device.

More information on the product here: https://launch.ooono.com/