Alto

When’s the last time you took an Uber?

Was it an enjoyable experience? Did you feel uncomfortable, or even unsafe? How about your driver — did you know who was picking you up ahead of time?

For many, the ridesharing experience leaves a lot to be desired. Riders face inconsistent, low-quality experiences. Their rides are uncomfortable, or even unsafe. Often, they don’t even know who will pick them up, leading to an unpleasant game of “rideshare roulette.”

Alto is a ridesharing service that’s doing things differently.

Unlike Uber or Lyft, Alto drivers are employees — not contractors. As a result, they’re background-checked, earn hourly wages and benefits, and are consistently available to transport passengers comfortably and safely.

According to Morgan Stanley, ridesharing will reach seventy billion dollars in the U.S. by 2027. But within this market, there’s a lack of ridesharing services that place a premium on comfort and luxury. This is where Alto aims to make a difference.

The company pairs employee drivers with a fleet of company-owned luxury SUVs. Riders can select a curated music vibe and set conversation preferences within Alto’s mobile app, including a Do Not Disturb mode.

Every car has in-car camera monitoring and telematic tracking for safe driving. And drivers are connected to a central dispatch team who can help in an emergency. Additionally, Alto cars are clearly branded and an in-app feature enables passengers to have the lights flash on their car as it arrives.

Alto launched in 2019 and has completed two million rides in its initial four markets — Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, and Miami. Last year, it tallied thirty-eight million dollars in gross bookings.

Alto caters to individuals needing a ride. But it also partners with events and businesses looking to offer Alto’s service. The company is the official partner for events like the Genesis Open and Byron Nelson Championships golf events, the LA Frieze Art Show, and the Houston Grand Opera.

Notably, Alto has a net promoter score — this is the industry standard for measuring customer satisfaction — of eighty. For reference, anything above zero is “good,” anything above twenty is “favorable,” anything above fifty is “excellent,” and anything above eighty is “world class.” For a comparison, Uber has an NPS of twenty-four and Lyft has an NPS of minus fifty-five.

Alto uses a patent-pending optimization engine to manage its fleet of 300 vehicles efficiently. And it earns money through membership fees, consumer rides, and business-to-business ride services for car dealerships, hotels, and events.

Moving forward, Alto has plans to integrate autonomous vehicles into its fleet and transition to electric vehicles.

Team Background

Will Coleman - Co-Founder & CEO

Will is a former partner at McKinsey & Company, a prominent consulting firm, where he led the consumer air and travel practice. He also helped some of the world’s largest travel brands build disruptive growth strategies.

He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business from The University of Texas at Austin.

Patrice Crisinel - Co-Founder & CFO

Patrice was trained as a mechanical engineer and then spent more than fifteen years as a private-equity and venture-capital professional.

Prior to Alto, he was Chief Investment Officer with Viatrans, a Geneva-based venture-capital fund. Before that, he was an investment committee member with IRU, a non-profit organization focused on economic growth through sustainable transportation.

Earlier in his career, Patrice was an associate director and a market-risk analyst with UBS, an investment bank. He holds a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from EPFL, one of two Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology.

Jonathan Campos - Chief Technology Officer

Jonathan has experience building user-friendly software. He is an expert in UI/UX and development.

Prior to Alto, he was the chief mobile architect at multiple startups, including Precocity and Bottle Rocket, two IT-services businesses. Before that, he was a software engineer with Stream Energy, a utilities company.

He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Arts and Technology from The University of Texas at Dallas and a Master’s degree in Communication from Abilene Christian University.

Dana Donato - VP of Operations

Dana began his career with Enterprise Rent-a-Car, serving as a branch manager. From there, he was a sales representative with Apria Healthcare, a provider of home-healthcare equipment.

More recently, he spent four years with Silvercar, a transportation service focused on the airport car-rental sector. Silvercar was acquired by Audi.

Dana earned a Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology and Exercise Science from Indiana University.

Co-Investors