While the startup world is obsessed with AI, one Swedish newbie is stubbornly focused on something much less sexy.

Why Travalytics is betting on data for sustainable transport – in a time when no one seems to care

In a tech startup landscape consumed by AI hype and questioning the value of ESG, Travalytics is swimming against the tide and launching a climate-focused startup. Travalytics was supported by EIT Urban Mobility, an initiative of the European Institute of Innovation & Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union.

Travalytics is about one thing: giving organisations the insights they need on travel to and from their sites so that they can make a difference. Because no matter how much we want to rush in and “do” something about sustainability, nothing meaningful happens without proper data.

“We probably picked the least sexy problem imaginable,” says Anna Stankovski Clark, Travalytics co-founder and applied mathematician with 20 years in sustainable transport. “But it’s really an important one.”

Anna Stankovski Clark & Michal Stypa, Travalytics co-founders.

What’s counted counts

Despite the climate urgency, there’s a massive data gap when it comes to passenger transport, despite the fact that 18% of Sweden’s emissions come from passenger car transport alone. And while data may seem abundant, it’s often patchy, biased, or irrelevant.

“We keep measuring what’s easy - car traffic - and know little about the rest,” says Anna. “Take cycling: municipalities sometimes rely on Strava data to understand cyclists. That’s like using marathon results to plan school gym class.”

When companies run cycle-to-work campaigns or implement travel policies without checking their baseline or measuring long-term impact, the results are often short-lived.

“Everyone thinks they know transport, because everyone travels,” says Anna. “But assumptions and anecdotes aren’t data, and in the end you won’t make a difference without it.”

Travalytics: Objective data, done right

What makes Travalytics different? The company provides organisations with objective, actionable data on how people travel to and from their sites. The idea is simple but powerful: you can’t change what you don’t measure. 

“We don’t advertise Travalytics as an AI company because frankly, that feels like a gimmick now,” says Michal Stypa, CTO and co-founder. “But yes, we use machine learning - it’s just part of the toolbox, not the headline.”

Beyond reducing climate emissions, sustainable transport also brings other benefits to organisations that work with it - including improved health through active mobility, reduced congestion, better parking solutions and reduced costs for organisations. With Travalytics data, these can be quantified and tracked over time.

Built in Europe’s Innovation Ecosystem

Travalytics started as an innovation project co-funded by EIT Urban Mobility and Drive Sweden, both of which recognised the strategic value of tackling everyday transport. The project included collaboration with Tetra Pak as pilot site and the Danish Society for Engineers (IDA) who brought valuable contribution to the early development.

“We see ourselves as an impact investor who can help innovations get off the ground. We saw potential with Travalytics at an early stage, and we look forward to seeing how they can make a difference to support more sustainable mobility in Europe and across the world by empowering organisations to measure and reduce the environmental impact of commuting through smart, privacy-respecting travel data and actionable insights,” says Adriana Diaz, Innovation Director at EIT Urban Mobility. 

After spinning out the results of the project from the companies Trivector Traffic and Backtick Technologies (leading Swedish consultants in sustainable transport and software development respectively), Travalytics has also received support from the southern Sweden innovation system, including a place at the Helsingborg based Hetch incubator.

What’s Next

The focus is still to make the biggest impact possible.

“We want to help as many organisations as possible work in a data-driven way with travel and commuting,” says Anna. “If we as a society are serious about reaching climate targets, this can’t be a blind spot anymore.”

Travalytics pricing includes a freemium variant to help you get going and is currently welcoming new partners, clients, and collaborators.

More information

For more information about Travalytics and to get started, please visit www.travalytics.io or contact:

Anna Stankovski Clark CEO and Co-founder, Travalytics anna.clark@travalytics.io, +46 (0)761095297

Michal Stypa CTO and Co-founder, Travalytics michal.stypa@travalytics.io

About our funders and the companies behind Travalytics

Funder: EIT Urban Mobility:  Home - EIT Urban Mobility 

Travalytics started as a project co-funded by EIT Urban Mobility, an initiative of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union. EIT Urban Mobility aims to accelerate solutions and the transition towards a user-centric, integrated and truly multimodal transport system. As the leading European innovation community for urban mobility, EIT Urban Mobility works to avoid fragmentation by facilitating collaboration between cities, industry, academia, research and innovation to solve the most pressing mobility challenges of cities. Using cities as living labs, its industry, research and university partners will demonstrate how new technologies can work to solve real problems in real cities by transporting people, goods and waste in smarter ways.

Press Contact Details: Marine Moulin ‐ E: media@eiturbanmobility.eu

Funder: Drive Sweden: A new approach to mobility 

Drive Sweden’s vision is for Sweden to take a leading role in leveraging digital technologies to shape more sustainable transport systems.

About Trivector Traffic 

Trivector develops efficient, inclusive and sustainable transport systems through consultancy and research. International experts in travel surveys and corporate mobility management. Visit www.trivectortraffic.se

About Backtick Technologies

Software engineering experts helping businesses succeed with projects involving data, algorithms and machine learning. On a journey to conquer the world of applied AI with love for beautiful and well-engineered solutions.

Visit www.backtick.se 

About Hetch

HETCH is an early-stage venture builder in the heart of Helsingborg, based in the iconic Prisma building. We provide startups with a community of creative people, expert advisors and mentors, startup programs, coworking, and pre-seed funding.

Together with ambitious founders, we build the future.

Visit: https://hetch.se/