Which startup was founded by Logan Green and John Zimmer? The answer is Lyft.
Logan Green and John Zimmer founded the ride-hailing company now known as Lyft. Their partnership began with Zimride, a long-distance carpooling service created in 2007 to help college communities share rides more easily.
Green had experienced the difficulty of arranging transportation between the University of California, Santa Barbara, and Los Angeles. Zimmer, who had worked in the hotel industry, brought experience in transportation and hospitality. Together, they developed Zimride before introducing a more immediate, app-based ridesharing service.
Lyft launched in 2012 as a service of Zimride and became the company’s new name in May 2013. The original Zimride business was sold to Enterprise Holdings later that year. Early Lyft branding included large pink moustaches on drivers’ cars and a friendly, informal rider experience—features that helped distinguish it from traditional taxis.
Lyft is often confused with Uber because both operate ride-hailing networks, but Uber was founded separately. Grab and Didi Chuxing are also different companies founded in other markets.