#22: Mobility Live & Formula One
Our exhibition last week at Mobility Live ME in Abu Dhabi 🇦🇪 was a big success!! It was great connecting with investors and companies based in the United Arab Emirates, and we even got a social media shout out by a representative from the U.S. Department of Commerce. The Future Mobility Zone, where we were located within the venue, presented the most iconic and innovative solutions in mobility. It is where investors look to find their next unicorn and multinational companies look to create partnerships and acquisitions.
We met with people from Mercedes, Continental, Audi, Admiral Mobility, Abu Dhabi Government, Citroen, Emirates Driving, and many other prominent organizations and venture funds based in the UAE. Our METL airless bicycle tire was also selected as 1 of the top 4 innovative technologies to be additionally featured in a special showcase, so we had a presence in two different areas of the venue. We were really surprised that a lot of locals had already heard of us!
Additionally, The SMART Tire Company got the opportunity to visit Yas Marina Circuit 🇦🇪, for an exclusive tour and behind-the-scenes look at what makes the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix so... GRAND! The Yas Marina Circuit hosts the season finale race for Formula One. 🏁 We were honored with the opportunity to walk onto the track (where F1 legends like Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher were crowned champions) and also go inside the main tower to get a UAE royal's view from above! We will continue to explore the multi-billion dollar motor sports industry (F1, NASCAR, Indy, etc.), developing new tire technologies that could have a positive and safer impact on the future of racing.
If you're not familiar, F1 is the premier international racing league and is a fast-growing sport in America (most recent race was in Miami) with an estimated market value of around $17B. For perspective, in the 2022 season, NASCAR averaged over three million viewers per race, the most they've had in four years. Meanwhile, the 2022 Formula 1 season saw an average of 70 million viewers per race. This is why The SMART Tire Company is working on an F1 car tire concept (in addition to our current automotive work with Hyundai/Kia), which could totally change the game one day!
Our experience in Abu Dhabi was well worth the 16 hour plane ride and 108 degree weather with 60% humidity. We have already started booking follow-up meetings & greetings and look forward to sharing more good news with our SMART investors, soon. Stay tuned!
The SMART Tire Company
