Instant System

Simplifying your journey

Working from Biot, this tech company develops apps to optimise land travel. It calculates the best itineraries for users and promotes sustainable transport.

by Eve Chatelet

Working from Biot, this tech company develops apps to optimise land travel. It calculates the best itineraries for users and promotes sustainable transport. 

After training as an engineer, Yann Hervouet worked on computer processing and transport for Air France, RATP and Geneva’s public transport system. He then founded Instant System jointly with Xavier Lecomte. “Working in the service sector one can jump from one field to another, from agriculture to lost luggage management or whatever. But I wanted to go into one subject in real depth. I’m creative by nature, and transport applications are an easy way to find practical uses for technology and AI,” he says. The company’s Mobility as a Service (MaaS) solutions and websites for transport operators and local authorities complement existing B to C services like Citymapper and Google Maps to make travel easier. How long does a given journey take by scooter, public transport, car or a combination of transport modes? Which is the quickest itinerary given the area and disruptions in real time? With Instant System’s apps, you can also use the single-payment system, recharge your travel card or buy tickets. The trat-up has worked for Cannes, Grasse, Antibes, Marseille and Région Sud’s ZOU! Network – in all a hundred towns and regions including PACA, Rhône-Alpes and Ile-de-France.

For greener travel

There’s a start-up ambience and energy at the company. Its hundred-odd staff are using AI to develop apps faster or create shared databases. “Here we are funding new concepts and hybridising existing ones. We have a team of researchers at the cutting edge of their fields, working with INRIA or the Université Côte d’Azur. To plan an itinerary, we must balance and optimise various goals. It’s not always a matter of finding the fastest time, because some users prefer to avoid changing transport modes if they can. We use traditional methods like operational research to plan an itinerary, and hybridise them with AI for better customisation. For example, if we select 100 best routes, we can offer the user the five that suit them best.” Instant Systems is very strong in France and is working in seven countries. Its sales grew by 80% in 2023. Having raised €8 million in funds through Demeter, it is now launching the EMY solution for companies wanting to offer staff greener travel deals. As with lunch vouchers, the employer gives staff a card that can be used to pay for public transport, car sharing or bicycle repairs, with sustainable travel as the goal.

Localisation Biot

Création 2013

Activité Programmation informatique

Collaborateurs 120 salariés

Capital social + de 10,5 millions en 2023