The human race is traveling at a rate that history has never seen before. Ever since we discovered that flight was possible, people have been moving to and fro faster and at lesser costs. But one thing that travelers don’t always have in mind in emergency preparedness.
Rene, is a company that aims to protect travelers everywhere from unwanted emergencies by providing tailored travel insurance complemented by telemedicine services, wellness programs, and healthcare access in any part of the world. The crown of their service is an artificial intelligence-powered technology that intuitively matches travelers with the right kind of insurance needed, providing adequate coverage. Rene also gives users access to an online medical facility directory, travel advisories, COVID-19 updates, and emergency services.
Gustavo Lindenberg, CTO of Rene and creator of the algorithm, said, “The travel industry hasn’t seen any significant change in the past decade. I crafted this solution, putting the needs of the traveler first. We take into consideration over 10 different parameters to offer the right type of insurance plan for every trip.”
The Rene model puts a particular focus on business travel. However, with the coronavirus crisis blowing up to massive proportions, the company is expanding its offering to leisure travel, partnering up with luxury travel agencies. With COVID-19 in the mix, travel has become strenuous and risky. Apart from dealing with the risks of accidents, food poisoning, lost baggage, theft, and other previous risks, people now face chances of coronavirus infection, which could potentially drop significant medical expenses on a traveler’s lap. Rene CEO, Atilio Spaccarotella explains, “People are afraid to travel. We want to make sure that they have the right tools to navigate the new norm once they are ready to travel.”
Currently, the tech startup from Los Angeles, California, is raising capital to scale its operations, expand its coverage, and create new marketing channels. To date, Rene has received funding and support from two large venture capital firms. Quake Capital, a venture funding firm specializing in seed-stage investment, and Nex Cubed, which mostly works on growth acceleration of tech startup companies, have both given support to the company. “We were impressed by what Rene achieved in such a short period, and how its team was able to adapt and thrive during the coronavirus pandemic.” shares Jason Fernandez. The latter currently works as managing partner of Quake Capital.
The team, led by Atilio Spaccarotella, hopes to use further funding to expand marketing efforts toward luxury travel agencies to secure more clientele. Nowadays, people who travel for leisure don’t always have travel insurance as a top of mind priority. Often, many of them pay the ultimate price after meeting unwanted emergencies during travels, which results in thousands of dollars lost in a mishap that could have been reimbursed by travel insurance. With access to more resources, the company hopes to build critical relationships and invest in channels that will help them tap into this new market and increase their client base.
Rene is changing the way people travel by removing risks and sharing key safety information. The company is encouraging travel agents and corporate travel managers to get in touch with them and explore partnership opportunities.
