• Innovation

Carsift: buy the car you need in just one minute

The BNP Paribas International Hackathon (June 17-19, 2016) brought together 96 startups, 350 BNP Paribas specialists, and eight major cities on the forefront of innovation to fulfill one main objective: invent the customer experience of the future. And after a packed weekend, that goal was fully achieved. Nine startups rose to the top of the pack, demonstrating their creativity and keen business vision through their solutions and applications. William Bicknell, founder of Carsift.co, a platform that assists prospective car buyers, tells us why his startup figured among the winners.

How did you come up with the idea for Carsift? 

When it comes to buying a new or used car, six out of 10 people don’t know what vehicle to choose, and 81% want advice from a recommendation engine. We designed Carsift.co to help them find the best car for their needs and budget in no time. 

How is your car-buying platform innovative?

Unlike other online car-buying services, ours doesn’t require any previous knowledge of cars. With Carsift, don’t worry if you have no idea what make and model you want. You just have to answer a few simple questions about your needs: budget, typical trips, types of roads you use, number of passengers, how greatly you value energy efficiency, etc. 

It only takes one minute! In seconds, our algorithm crunches the data to offer you a selection of new and used cars. With other methods, buying a car can take up to 900 digital interactions over several months . By comparison, the speed of Carsift offers a real advantage! 

What is the current status of the platform? 

Following the realization of a POC during the co-working phase, we’re now in the process of refining the questions and answers to make the process even clearer and more intuitive. We aim to launch the service in France, initially in the form of a test, in the next few months. We also plan to create a chatbot version. 

What can your solution offer a bank like BNP Paribas? 

Carsift can help BNP Paribas Personal Finance customers find the right car for their needs and then to offer them funding. Our solution can expand upon the added value that the bank already offers its customers. The idea is to offer consumers a streamlined purchasing experience at every stage from the choice of vehicle to the acquisition.

How was your experience at the BNP Paribas International Hackathon?

The event enabled us to perfect our platform and validate it with specialists in our sector. For a startup, nothing is more important than sharing a disruptive idea with customers, through a co-development approach. Now, we intend to pass the benefits of our success on to BNP Paribas Personal Finance

See the interview

International Hackathon 2016

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The 2016 startup competition challenges today's brightest minds in 8 cities around the world.

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