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For years, driving schools taught students about the art of driving by using old school ways of teaching and analysing their performance. But, the real problem was that it was just time-consuming, unsafe, and stressful.
Driving schools were looking for something more than that – an automated system to help their students build skills fast, at a low cost and without risking a student’s life.
But most of them were stuck in traditional ways, and it was time for a breakthrough.
A startup disrupting the driver training industry by leveraging advanced technologies to improve muscle memory and learner retention.
Vr7ual is a Canadian company operating in Ontario that incorporates simulation technology into Ministry Approved training. The company uses virtual reality to train drivers with real-life scenario training but within a reliable and secure environment.
The Concept
Vr7ual is set out to disrupt the driver training industry by helping driving schools –
Develop engaging teaching content,
Make the user experience more engaging by using simulation technology,
Create scenarios that are risky to create in real life,
Create an environment that’s risk-free and secure,
Get more out of data and analytics, and
Widen their horizon by providing digital instructor support.
In the words of the startup’s spokesperson –
“We have built a custom Learning Management System to house our driver training curriculum that can be scaled and delivered to thousands of students per month across the province and beyond. The idea is to then have a custom-built Virtual Reality training program that takes a student through all of the elements that make up their road test and allow them to practice their skills in a completely safe and stress-free environment. Simulated training has been proving to build muscle memory and diminish the learning curve for new drivers, resulting in safer roadways.”
The Offering
The company has developed an offering pin pointing the exact problem that has been bugging driving schools for years – a way to train students online and expand their business.
It caters to driving tools and help them expand their horizons by incorporating virtual technology with traditional driver training methods to offer a more engaging experience to the students.
Adding the VR element allows for extra muscle memory building and allows students to test out their skills in a completely safe, stress-free environment.
The best part?
Schools can train their students for the worst-case scenarios in a completely safe environment.
In the word of the founders – “We offer an intuitive and simple to use solution for driving schools that help manage the delivery of online training to their students. The administrative backend has been meticulously designed and built in partnership with a current multi-location driving school and has been designed to address a multitude of pain points that school owners and administrators experience every day.”
The Value Proposition
VR7UAL has created a unique learning platform that allows driving schools to deliver beginner driver’s education through virtual reality (VR). This results in a safer, more efficient driving school experience.
Moreover, VR7UAL provides virtual training, helping to reduce the cost of driver’s ed training. With the use of VR, learners can complete their training at their own place and receive personalised feedback while also receiving a simulated education on the road, including how to handle emergencies.
VR7UAL also allows instructors to view their trainees’ progress in real-time, ensuring that they are always in control of the course.
In simple terms, the startup provides exceptional services to driving schools and driving school students to enhance their learning experience using virtual reality.
The Interview
We discussed the startup’s concept, vision, and prospects with Keith Charlebois, the cofounder of VR7UAL Inc. Here are his thoughts on the startup
How is your offering disrupting the industry?
Our curriculum has been called “Impressive” and “one of the most thoughtful and thorough curriculums ever seen” with regards to driver training by the governing body who reviews and approves such curriculums. Our future build VR software program will be the first of its kind in Ontario.
What about the competition? How are you better than others?
The offerings from the competition lack simplicity and are cumbersome to use for their customers. The curriculum content has been reported as dull and boring, and schools are eager to have another option that can deliver a better experience for their students/customers.
How it all started? What made this startup happen?
Our story begins with a vision of incorporating new technology into an archaic learning model. The founder, an avid supporter of F1 racing, began building driving simulators after using simulated training extensively in his previous career. The idea spawned to bring this new and amazing technology to the everyday consumer by making a part of the government endorsed training for new drivers.
Tell us about your team
We are a small group of 4 individuals, with a couple of contract helpers.
The founder is the lead visionary of the company and looks after finances and R&D for simulation.
The Director of Operations looks after day-to-day project management as well as produces creatives and production elements.
Our Lead Software Developer is responsible for coding and outsourcing dev contracts as needed.
The Account Manager heads up sales outreach and manages client relationships.
What’s the progress till now, and what are you expecting in the future?
We are very close to having our MVP curriculum approved by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario and once complete, we have at least half a dozen or so clients ready to sign up immediately, with the goal of signing up a total of 100 schools in the first six months. MRR at 100 schools will be roughly $200K. We are targeting 300 schools by the end of year 2, for an MRR of approximately $600K.
Feedough’s Take On Vr7ual
The driver training industry was at a standstill and Vr7ual brought in the innovation it needed to operate. Their VR technology offers an exciting way to train drivers without having them actually spend time on risky roads. They use their virtual reality system to place drivers in realistic scenarios. The technology allows them to show drivers what their car might look like if it hit a tree or what the inside of a crashed vehicle would look like.
Moreover, they can show them how they would react if that happened. Virtual reality offers a completely new way to deliver quality training to drivers. Not only is it more immersive than conventional methods, but it’s also more cost-effective. Vr7ual’s success has been driven by the fact that they can bring their product to the market faster, scale at a faster pace, and even help the driving schools get better, all while adhering to the government standards.
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A startup consultant, digital marketer, traveller, and philomath. Aashish has worked with over 20 startups and successfully helped them ideate, raise money, and succeed. When not working, he can be found hiking, camping, and stargazing.
