Bird, the embattled e-scooter company, received a loan worth between $ 5 and $ 10 million from the Federal Government’s Check Protection Program (PPP) in late April. The company said in its request to the Treasury Department and the Small Business Association that the loan would help it retain 341 jobs. But less than a month earlier, Bird laid off more than 400 employees, or about 30 percent of its staff.
But Bird argues that it should not be included in the government list. “Bird mistakenly appeared as a company that applied for a PPP loan,” said a company spokesperson. “We do not request or receive a PPP loan. As a company, we decided not to apply, as we did not want to divert critical funds from local small businesses. ”
Bird CEO Travis VanderZanden also tweeted about the government list:
Bird decided not to move forward with PPP b / c, we felt that small local businesses needed the money more. Citi will confirm that we speak, but we never applied for the loan and therefore did not receive a loan. Update the article with the full Bird quote we sent.
– Travis VanderZanden (@travisv) July 6, 2020
Bird was one of the names of companies that took out small business loans of more than $ 150,000 launched today by the Treasury Department after lawmakers pushed for more transparency. In addition to the scooter startup, there are a number of leading autonomous vehicle companies, LIDAR manufacturers, and other “mobility” companies on the list.
- TuSimple, an autonomous trucking company with offices in the US and China, received a loan of between $ 2 and $ 5 million. The startup said in its request to the Treasury Department and the Small Business Association that the loan would help it retain 324 jobs.
- Luminar, an Orlando-based company that is manufacturing LIDAR laser sensors for Volvo, Toyota, and other automakers working on autonomous vehicles, took out a $ 5-10 million loan to retain 341 jobs.
- Kodiak Robotics, a self-driving trucking company currently delivering cargo in Texas, obtained a loan in the range of $ 1 million to $ 2 million to save 87 jobs.
- Udelv, a freelance delivery company that is partnering with Walmart and Baidu, received a loan in the range of $ 350,000 to $ 1 million. (The company did not disclose how many jobs it would hold.)
- Optimus Ride, a Boston-based AV company with operations in Brooklyn and Northern Virginia, received a loan in the range of $ 2 million to $ 5 million to retain 159 jobs.
- Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, a California-based company that emerged to fulfill Elon Musk’s vision for transportation in 2013, received a loan in the range of $ 150,000 to $ 350,000 to retain 15 jobs.
- RideCell, a trading platform for transportation companies, received a loan in the range of $ 2 million to $ 5 million to retain 246 jobs.
- Bolt Mobility, a micro-mobility company that offers a range of electric vehicles for rent, obtained a loan in the range of $ 350,000 to $ 1 million to save 18 jobs.
- Turo, a San Francisco-based car-sharing company, received a loan in the range of $ 5 million to $ 10 million. (The company did not disclose how many jobs it would hold.)
- May Mobility, a Michigan-based autonomous transportation company, took out a loan in the $ 1 million to $ 2 million range to save 58 jobs.
- Velodyne, the leading manufacturer of LIDAR in the United States, received a loan in the range of $ 5 million to $ 10 million to retain 450 jobs.
- LIDAR maker Aeye obtained a loan in the range of $ 2 million to $ 5 million to save 85 jobs.
Update July 6, 2:53 PM ET: Updated to include a Bird statement.
