Zum Achieves Record Revenue in 2025, Scaling Rapidly in the Largest Mass Mobility Market
Zūm today announced unaudited 2025 financial highlights, reflecting sustained growth at scale as the company expands in the $50 billion student mobility market, the largest segment of the mass mobility industry, and one of the last segments still underserved by AI and cloud technology.
2025 Financial Highlights:
- Revenue of $333 million, up 35% year-over-year
- Four-year revenue CAGR of greater than 40%
- Over $2 billion in Total Contract Value (TCV)
- Adjusted EBITDA1 breakeven and steadily improving contribution margin
“Every weekday, 26 million American students ride the school bus — three times more passengers than U.S. airlines carry — making it the largest mass transportation system in the country and one of the last to undergo technological transformation,” said Ritu Narayan, Zum Founder and CEO. “For too long, families have faced morning anxiety, wondering if the bus will arrive, if it is safe, and when their kids will get home. We are redefining mobility by moving far beyond legacy models to create a connected, intelligent system for the communities we serve. In student transportation, that means replacing legacy infrastructure with a dynamic, technology-enabled platform — transforming what was once a standalone service into a responsive ecosystem that anticipates and adapts to the needs of districts and families.”
A Durable Business Model Driving Scalable Growth
Today Zum serves more than 4,000 schools across 15 states. Zum’s business model is built on structural advantages that drive predictable, profitable growth:
- Long-term contracted revenue: 5-10 year agreements with school districts, delivering predictable cash flow, with an established track record of improving profitability
- Exceptional retention: Strong customer loyalty, with growing revenue as existing customers expand their utilization of Zum services
“Our strong unit economics and long-term contracted revenue demonstrate the scalability of our platform,” said Daniel Berenbaum, Zum’s Chief Financial Officer. “We achieved Adjusted EBITDA breakeven while growing revenue 35% year-over-year, validating our disciplined approach to expansion. Student mobility is one of the last major undigitized sectors, representing a $50 billion segment of the mass mobility industry. While legacy competitors manage physical assets, Zum is deploying a modern, scalable system driven by technology, operational excellence, and safety — using real-time data to connect people, vehicles, and the energy grid, delivering better outcomes for all.”
AI-Powered Technology Driving Reliability and Safety
Zum uses AI and advanced technologies to ensure drivers take the most efficient, logical routes, a departure from traditional routing methods that have been used for decades. The system is designed specifically for the unique requirements of student mobility, from complex routing algorithms that account for tiered bell schedules and custom needs, to safety protocols that meet and exceed both bus company and ride-share standards.
Zum’s platform also includes mobile apps and web dashboards for students, parents, drivers, dispatchers, and school administrators, enabling enhanced visibility, greater trust, streamlined communication, and incident-tracking capabilities, all powered by real-time data in a single integrated platform.
Modernizing Infrastructure and Powering the Grid
Zum’s electrification strategy represents another step in modernization, turning an underutilized asset into an energy resource to power the grid. Zum’s vehicle-to-grid technology transforms school bus parking yards into virtual power plants, storing and distributing energy to support grid resilience. Zum made history in the 2024–25 school year by deploying the nation’s first fully electric school bus fleet in the Oakland Unified School District in California, and recently announced plans to launch a fully electric fleet with vehicle-to-grid (V2G) capabilities for Branford Public Schools in Connecticut beginning in the 2026–27 school year.
Delivering Measurable Impact at Scale
Zum’s impact is measurable and significant:
- Reliability: On average, 98% on-time performance
- Cost Savings: San Francisco Unified has cut annual transportation costs by up to 10% using Zum’s technology-driven platform to optimize routes, fleet utilization, and daily operations. That budget flexibility can enable districts to reinvest directly in classroom priorities such as instructional resources, staffing, and student support, strengthening both academic outcomes and long-term sustainability
- Transformational Customer Impact: With Zum, school districts use up to 25% fewer assets by utilizing a multi-size vehicle fleet, spend up to 20% less time through optimized routes, and report 30% higher asset utilization throughout each day
- Efficiency: Through intelligent routing, Oakland Unified has cut one‑hour or longer commutes from 70% to under 10%, reducing average bus stop time from 3 minutes to just 8 seconds
- Student Experience: Parents have rated Zum with a 4.9 out of 5-star rating in student experience across 1.5 million reviews
- Attendance: After partnering with Zum, Kansas City Public Schools saw an 89% increase in ridership driven by improved reliability and reduced transportation-related absences in secondary schools from 25% to 5.6% during the 2024–25 school year
- Growth: Safely completed 68.5 million student rides in 2025, up 120% over 2024
___________- Adjusted EBITDA means earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, and excluding stock-based compensation and certain non-recurring items, including non-cash charges related to prior periods.