TL;DR: If you are replacing Open Motors, the closest options are Nimbus, Passenger AI, lvl5. The table below compares 12 alternatives on what they do, stage, size and status.
Every alternative below is compared on what it actually does, not just its category — so you can see which one genuinely replaces Open Motors (YC Winter 2016).
Last verified:
The three closest alternatives to Open Motors are:
| Alternative | What it does | Stage | Team | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nimbus | Tesla for city dwellers | YC Winter 2020 | 5 | Inactive |
| Passenger AI | Software for robotaxi operations. | YC Summer 2018 | 5 | Inactive |
| lvl5 | HD maps for self-driving cars. | YC Winter 2017 | 6 | Acquired |
| Boost Biomes | — | YC Summer 2019 | 12 | Inactive |
| ThereCraft | — | YC Summer 2017 | 1 | Active |
| Zendar | We make high definition radar allowing self-driving cars to see in… | YC Summer 2017 | 45 | Active |
| Bindwell | Discovering new pesticides with AI | YC Winter 2025 | 13 | Active |
| Faction | Driverless electric vehicles at a fraction of the cost of a car. | YC Winter 2021 | 25 | Inactive |
| Iron Grid | Foundational models for risk and quality. | YC Summer 2025 | 2 | Active |
| Heart Aerospace | Heart makes electric airplanes with an all-electric range of 250 miles | YC Winter 2019 | 50 | Active |
| Cruise | Self-driving cars. | YC Winter 2014 | 3000 | Acquired |
| Embark Trucks | Self-driving semi trucks. | YC Winter 2016 | 300 | Public |
It depends on your size. Nimbus is the closest match on what Open Motors actually does. If you need something more established, sort the table by team size — larger teams generally mean more support and a longer track record. If budget is the constraint, the earlier-batch companies are usually the ones still competing on price.
Open Motors is no longer listed as active, so anyone still relying on it should plan a migration to one of the alternatives above.
Every company here is Y Combinator-backed and was matched to Open Motors on what it actually does — its own description of its product — rather than on a broad category label. Batch, team size and operating status come from the YC directory and are shown as-is. We do not rank by payment.
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