Press Archive
A Commodity Futures Exchange for Transportation
TEXXI (Transit Exchange XXI Century) pioneered the concept of treating roadspace-time as a tradeable commodity—applying financial exchange principles to urban mobility. Conceived in 2003 and publicly deployed in 2006, the system predated the smartphone app era (we launched on the O2 XDA before the iPhone existed) and anticipated the ridehail revolution by nearly a decade.
O2 XDA prototype — developed before the iPhone launch
"A Transit Exchange for the 21st Century – with a decade of hard work and perseverance finally destined to pay off." Comprehensive feature explaining how the Transit Exchange concept applies financial market mechanisms (blockchain, predictive analytics, commodity futures) to solve urban mobility challenges.
View Publication"It's a solution any 14-year-old would love: The challenges of foreign oil dependency, global warming, and gridlock are not so big that you can't text-message your way out of them." Feature article exploring how Texxi could revolutionize urban transit globally.
View ArticleCoverage of the innovative SMS-based cab-sharing system operating in Liverpool and expanding to other UK locations.
View ArticleBusiness and technology coverage of the Texxi demand-responsive transit model and its potential market applications.
View ArticleNational coverage of how mobile technology is being leveraged to create more efficient urban transportation systems.
View Article"If you have ever waited an eternity for a cab on a freezing Toronto night, then fought others when one finally stopped before paying a small fortune to get you home, a U.K. taxi-sharing system called Texxi might be the solution."
View ArticleIn-depth feature on demand-responsive transport innovation. "Texxi was trialled in Liverpool from March to September 2006, and has been used in locations on the Isle of Wight since July 2008."
"A new text service is to be launched in the coming weeks to help Islanders get home safely after a night out. TEXXI, rolled out in connection with the Lucie Blackman Trust, will allow revellers to text an Isle of Wight Council licensed taxi."
Early coverage of the environmental benefits of the Texxi model, highlighting reduced congestion, fuel use, and emissions through intelligent ride-sharing.
View Article"The Texxi model is intriguing because it seems to be addressing some of the barriers about ride-sharing. If they have a phone, they send a text message, and there you go."
— Susan Shaheen, Transportation Expert, University of California, Berkeley
Analysis comparing Texxi's 2006 public deployment and filings against Facebook's location-sharing patent
| Facebook Claim Element | Matching Texxi Disclosure | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| A mobile client transmits a location-based status to a server | Texxi rider sends an SMS containing destination code; the server associates that message with the handset's origin cell / GPS fix | Origin location is implicitly or explicitly sent with the status message |
| Server stores the check-in in a location database | "Every single trip is logged. ... Texxi Travellogs" | Same function: persisting the user's geo-tagged update |
| Server shares a friend's location with other authorised users | Texxi Groups let riders restrict matches to "friends and friends-of-friends" and expose location only within that circle | Disclosure of selective sharing for social-graph subsets |
| Client retrieves nearby friends' locations | Texxi smartphone demo (O2 XDA video, 2006) shows a map with black squares marking other group members around the user (pull or push) | Visual embodiment, predating 2007 |
| Optional street-address extraction from raw co-ordinates | Texxi patent claims "responding ... with ride information" including pick-up address and cross-street for both driver and passenger | Reverse-geocode step is inherent in giving a driver a pick-up address |
Award submission for PIARC Prizes 2007 (Road Safety category) citing Texxi as a key example of innovative taxi-sharing schemes for the future of intelligent transport systems. The paper envisioned Texxi-style systems as part of the 2012 London Olympics infrastructure.
"Conceived while co-founder Eric Masaba was working for a hedge fund, Texxi is credit contagion theory modified to maximizing vehicle resources during spikes in demand."
Discussion of potential Australian implementation of the Texxi system, noting the high adoption rate of text messaging in the Australian market.
View ArticleReid Hoffman
Co-founder, LinkedIn
"I'm very supportive of your idea in concept."
Institute of Economic Affairs
UK Think Tank
Multiple lunches and seminars hosted discussing the free-market transit model.
International Investor Interest
Multi-Region
Inquiries from Texas, California, North Carolina, Australia, and both Bush and Clinton administration contacts.
National Grid: Weather effects on electricity transmission & demand management
Royal Air Force Officer Cadet Flying Programme, University of London
Imperial College sponsored project: "The Role of Computers in Transportation Technology"
Project Lugh: Ridesharing project at École Centrale de Lyon using distributed encrypted databases
Financial operations in investment banks and hedge funds; front/middle/back office systems
Xaraf LLC: Credit Default Swap trading and Capital Structure Arbitrage — credit contagion ideas emerge
TEXXI founded — Transit Exchange concept crystallizes
Liverpool pilot launch (Mar–Sep); O2 XDA smartphone app demonstrated
Isle of Wight deployment with Lucie Blackman Trust partnership
TEXXI pioneered the "Transit Exchange" concept—treating roadspace-time as a tradeable commodity analogous to airspace slots or electromagnetic spectrum. The system applies financial market mechanisms (futures, yield curves, market makers, demand-responsive pricing) to urban transportation, creating what we termed the "RoadSpaceTime Continuum."
"What if we treated roadspace like airspace?"
TEXXI = Transit Exchange XXIst Century