
Mission: Rising Tide
Founded in 2011, Rising Tide operates 3 car washes in Broward County Florida, employing 90 Autistic individuals in roles ranging from technicians to location managers.
As Rising Tide contemplates areas to invest, they're wrestling with strategic questions related to automation and AI. E.g. How might the long term viability and success of their core business and mission be impacted by:
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Industrial robots becoming cheaper and replacing workers across service industries
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Self driving cars becoming a reality and driving themselves to fully automated car washes
Contributing CXOs
Car Wash Market Context: Private Equity + Automation
Industry Consolidation
Private Equity firms are aggressively consolidating the car wash industry, increasing market share from 1% to 15% in just five years. Their focus on cost-cutting and automation is in sharp contrast with Rising Tide’s model.
The Dexterity Gap
While car exteriors are easily automated, interior cleaning still presents a challenge for robotics. This gap provides a strategic window for human-centric services like Rising Tide’s to exploit for the foreseeable future.​