INTERVIEW Startup takes deaf cab drivers mainstream
Passengers can communicate with drivers who are deaf or hard of hearing, using the Goyohan Taxi app installed on a tablet PC. / Courtesy of Coactus
By Baek Byung-yeul
Song Min-pyo, Coactus CEO / Courtesy of Coactus
People who are deaf or hard of hearing face a great deal of difficulties in finding jobs here. But thanks to one local startup, they can work as cab drivers if they choose to.
Using the Goyohan Taxi app installed on tablets in the taxi ― one in the front for the driver and one in the back ― passengers are able to give their destinations to the driver by writing or typing into the tablets, and pay by clicking a button on the screen.
Only 17 cabbies who are deaf or hard of hearing are currently driving the streets of Seoul, Namyangju in Gyeonggi Province and Gyeongju in North Gyeongsang Province.
However, Song Min-pyo, CEO of Coactus that operates the Goyohan Taxi app, said the number of drivers will increase to 30 by the end of 2019 and will soon grow to 100 so that more people can use the hassle-free taxi service.
“Goyohan literally means calm or silent in Korean. We use the word goyohan because passengers silently communicate with cabbies using tablet PCs,” Song told The Korea Times at Coactus' office in Seoul, Nov. 12.
“Coactus teaches people with hearing difficulties so that they can qualify for the taxi driver test and helps them become cabbies for local taxi companies. The service was started in June 2018 and now 17 people who are hard of hearing or deaf are driving taxis,” he said.
The 26-year-old CEO, who majored in computer science at Dongguk University, decided to start his own business in 2017 instead of seeking a job at a large company as he wanted to run a social enterprise that can resolve social issues.
While looking for a business idea, Song and his company members found that Uber, the world's largest ride-hailing service, was hiring thousands of deaf and hard-of-hearing people as drivers.
“We were partially inspired by Uber and other major ride-hailing services around the world which hire hearing-impaired drivers. But both drivers and passengers of the ride-hailing services have difficulties as they communicate with each other by writing on paper. So we decided to develop a communication tool enabling them to communicate easily and safely,” Song said.
He added the Goyohan Taxi will become a useful example of offering new job opportunities to the deaf and hard of hearing.
“When preparing for the business, we saw that many people who are deaf struggle with unemployment. Every disabled person experiences difficulties in getting a job, but deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals have especially slim opportunities because there are no specialized job positions for them,” he said.
According to data by the Korea Employment Agency for Persons with Disabilities (KEAD), the employment rate of people who are deaf or hard of hearing was 60.7 percent during the April-June period of 2019, while the rate is at 86.1 percent for the visually impaired, 67.2 percent for people with autistic spectrum disorder and 65.6 percent for those with intellectual disabilities.
“Though we only have 17 drivers hired by taxi companies, we expect the figure could reach 30 by the end of 2019 as more than 10 drivers are currently undergoing job training and will soon become regular drivers," he said.
"The passengers' reaction to the Goyohan Taxi service is overwhelmingly positive. Given taxi companies that struggle with labor shortages are increasingly asking us about the service, we expect we can contribute to raising the employment rate of hearing-impaired people."
Speaking of how the company generates profit, Song said it has set up a win-win business model for both itself and taxi franchises as the company sells its tablet PCs installed with the Goyohan Taxi app to a state-run agency that specializes in supporting the disabled and taxi firms receive government subsidies for hiring deaf people and the hard of hearing.
“I've been running the company through a business-to-government model and a business-to-business model. We make money by selling tablet PCs that contain the Goyohan Taxi app to the KEAD as the agency purchases devices that the disabled need in their workplaces. Also, taxi companies pay us a monthly usage fee for use of our Goyohan Taxi service,” he said.
“But there is nothing to lose for taxi companies because they receive government subsidies for hiring the disabled as cabbies. In addition, taxi companies said hearing-impaired cabbies make more money ― about 300,000 won more on a monthly average basis ― than non-disabled drivers. So hiring people with hearing difficulties as cabbies is a win-win for both Coactus and taxi franchises,” Song said.
Song added the real problem of this business is finding people who have hearing difficulties who want to become drivers who ferry passengers. “As there has been no service like this before, it is really difficult to promote our business model to more people,” he said.
Coactus CEO Song Min-pyo, second from left, poses with the organizers of the 2020 Dubai Expo, after making the finals of the Expo Live Innovation Impact Grant Program in Dubai, Aug. 23. / Courtesy of Coactus
Seeking to expand overseas
Song said Coactus is also looking to expand into the overseas market as the company won a chance to promote its deaf taxi app business to buyers from all over the world at the Expo which will be held in Dubai from October 2020 to April 2021.
As Dubai is a destination for next year's Expo, which will feature buyers, visitors and government officials from more than 192 countries, the United Arab Emirates recognized startups that have innovative business ideas and Coactus made the finalists of the contest in August, winning prize money of $100,000.
As a winner of the event, Coactus earned an opportunity to set up a booth and promote its business model to international buyers.
“Thankfully, we were selected as one of the finalists of the Expo Live Innovation Impact Grant Program for the 2020 Dubai Expo. The organizers recognized startups that deal with businesses that fit into the themes of the expo, which are opportunity, mobility and sustainability. We were the only Korean company to make the finals among 4,500 companies from all over the world,” Song said.
Song said there is probably a need for a communication tool between hearing-impaired cabbies and passengers like the Goyohan Taxi in many other countries.
“We assume there will be tens of thousands of drivers who are deaf around the world given Uber employs more than 6,000. And we think there must be a need for services like the Goyohan Taxi in many countries. Taking the Dubai Expo as a chance, we will promote our business to sell our business model to overseas markets,” he said.
Pursuing 'profitable' social enterprise
Many social enterprises run businesses to benefit society while attempting to generate their own revenue and so is Coactus.
Song is confident that he can make Coactus a profitable and socially-beneficial company.
“To become a certified social enterprise in Korea, companies should win an accreditation from the Korea Social Enterprise Promotion Agency. Though our company is not certified by the agency, I define Coactus as a social venture that pursues to both generate revenue and benefit society,” he said.
“We share the value of trying to make money by solving consumers' needs, with many other companies. Coactus also seeks to make money by addressing social needs through our product,” the CEO said.