Startup partners with Uber to sell snacks in the back seat

A startup called Cargo is partnering with Uber to sell snacks and give away free samples to passengers.

A startup named Cargo has been placing little vending machine-style boxes in the backseats of ridesharing cars for a year. Now, the company is getting a major push from Uber thanks to a new exclusive partnership.

The company supplies free boxes to Uber drivers filled with a selection of snacks and essentials.

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"It’s essentially a two-sided marketplace inside the car and it’s a way for passengers to get what they need," said Jeff Cripe, co-founder of Cargo.

We met up in Hollywood to talk about his company and make a sample purchase from the box.

"We have mints, we typically have water, we have all those daily essentials, breath fresheners if you’re going on a date… pain relief, hangover cures if you’ve had a rough night before… of course, a snack bar, we have iPhone chargers," said Cripe.

Tech Reporter Rich DeMuro with Cargo co-founder Jeff Cripe

Once you make your purchase or select some free items, the driver gets a notification. They retrieve the items from the box and hand them to you when it's safe - usually at the conclusion of the ride.

"We've processed over 500-thousand transactions and we’ve never literally had a single complaint from a passenger about safety," concluded Cripe.

Signing up for Cargo is free for drivers. The company expects to make its way into 20,000 cars across the country in 2018.