Zum Introduces Zoe, A Conversational AI Assistant Built for Student Mobility

Zoe delivers real-time insights and actionable recommendations to improve reliability, reduce costs

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Nov. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Zūm, a leader in student mobility, today introduced Zoe, a conversational AI assistant built into Zum CMX. Designed for transportation teams, operators, and administrators, Zoe turns each district's own data into clear answers and next steps, helping teams solve problems faster so every student starts the day on time and is ready to learn.

Every morning, student mobility teams make hundreds of decisions in minutes, often with incomplete information. With more than 1 in 5 students chronically absent in the 2024-25 school year, and 7 in 10 school districts surveyed facing driver shortages, the need for faster, smarter decision-making has never been greater. Unlike standalone AI tools layered onto fragmented systems, Zoe is built directly into Zum CMX, a unified system that connects every aspect of student mobility in one platform. With a single source of real-time data across the entire operation, Zoe delivers deeper insights, identifies underlying issues and recommends actionable next steps to improve performance.

"AI is only as powerful as the system and data behind it," said Ritu Narayan, Founder and CEO of Zum. "For decades, student mobility has relied on outdated, disconnected systems that limit visibility and efficiency. We built Zum CMX to change that. Now, with Zoe, we're embedding AI directly into the operating system, turning real-time data into actionable intelligence. This isn't AI layered onto outdated technology. It's AI built into the entire system, synthesizing actionable insights from comprehensive operational data captured through multiple daily touch points, helping districts make smarter decisions, improve reliability and deliver a better experience for students and families."

How Zoe Helps Decision-Making

Zoe is designed to be the colleague who can simultaneously read routes, runs, and timesheets. Whether the issue is information displaced across screens or routes that could run more efficiently, Zoe is built to help close the gap.  The data is protected under Zum's existing data privacy and security commitments.

"In student transportation, every minute matters. Having real-time visibility into our operations is critical, but the real value comes from being able to quickly understand what the data is telling us and take action," said Tomas Beccar Varela, Interim Executive Director of Transportation, San Francisco Unified School District. "We see promise in tools like Zoe that can make complex transportation data easier to access, interpret, and analyze. As we evaluate these capabilities, our focus remains on making more informed operational decisions, improving service reliability, and providing a better transportation experience for students and families."

Zoe will help:

• Improve on-time performance (OTP): Zoe assesses overall OTP and separates isolated incidents from recurring patterns. School mobility leaders can review trends at a glance and receive recommendations for recurring route and timing issues.
• Improve route coverage: By identifying routes that routinely need cover drivers or are frequently split, Zoe helps show the pattern. Zoe can compare the current version of a route or run with a prior one and summarize what's changed.
• Control avoidable pay costs: By spotting unusual paid-hour patterns, Zoe is able to drill into repeated extra stops or unexplained dwell time using historical telematics, and surface specific instances for review and operational efficiency.
• Quickly learn product functionality: Zoe helps transportation teams make the most of Zum CMX by allowing them to ask questions and receive up-to-date, step-by-step guidance tailored to their specific needs and the latest product capabilities.

Zoe was designed with privacy, security and human oversight at its core. Read more here.

The introduction of Zoe marks the next evolution of Zum CMX and Zum's mission to reimagine one of the nation's largest mass mobility systems. With more than 7,500 schools across 19 states relying on Zum CMX, the company continues to bring technology and innovation to an industry that has remained outdated and fragmented for decades.

Built on a shared AI foundation across Zum CMX, Zoe goes beyond identifying operational challenges and can help districts anticipate issues, understand their impact and take action before they disrupt service. As new capabilities are introduced, Zoe will continue to aid in making the entire system smarter and help improve mobility experiences for all stakeholders, advancing Zum's vision of making the ride to school a reliable on-ramp to learning for every student, every morning.

About Zum

Zum is redefining mass mobility with Zum Connected Mobility Experience (CMX), a fully integrated, intelligent system which connects and coordinates people, vehicles, and operations in real time to deliver a reliable, transparent, and efficient mobility experience. Zum is also advancing the transition to electric mobility, turning school buses into mobile energy assets that can support a cleaner, more resilient grid. Today, more than 7,500 schools in 19 states have relied on Zum CMX™. Learn more at www.ridezum.com.

Media Contact
Jenny Mayfield
VP, Communications, Zum
[email protected]

SOURCE Zūm