Connecting automotive communities through mobile, web and real-time driving technology.
Software Yard designed and built AUTOID from the ground up: a connected platform for car enthusiasts. It combines an iOS and Android app for community, commerce and driving with a real-time backend and a web admin dashboard.
The Challenge
Car enthusiasts need more than a social feed. They want one place to discover content, shop for parts, manage their cars, plan routes and drive together in real time. AUTOID needed a team to build that from scratch — mobile, web, backend and live services working as one product.
What We Did
- 1
Discovery & product foundations
defined the core experiences (feed, forums, shop, garage, routes) and set up the three codebases with shared authentication.
- 2
Building the mobile app
a React Native / Expo app for iOS and Android with a media-rich feed, reels, forums, profiles, friends and notifications.
- 3
Real-time driving features
route planning with Mapbox, solo cruises, live convoys with voice chat, community cruises, drive recaps, drive points and live hazard alerts, powered by WebSocket services.
- 4
Commerce & integrations
a Shopify storefront and checkout inside the app, plus wishlists, orders, product reviews (Okendo) and support chat (Gorgias).
- 5
Safety features
SOS alerts, emergency contacts and convoy safety tools, with SMS delivery via Twilio.
- 6
Web admin dashboard
a React dashboard for analytics and managing posts, forums, routes, authors and convoys.
- 7
Release automation & ongoing evolution
GitHub Actions deployments, over-the-air app updates via EAS, and continuous feature delivery.
The Outcome
AUTOID launched as one connected product. Drivers use the app to meet, shop and drive together; admins manage content and track activity in the dashboard. A shared API and real-time services sit behind both. Automated releases let new features reach users quickly.