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Posted By

Aaron Mireles

PODCAST HOUSTON FINTECH STARTUP TAPS INTO NEW TECH TO MODERNIZE 'DAILY JOURNEYS'

Before Don Frieden started his company, gas stations hadn’t innovated their payment technology
since 1997. He knew that needed to change.

Original Post | Innovationmap

Before Don Frieden started his company, gas stations hadn't innovated their payment technology since 1997. He knew that needed to change.

P97, founded in 2012, exists to use innovative technologies to simplify and energize daily journeys, Frieden explains on the Houston Innovators Podcast.

The fast-growing company — which has nearly 200 employees, most of whom work from Houston — has raised over $100 million in venture funding, according to Crunchbase, most recently closing a $40 million series C round earlier this year. This funding has supported P97 as its expanded its technology, even expanding outside of gas station payments and into other sectors, like consumer packaged goods, mobile app development, and alternative fuel sources.

Part of what P97 is focused on too is adapting new technologies, including biometrics, and applying them to the payments world. Voice-enabled payments is something in particular that Frieden is working on.

"One of the things we’re most excited about is voice enable payments through our partnership with Amazon's Alexa," he explains. "The landscape of payments at gas stations underwent this next revolution, and we're using cutting-edge speech recognition and artificial intelligence to allow drivers to pay for fuel just using their voice.

"It makes the process faster and more efficient, and is completely hands-free," he continues, explaining that biometrics are also safer compared to card transactions. "From this time I say, 'Alexa, buy gas,' six seconds later, the gas would be turned on and any loyalty rewards I have would be applied, all from the comfort of my car."

Frieden shares more about the future of P97, payments, and the energy industry as it intersects with P97 — including the future of alternative fuels — on the podcast. Listen to the interview below — or wherever you stream your podcasts — and subscribe for weekly episodes.

HOUSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX), a diversified energy manufacturing and logistics company, has worked with P97 Networks, a leader in cloud-based mobile commerce, to enable Google Pay across their network of 7,000 sites.

Drivers will be able to locate, fill up and pay for fuel at Phillips 66®, Conoco® and 76® branded stations from within the Google Pay app using P97 Networks’ mobile payment gateway. Google Pay, available on both Android and iOS, is a safe, helpful way to pay and manage money.

“This new capability will dramatically improve the fueling experience for drivers at the pump,” Donald Frieden, founder and CEO of P97 said. “We are excited to be collaborating with Phillips 66 and Google Pay to build the foundation for future innovations in mobility solutions.”

About Phillips 66
Phillips 66 is a diversified energy manufacturing and logistics company. With a portfolio of Midstream, Chemicals, Refining, and Marketing and Specialties businesses, the company processes, transports, stores and markets fuels and products globally. Phillips 66 Partners, the company’s master limited partnership, is integral to the portfolio. Headquartered in Houston, the company has 14,500 employees committed to safety and operating excellence. Using a network of branded marketers and dealers operating approximately 7,500 outlets, its U.S. Marketing business supplies TOP TIER® Detergent Gasolines under the Phillips 66®, 76® and Conoco® brands. Phillips 66 had $54 billion of assets as of Sept. 30, 2020. For more information, visit https://www.phillips66.com or follow us on Twitter @Phillips66Co.

About P97 Networks, Inc.
P97 Networks provides secure, cloud-based mobile commerce, in-vehicle payments, and digital marketing solutions for the convenience retail, fuel, and vehicle manufacturing industries under the brand name PetroZone®. P97’s mCommerce solutions enhance the ability to attract, engage, and retain shoppers by securely connecting millions of individual mobile phones and connected cars with merchants using identity and geolocation-based software that creates a unique mobile consumer experience. For more information, follow us on Twitter @p97networks or visit www.p97.com.

Contacts

Aaron Mireles
(281) 954-1706
Aaron.mireles@p97.com