GM is challenging ZipCar and Uber by launching its new car-sharing service--Maven--in San Francisco. The move is part of GM's strategy to dive into the ride-sharing market. The rental service is exclusively for GM vehicles. Initially, 60 cars will be available at 30 sites across the city.

As San Francisco does not allow for curbside pick-up and drops with full-size vehicles, the service requires the cars to be hired and reverted to the same site. The membership of the service allows for the use of a smartphone as the key. This replaces the need for NFC cards, the option which is used by rental services such as Enterprise CarShare and ZipCar. It also comes with a variety of other features such as OnStar, which helps the user in finding their destination. It can also be used for extending the reservation.

The cars also offer 4G LTE wireless connectivity, Android Auto, and Apple CarPlay services. 

GM is upbeat about San Francisco as it believes that its seamless technological innovations will make it stand apart from the competitors. Julia Steyn, GM's VP of urban mobility, said that the company offers a "fully connected car sharing experience."

GM has priced the service at $8 per hour for cars, while for an SUV, users will need to shell out $14 per hour. GM'sMaven service is already operational in Ann Arbor, Washington D.C. and Los Angeles. San Francisco is the ninth market for the service, which was launched in January this year.