Saleh Zarandah (By Farida Abdelnabi)
A London, Ont. based tech startup is aiming to take the stress and guesswork out of buying a used vehicle in Canada by flipping the script on how the industry serves consumers.
Uobo, founded by Saleh Zarandah, is relaunching nationally with a revamped platform that blends AI technology, user-focused design, and free expert guidance to help Canadians find their next car with confidence without setting foot in a dealership.
“The biggest problem with buying a used car is that the system is built for sellers not buyers,” said Zarandah, Ubo’s co-founder. “We wanted to flip that dynamic and create something truly customer-centric.”
The company started as a local marketplace for used cars in the London area but quickly realized that most platforms still required consumers to navigate a complicated, often intimidating process on their own. For many people, especially first-time buyers understanding financing, trim levels, and car values can feel overwhelming.
Zarandah says his experience buying his first car was so confusing that even with some industry knowledge, he wasn’t sure he got a fair deal. That feeling helped inspire what Uobo has become today: a consultative platform that acts more like a personal car-buying advisor than a sales tool.
The Uobo experience starts with the “Find That Car” feature, where users are asked questions about their lifestyle, preferences, and budget rather than the typical year-make-model input.
“Most people don’t know the exact car they want. What they do know is how they’ll use it, how much they want to spend, and what features matter to them,” said Zarandah. “That’s what our system is built around.”
Using proprietary software and AI, Uobo scans real time listings from dealerships across Canada, filtering them based on the user’s needs and presenting a top three personalized shortlist, complete with photos, spec comparisons, and plain language breakdowns. A human expert is also available through email or social media if customers need help understanding their options or have questions about financing.
Saleh Zarandah and Uobo staff (By Farida Abdelnabi)
“We built Uobo to scale, so the consultative part is baked into the technology but, there’s always a real person there when you need them,” Zarandah said.
Zarandah studied game design at Fanshawe College, and credit their background in creative, interactive design for shaping how Uobo approaches user
experience. After graduation, both moved into roles focused on customer engagement and design, eventually identifying a gap in the car-buying process that lacked empathy and transparency.
“We come from a creative background, and we saw the car buying process hadn’t changed in decades,” Zarandah said. “It was ripe for disruption.”
That disruption is now spreading beyond Southwestern Ontario. The company’s national relaunch expands access to Uobo’s full platform across Canada, allowing users in any province to receive personalized car matches with no obligation or pressure.
But scaling hasn’t been easy.
“The automotive industry is a legacy space. You can’t just build a product and expect it to work the way it might in retail or software,” said Zarandah. “The biggest challenge was access to inventory data being able to show customers real, accurate options from dealerships across the country. We’ve now solved that, and it’s a big reason why we’re relaunching.”
Uobo now has access to live inventory data from thousands of dealerships and is working with lending, insurance, and delivery partners to offer a full end-to-end experience. Financing is included in the platform if users need it, and vehicle delivery is available in many regions something the company plans to expand as demand grows.
Despite the broader reach, Zarandah says Uobo’s identity is firmly rooted in London.
“We’re not trying to associate with Toronto or Waterloo,” he said. “We want to show that startups can scale out of London too.”
The team regularly hires interns and graduates from Fanshawe and Western University, and works with TechAlliance and Communitech, regional innovation hubs that have supported their early growth. Most of the company’s development team is based in Waterloo, but core operations remain in London.
Zarandah sees the company’s growth as an opportunity to create jobs, mentorships, and partnerships in London and beyond particularly in industries that intersect with mobility, fintech, and e-commerce.
“We operate with a shared-economy mindset. As we grow, our network of partners and collaborators grows with us,” he said. “Whether it’s female-led startups, lenders, or insurance providers, we’re trying to build an ecosystem that helps everyone win.”
Uobo is already working with partners across the country and is open to deeper collaborations with academic institutions, particularly on student engagement, innovation, and digital transformation.
When asked what message Uobo’s growth sends to other young founders or students in London, Zarandah is honest.
“It’s not easy especially here but, if you’re willing to put in the work and stay focused, you can build something great,” he said. “You just have to know it’s going to be hard and do it anyway.”
As Uobo continues to expand its user base, Zarandah encourages anyone curious about buying a vehicle to try the platform even if they’re not planning to make a purchase right away.
“There’s no harm in using what we’ve built to get informed,” he said. “The platform is free, and our only goal is to help people feel more confident about a major purchase. Because for most people, a car is the second-biggest investment they’ll ever make and we think that process should feel better, not worse.”
