Stop sitting in traffic for free — here’s a biz that lets you make money with your car

What if your car could earn money while you’re stuck in traffic or running errands?  

Jeshua Choong has made that possible with carching, a startup that enables car owners to turn their vehicles into advertising space for brands.  

It’s a great idea for a car-oriented, traffic-ridden cities like Kuala Lumpur, where Choong is from. But the concept probably formed several thousands of kilometres away and in a city much less congested than Malaysia’s capital: London. 

Choong studied economics at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), a place that pushed him to think differently and consider bolder questions. 

“Being at LSE, of course, everyone is highly driven,” he says. “Even before the first year, during gatherings with alumni, I saw classmates who had already secured their internships for the year. The competitiveness there naturally creeps into you, and you start becoming competitive as well.” 

After LSE, Choong stepped into finance industry, a field that offered stability and structure for close to eight years. It was stable and he built a professional foundation.  

Over time, the routine began to feel limiting, and he found himself wanting to do something more hands on and impactful.  

He resigned to join a friend’s startup. Those three years taught him how businesses actually operate, far beyond theory or textbooks. 

“By 2022, I had gained the courage, knowledge, and network to start my own startup,” he says.  

That venture became carching, and since launching, Choong hasn’t looked back. 

Once you signed up as a driver and brand ambassador, your car becomes a moving ad that builds brand awareness, while you earn points that can be converted into cash. Source: Jeshua Choong

Turning miles into money 

The idea for carching started with a simple question: what if everyday drivers could turn their cars into something more than just a way to get from point A to point B? 

It began when Choong was commuting from Kuala Lumpur to his hometown in Penang. On these trips, he often noticed how much empty space there was in his car. That led him to ask his friends a simple question: what if he offered rides to people going to Penang? They could chip in, maybe 50 Malaysian Ringgit (approximately US$12.30 at the time of writing) and travel together.  

At the time, his friends thought it was a crazy idea. People were cautious about getting into a stranger’s car, fearing safety and the risk of getting kidnapped back then. 

“Now, look at today — people regularly use ride-sharing services like Grab,” he says.  

“That initial idea planted the seed for thinking about how everyday drivers could create value from their time on the road. Even today, when I get stuck in traffic, I think about opportunities like, why can’t taxis or Grab cars earn money from ads on their vehicles? Why can’t an everyday Malaysian make use of the same situation?” 

These questions grew into a bigger vision.  

Choong’s idea was simple but practical: let everyone, not just taxi companies or e-hailing drivers, turn their car into advertising space. 

Next, Choong moved to test the concept – doing so quickly and cheaply was essential to any startup.  “In the startup world, this is often called an MVP — a minimum viable product,” he says. “You need to create something simple, maybe just an Excel sheet or a small test group, and test the idea.” 

In Choong’s case, he saw that the demand and supply for car advertising were already proven in the case of taxi and e-hailing companies, so the idea was validated in that sense.

Choong noticed that car advertising was already validated in the market but limited to taxis and e-hailing, so his aim was to make it accessible to everyday drivers. Source: Jeshua Choong

Make your commute work for you 

First-time carching users can earn up to RM 500 (US$ 122.97 at the time of writing) a month. All they need to do is bring their cars to carching’s centre. There, the centre applies advertising materials for brands like Adidas, Nike, or McDonald’s on said cars. Once wrapped, the car becomes a moving billboard. Then, it’s just business as usual — driving to work, meeting friends, or heading out for errands.  

“It’s a passive way to unlock value while you’re on the road, whether stuck in traffic or just driving around with your loved ones,” Choong says. “The application is free and is easy to download, and the process is simple — a straightforward way for everyday Malaysians to earn extra money.” 

Rather than tying earnings to every kilometre, carching uses a crowdsourcing approach.  

“For example, we might say, “We’re looking for 30 drivers for a campaign over the next six months,” he says. “Each month, we require 800 kilometres of driving, and we’ll pay a fixed amount X.”  

Even if a driver goes over 800 kilometres — say, 801 kilometres — they still earn the same fixed payout.  

Once you signed up as a driver, you can choose a brand, join its campaign, drive as usual, and log your journeys. Source: Jeshua Choong

Expanding carching’s reach in the region 

Choong sees the work at carching as a way to make a real difference in the lives of everyday drivers. Today, the focus is on helping car owners in Malaysia, but a year ago, the team expanded to include Filipino drivers as well. The company continues to explore opportunities in other markets across the region. 

“The ultimate goal is to impact as many car owners as possible across the region,” he says. “In the immediate future, my aim is to bring this model to the Asia Pacific region within the next five to seven years, hopefully planting a flag in countries like Australia, New Zealand, and maybe even Taiwan.” 

Currently, the service operates in Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand. Despite this growth, the team keeps a startup mindset, staying experimental with small teams and minimal structure, constantly testing new markets to see which ones grow fastest.