Bird, Lime Now Valued Over $3 Billion

"Scooter rental startup Bird Rides is now valued at $2 billion after a recent $300 million funding round," report Samuel Burke and Michael Kaplan.

The Los Angeles-based company launched operations only last September in Santa Monica, and is still facing legal issues and restrictive regulations in many cities. Still, that's a big number.

"The investors love the growth ... and the numbers, but I think they also like the mission of Bird," said CEO and founder Travis Vanderzanden told CNNMoney. "People have been trying to find ways to get Americans out of cars for a long time, and we think Bird can have a big impact."

In other news about the growing clout of scooter companies, Lime and Uber announced a partnership this week. "Uber Technologies Inc. is investing in Lime as part of a $335 million financing round, the companies plan to announce on Monday," report Eric Newcomer and Brad Stone. "The deal, led by Alphabet Inc.’s venture arm GV, values the scooter business at $1.1 billion."