By Xin Xin Liu Vehicles involved in two deadly incidents that rocked the nation on New Year’s Day had both been rented via a car rental platform named Turo. Though the app has increased in popularity in recent years, many are questioning what it is and how it works. How does Turo work?It’s like Airbnb, but for vehicles. Turo describes itself as the world’s largest car-sharing marketplace. People looking to rent vehicles can book directly on the app from local hosts in the destination they are traveling to. Once they select a vehicle, they can arrange for a pickup location or even get the vehicle delivered to various destinations. Those looking to rent out their vehicles for a fee can become a host and list their vehicles on the app. The app is available in the U.S., Australia, France and the United Kingdom. New Orleans and Las Vegas incidentsEarly Wednesday morning, a driver plowed a pickup truck into the crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing at least 14 people. The suspect, Shamsud Din Jabbar, was killed by police after opening fire on responding officers. >> LEARN MORE | 14 victims dead, 35 hurt as FBI puts call out for tips in terror attack investigationA few hours later, a Tesla Cybertruck parked outside the main entrance of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, exploded, killing one person inside and injuring several others. The driver, who officials believe is Matthew Livelsberger, 37, of Colorado, had shot himself in the head before the explosion, according to local authorities. >> LEARN MORE | Man shot himself in head before Cybertruck exploded outside Trump's Las Vegas hotel, officials sayChris Raia, FBI deputy assistant director, said Thursday that officials have found 'no definitive link' between the New Orleans attack and the truck explosion in Las Vegas.Turo responds to investigations Turo released a statement after learning that both vehicles involved in the New Orleans terror attack and the Las Vegas Tesla Cybertruck explosion had been rented via the app.Company officials with Turo said they are partnering with law enforcement agencies to provide information that could be helpful for their investigation. Officials said they do not believe that either renter had a criminal background that would have identified them as a security threat, and that they are not currently aware of any information that indicates the two incidents are related.See the full statement here:“We are shocked and saddened by today’s horrific events, and our hearts are with the victims and their families."Our trust and safety team is actively partnering with law enforcement authorities to share any information that could be helpful in their investigations. We do not believe that either renter had a criminal background that would have identified them as a security threat, and we are not currently aware of any information that indicates the two incidents are related."Turo is dedicated to fostering a trustworthy marketplace. We remain committed to maintaining the highest standards in risk management, thanks to our world-class trust and safety technologies and teams that include experienced former law enforcement professionals."We are devastated by these horrible incidents, and remain dedicated to helping the authorities however we can.”Turo released an updated response to the New Year's Day attack:It’s been about 48 hours since the horrific attacks in New Orleans and Las Vegas that shocked us all on New Year’s Day. We’ve spent these tense, mournful hours investigating, partnering with law enforcement, and working around the clock to figure out how our platform could be misused by the perpetrators of such atrocities.Thinking about the victims and their families, I’m shocked, saddened, and, more than anything else, just simply heartbroken. Their stories are crushing. Their loss is unfathomable and unfair. Thinking about how egregiously the two individuals who perpetrated these heinous crimes abused our platform, I’m outraged. These individuals had valid driver’s licenses, clean criminal backgrounds, and were decorated US military servicemembers — one was honorably discharged and was even awarded a Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and one was an active duty Green Beret. They could have boarded any plane, checked into any hotel, or rented a car or truck from any traditional vehicle rental chain. We do not believe these two individuals would have been flagged by anyone – including law enforcement.But of course, these two tragedies have made us look inward at our trust and safety practices. Our track record to date has been strong. We have facilitated 27 million trips, over 90 million booked days, spanning 8.6 billion miles driven, through 12 years of operating history, and less than 0.10% of Turo trips have ended with a serious incident, such as a vehicle theft. Every Turo renter is screened through a proprietary multi-layer, data-science-based trust and safety algorithm, the Turo Risk Score. We employ over 50 internal and external data sources to build, maintain, and improve on that Risk Score. This massive data set helps us drive actionable insights, and we continuously refine and enhance our algorithm. In addition to that investment in technologies, we’ve also assembled an experienced team of former law enforcement professionals in our Trust and Safety organization. Despite this strong track record, and as an immediate next step while we wait for law enforcement to conclude their investigations, we’re consulting with national security and counterterrorism experts to learn more about how we can get even better and play our part in helping prevent anything like this from happening ever again.2025 is off to an awful start. While I mourn today, I also remain committed to pioneering and sustaining a strong, secure, trustworthy marketplace for tomorrow. NEW ORLEANS — Vehicles involved in two deadly incidents that rocked the nation on New Year’s Day had both been rented via a car rental platform named Turo. Though the app has increased in popularity in recent years, many are questioning what it is and how it works. Advertisement