Hayden AI closes $4.5 million funding for its artificial intelligence-powered data platform for smart city solutions

We covered Hayden AI late last year after the artificial intelligence startup that creates smart city solutions purposely built for modern traffic conditions raised $5 million in funding to accelerate product development.

Today, the San Franciso-based tech startup announced it has closed another $4.5 million funding to accelerate the development and delivery of AI-powered solutions aimed at enabling governments to achieve their goals of safer streets, equitable transportation, and efficient urban mobility. The round, which brings the company’s total funding to $9.5 million, was led by BootstrapLabs, an early-stage Silicon Valley venture capital firm focused on Applied Artificial Intelligence.

Founded in 2019 by Chris Carson, Bo Shen, Vaibhav Ghadiok, and Michael Byrne, Hayden AI revolutionizes urban mobility, providing cities a scalable and more efficient way to bring safe, healthy, and equitable mobility to the public.

Using edge computing and AI to process real-time data from mobile cameras, the platform is able to create vast and detailed situational awareness for cities at a fraction of their current fixed camera cost. Coupled with a knowledge and reasoning engine that fully automates the detection of any kind of traffic violation, the solution eliminates the need for human review, inherently filtering out bias and inefficiencies.

“This funding round positions Hayden AI for rapid national expansion, particularly in California, allowing us to accelerate and scale the deployment of our autonomous traffic management platform,” said Chris Carson, Co-Founder and CEO of Hayden AI. “We are thrilled to have investors that bring significant expertise and comprehensive industry knowledge, which is invaluable as we continue to empower smart cities around the world to end traffic-related fatalities and severe injuries while providing safe and equitable mobility for all.”

This latest round of funding comes as Hayden AI secures partnerships with leading public transportation and mobility providers to deliver automated traffic law enforcement solutions. Most recently, Hayden AI partnered with Conduent Transportation to deliver an automated bus lane enforcement solution featuring a transit bus-mounted perception system integrated with video analytics and violation processing technologies, thereby improving bus lane performance and enhancing traffic safety. The company’s platform also wields sensor data with digital twin technology to simulate scenarios and create actionable insights into hazardous driving areas, parking management, traffic patterns, curbside management, and more, empowering traffic enforcement agencies to operate more efficiently.

“Smart technologies are driving the creation of safer cities and Hayden AI is at the forefront of this revolution,” said Nicolai Wadstrom, Founder, CEO, and General Partner at BootstrapLabs. “Hayden AI’s strategic approach and commitment to enabling smart and safe cities align well with how BootstrapLabs sees the role of Artificial Intelligence in shaping a better future with fellow humans at heart. Their AI-powered mobility solution enables cities to more efficiently enforce traffic laws, improving traffic safety and freeing up valuable resources. We are pleased to partner with Hayden AI to help strategically scale its AI-powered mobility solution, which will ultimately enhance public security and welfare, creating a positive impact on society.”