Tal Kreisler is the CEO and Co-Founding father of NoTraffic, a platform that digitizes highway infrastructure administration, permitting cities to handle their complete grid on the push of a button.
NoTraffic transforms intersections into clever hubs able to real-time site visitors administration. Their AI-powered platform leverages edge computing to course of knowledge domestically, guaranteeing fast response to altering site visitors circumstances. The expertise contains V2X capabilities for linked and autonomous automobiles and accommodates non-connected automobiles and susceptible highway customers (VRUs), offering a complete view of site visitors dynamics. NoTraffic is at present working in additional than 25 U.S. states and in Canada, serving hundreds of thousands of drivers per day.
Are you able to give us a short overview of NoTraffic and what impressed you to develop an AI-powered mobility platform?
NoTraffic is a first-of-its-kind AI-powered mobility platform, that transforms outdated intersections into sensible, cloud-connected hubs. The platform leverages AI, edge computing applied sciences and V2X communication to optimize site visitors move, scale back congestion, and improve highway security, whereas considerably decreasing carbon emissions.
The concept behind NoTraffic stemmed from a easy but irritating expertise skilled by one among our Co-Founders, Uriel Katz, who discovered himself sitting caught at a purple mild at an empty intersection late at night time. This pointless ready made him understand that conventional site visitors administration methods have been outdated and inefficient, counting on set timing plans that didn’t adapt to real-time circumstances. This sparked the concept of making a extra trendy resolution—one which leverages AI to dynamically handle site visitors primarily based on precise highway utilization and circumstances.
To handle this difficulty we based NoTraffic in 2017, with the objective of revolutionizing city mobility and site visitors administration. Regardless of not having a background in site visitors administration, our recent perspective allowed us to suppose creatively and method the issue with an out-of-the field resolution. Quick ahead to right this moment, and NoTraffic is on the forefront of redefining city mobility, future-proofing our cities into smarter and extra environment friendly ecosystems.
How does NoTraffic’s AI-powered platform remodel conventional intersections into clever hubs?
NoTraffic’s platform transforms conventional intersections into sensible, linked hubs by integrating AI-driven sensors and edge computing capabilities seamlessly into present infrastructure, leveraging a fusion of superior radar and digital camera expertise to realize 99% detection accuracy, no matter climate circumstances. These sensors detect and establish all varieties of highway customers, from automobiles to micromobility customers, in real-time, enabling the platform to dynamically regulate site visitors indicators, optimizing the move of site visitors and enhancing security on the roads.
The platform’s real-time communication with a cloud-based system ensures steady studying and updates, permitting intersections to reply intelligently to actual time altering circumstances, considerably enhancing the effectivity, security, and general move of site visitors throughout city areas.
The platform is made up of 4 core elements:
- Mobility OS (Working system): A cloud-based dashboard that enables for real-time changes and optimizations, essential for managing trendy city mobility.
- AI-driven Edge Gadgets: These guarantee steady connectivity, detect highway customers, and hyperlink intersections to the cloud, enabling real-time choices by way of edge computing and superior analytics.
- Mobility Retailer: A primary-of-its-kind function that features like an app retailer, permitting operators to remotely add and replace mobility purposes, guaranteeing adaptability with out pricey {hardware} upgrades.
- 24/7 Assist: Steady and dependable operation is assured, with immediate difficulty decision to keep up security and effectivity.
Are you able to clarify the position of edge computing in your platform and the way it enhances real-time site visitors administration?
Edge computing performs a important position in NoTraffic’s platform by enabling real-time knowledge processing instantly on the intersection, with out having to first add knowledge to the cloud. This permits the system to make immediate choices, making site visitors administration each quicker and extra environment friendly. This ensures that site visitors indicators and methods can shortly adapt to altering circumstances, reminiscent of a sudden improve in pedestrian exercise or giving precedence to emergency automobiles. By localizing knowledge processing, edge computing hastens decision-making whereas additionally decreasing operational prices by minimizing the necessity for cloud-based assets and extra {hardware}. That is important for managing dynamic city site visitors environments, the place fast reactions are important for optimizing site visitors move and bettering security.
How does NoTraffic enhance security at intersections, particularly for susceptible highway customers reminiscent of pedestrians and cyclists?
Yearly, over 700 deaths are brought on by purple mild runners, together with fatalities amongst pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.
NoTraffic improves security at intersections through the use of AI-powered cameras and radar detection to precisely establish and differentiate between all varieties of highway customers, together with pedestrians, cyclists, and scooters. After figuring out them, the platform can regulate site visitors indicators to prioritize the security of those susceptible teams. For instance, it may well lengthen inexperienced mild instances or activate pedestrian crossings solely when persons are really ready. The system additionally proactively prevents potential accidents, reminiscent of automobiles working purple lights, by adjusting sign phases in real-time. These measures not solely scale back accidents but in addition create safer intersections, easing congestion on roads, sidewalks, and bike paths.
NoTraffic’s Intersection Security Insights (ISI) is a safety-oriented AI software program software, designed to boost security by correlating site visitors sign phases with automobile actions throughout the cease line, enabling exact monitoring of purple mild runners. The expertise was deployed at 55 intersections throughout three main city site visitors corridors in Tucson, Arizona, and was in a position to considerably scale back purple mild working infractions. Over a 3-month interval, ISI enabled the town of Tucson to scale back purple mild runners by 42% throughout these corridors, equating to 294 lives saved yearly.
In what methods does your platform scale back CO2 emissions and mitigate site visitors congestion in city areas?
As our roads turn out to be more and more crowded with a mixture of automobiles, bikes, and pedestrians, congestion is on the rise—rising by 12% annually. The ensuing gridlock results in dangerous CO2 emissions and a 10.5% improve in site visitors accidents, making our roads much less protected.
NoTraffic addresses these challenges by optimizing site visitors move at intersections by pairing AI-driven real-time site visitors evaluation with edge-compute-enabled on-premise sensors that make immediate choices. This easy-to-install software-defined SaaS platform adjusts site visitors mild patterns primarily based on real-time circumstances, minimizing idle instances and lowering pointless stops and begins. By bettering the effectivity of site visitors indicators, NoTraffic decreases the time automobiles spend idling at purple lights, which reduces gas consumption and lowers emissions. NoTraffic empowers Departments of Transportation and different stakeholders to effectively handle growing site visitors quantity and scale back congestion and CO2 emissions, contributing to a extra environment friendly and environmentally pleasant city mobility system.
One in all NoTraffic’s key options out there on its Mobility Retailer is Optimization Mode, which leverages predictions to judge 1000’s of potential site visitors situations in actual time to optimize site visitors move, scale back congestions, and enhance general security. When deployed on the College of British Columbia, the answer eased campus site visitors and improved move at intersections, resulting in a discount in greenhouse fuel emissions. Through the use of edge primarily based computing, NoTraffic was in a position to optimize site visitors move by calculating 1000’s of potential situations for each roadway person, and figuring out essentially the most applicable one in real-time. Implementation of the answer enabled NoTraffic to scale back carbon emissions by 75 tons per yr.
How does NoTraffic combine with linked and autonomous automobiles by means of V2X expertise?
NoTraffic’s platform is designed to totally assist V2X (Car-to-Every little thing) communication, enabling seamless integration with linked and autonomous automobiles. By means of V2X, NoTraffic-equipped intersections can change real-time knowledge with automobiles, enabling extra environment friendly and safer site visitors administration.
NoTraffic has commercialized V2X expertise with two specialised packages for linked and autonomous automobiles: a Security Bundle and an Effectivity Bundle. These packages present units of messages to automobiles utilizing C-V2X or DSRC protocols, supplementing V2X capabilities with knowledge from NoTraffic sensors and offering exterior blind spot info, Sign Section and Timing (SPaT) enhanced driver choices, Crimson Mild Runner (RLR) detection, and different security options.
By integrating V2X communication, NoTraffic’s platform fuses and shares knowledge generated by their proprietary clever edge sensors along with linked and autonomous automobiles knowledge and different knowledge sources to handle site visitors flows in actual time and forestall potential collisions. The system gives automobiles with important info reminiscent of SPaT, collision warnings, and optimum velocity suggestions. This real-time connectivity ensures smoother site visitors move, reduces conflicts, and enhances the protected and environment friendly operation of autonomous automobiles.
What measures are in place to make sure the platform additionally accommodates non-connected automobiles and highway customers?
NoTraffic’s platform is constructed to accommodate all highway customers, from automobiles and bikes to pedestrians and emergency automobiles, even in difficult climate circumstances. Its superior sensors allow municipalities to optimize site visitors move for all commuters whereas lowering congestion on roads, sidewalks, and bike paths.
The platform’s superior AI sensors can detect and analyse the behaviour of each highway person, no matter their connectivity standing. This ensures that non-connected automobiles and pedestrians are at all times thought of in real-time site visitors choices.
What challenges have you ever confronted in scaling the deployment of your platform throughout completely different areas?
Scaling the NoTraffic platform throughout completely different areas introduced vital challenges, significantly because of the complexity of integrating a cloud primarily based interface, generally known as our Mobility OS (Working system), with edge gadgets at each intersection.
One of many most important challenges was adapting the cloud-based Mobility OS (Working System) and edge gadgets to satisfy the varied technical requirements and infrastructure capabilities throughout completely different areas. Every area had its personal algorithm, laws, and necessities, and so the platform needed to be personalised and tailored to satisfy the wants of every area, and guarantee seamless integration with present site visitors methods. Moreover, managing the excessive bandwidth necessities wanted for real-time communication between the cloud and the sting gadgets. To handle this, NoTraffic carried out edge computing inside their {hardware}, permitting a good portion of analytics to be processed domestically earlier than sending the outcomes to the cloud for additional evaluation. This decreased bandwidth utilization whereas additionally making the answer less expensive for each NoTraffic and their prospects.
One other problem was the necessity to replace, improve, and keep software program for a whole bunch of 1000’s of gadgets throughout numerous areas. To fight this, NoTraffic developed sturdy over the air mechanisms to allow fast deployment of updates, no matter location. These mechanisms be sure that updates are seamlessly distributed and put in throughout all gadgets, minimizing downtime and sustaining consistency in efficiency and reliability.
Safety was additionally a important concern, particularly when coping with infrastructure as important as site visitors administration. NoTraffic carried out strict safety protocols tailor-made to every area, guaranteeing that their knowledge remained remoted and guarded, stopping any potential overlap or interference. By leveraging superior cloud safety measures, the corporate ensured that they have been in a position to keep the integrity and confidentiality of knowledge, whereas complying with native laws.
By means of these methods, NoTraffic efficiently navigated the complexities of creating and scaling a platform that mixes {hardware} and software program, in the end delivering a dependable, safe, and cost-effective mobility resolution throughout completely different areas.
How do you envision the way forward for site visitors administration and concrete infrastructure evolving within the subsequent decade?
The way forward for site visitors administration and concrete infrastructure will likely be pushed by the widespread adoption of software-enabled gadgets that improve the sustainability and effectivity of cities. Just like how Tesla reinvented automobiles, these gadgets are set to reinvent the remainder of the mobility ecosystem. Superior sensors with built-in communication capabilities, highly effective computing, and the capability to analyse huge quantities of knowledge will turn out to be customary. These sensors will provide a variety of providers that may be up to date, adjusted, and repaired remotely, guaranteeing steady enchancment and minimizing the necessity for bodily intervention. The shift in the direction of these sensible, software-driven gadgets will simplify the modernization of infrastructure, scale back waste, and minimize down on the necessity for intensive {hardware}. Site visitors gadgets and methods will perform extra like smartphones, the place options might be personalised, activated, up to date, or repaired remotely, making infrastructure upgrades smoother, extra inexpensive, and fewer intimidating for municipalities.
One of many key benefits of this expertise is the flexibility to combination knowledge and quantify numerous parameters like site visitors enhancements, security enhancements, and emissions reductions. It may possibly additionally allow the identification of tendencies and assist predictive analytics, providing insights into potential outcomes of particular insurance policies earlier than they’re carried out. For instance, the financial affect of site visitors delays could possibly be measured, or before-and-after research may assess the effectiveness of site visitors administration methods – one thing that’s unimaginable with present methods.
By reimagining transportation methods with these methods, future city areas can obtain enhanced security and improved mobility whereas considerably lowering their environmental footprint, resulting in extra sustainable and livable cities.
What position do you see AI enjoying in the way forward for sensible cities and mobility options?
AI will play a significant position in the way forward for sensible cities and mobility options by means of knowledge aggregation and decision-making. Due to AI-powered applied sciences being utilized in site visitors administration, cities can now use knowledge to quantify numerous parameters, reminiscent of site visitors enhancements, security enhancements, and emission reductions. This knowledge gives a transparent image of the effectiveness of various site visitors administration methods, enabling cities to take advantage of impactful and useful choices, tailor-made to the precise wants of every space.
AI additionally permits the identification of tendencies and helps predictive analytics, providing insights into potential outcomes if particular insurance policies are carried out. For instance, utilizing AI cities can now measure the financial affect of site visitors delays, or perform earlier than and after research to measure the effectiveness and success of latest initiatives. By with the ability to again up choices with concrete knowledge, cities are in a position to pinpoint issues and implement focused options, one thing that might beforehand have been unimaginable to realize.
