RapidDeploy: Democratizing Public Safety

Even up until a few years ago, a 9-1-1 call was a traditional voice call and radio call-out to first responders. But today, IoT and other data sources feed real-time information to first responders, increasing situational awareness and making the calls information-rich. However, current legacy 9-1-1 infrastructure cannot accommodate these new signals. “We believe that every 9-1-1 center regardless of size, geography, location or budget should have best-in-class 9-1-1 systems,” says Steven Raucher, CEO of RapidDeploy. RapidDeploy’s innovative cloud-based solutions upend the existing technology stack and enable data integration and visualization across the entire 9-1-1 workflow.

RapidDeploy’s genesis traces back to when Raucher, an investment banker for 20 years, became a full-time sea rescue volunteer after losing his brother in a drowning accident. A chance meeting with Brett Meyerowitz, a CTO turned volunteer paramedic, eventually led to the founding of RapidDeploy, with the goal of resolving the inherent problems in public safety. “First responders built RapidDeploy for first responders,” says Raucher. “RapidDeploy simplifies the workflow for telecommunicators and reduces the response time for a victim.”

RapidDeploy’s product portfolio consists of web-based analytics, mapping, dispatch and first responder applications. Nimbus CAD is a full-fledged call-taking and dispatch solution for 9-1-1. Radius is a standalone mapping solution for 9-1-1 call-taking and Eclipse is an insights product for 9-1-1. Eclipse has data analytics components that measure various operational efficiencies for a single 9-1-1 center up to state-wide implementation.

The solution leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to deliver predictive and prescriptive analytics, determines network outages, uses advanced modeling to understand traditional call volumes and combines various data sources into a single picture. It is typically sold to a state or regional 9-1-1 director to create a common operating picture and understand the telematics within their 9-1-1 infrastructure. “The combination of Radius and Eclipse, what we call the NG911 bundle, was sold to three states in the last year,” states Raucher.

We believe that every 9-1-1 center, regardless of size, geography, location or budget should have best-in-class 9-1-1 systems

An added advantage of the cloud-based solution is its single code base across the country, which helps to scale implementations and integrations. Customers can immediately benefit from new features and functionalities as they receive updates in real time upon rollout.

In the wake of COVID-19, RapidDeploy is assisting 9-1-1 agencies with complete virtualization that allows 9-1-1 telecommunicators at the front lines of the pandemic to work remotely. Recently, the city of Baltimore, MD, was searching for a solution with the most situational awareness and data related to COVID-19. RapidDeploy’s data integration with Johns Hopkins, which allows real-time visibility down to the level of hospital beds, was an important factor in Baltimore’s selection of RapidDeploy’s RadiusPlus solution. In another instance, the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES), with whom RapidDeploy has been working since March 2019 was concerned by the decrease in calls from victims of domestic violence during the state’s stay-at-home orders. By leveraging RadiusPlus, Cal OES deployed two-way SMS to agencies across the state in a matter of minutes to help victims of domestic violence communicate with 9-1-1.

RapidDeploy is revolutionizing 9-1-1 in America. “As we grow and deploy our solutions at a pace never seen before in public safety in America, it is a wake-up call to our legacy competitors to start innovating,” concludes Raucher.