AI startup NoTraffic raises $50M to tackle congestion, road safety

AI-based traffic management platform NoTraffic has bagged $50 million in Series B funding as it picks up momentum in cities across the U.S. The capital injection comes as the Biden administration’s infrastructure bill enters its second year and a host of funding programs kick in to alleviate traffic congestion, tackle CO₂emissions and reduce road fatalities.

The Tel Aviv-based startup aims to bring traffic lights into the 21st century. Most traffic intersections run on timers, but the technology exists today for a more sophisticated solution. NoTraffic’s combined hardware-software solution turns intersections into smart intersections that can manage traffic flows based on data collected in real time.

The startup’s latest fundraise will help NoTraffic expand its offering to cities beyond traffic intersection management and into a more holistic solution that improves both road safety and traffic flow across cities.

“NoTraffic is poised to elevate traffic management beyond its legacy infrastructure boundaries,” said Tal Kreisler, co-founder and CEO of NoTraffic, in a statement. “Much like mobile phones disrupted the fixed line of their business, it was Apple’s AppStore that opened the door to a vast range of new applications, business models and revenue pools. NoTraffic‘s SaaS platform is designed to similarly create unique insights and functionalities that can flexibly be provided to stakeholders without changes to the infrastructure.”

NoTraffic’s solution involves installing smart sensors with V2X (vehicle-to-everything) chips onto existing infrastructure at intersections, conflict points or complex roadways. The data from both the sensors and from connected and autonomous vehicles on the road fuse to form a complete traffic picture that captures the movement of cars, bikes, buses, pedestrians and other road users.

Using edge computing, the system can determine things like which path each car will take and how that will impact the next intersection, and then make decisions about how to stimulate traffic flow. That information is then sent to the cloud to synchronize each intersection so that the grid as a whole can react to real-time road conditions.

NoTraffic’s tech can also help prevent road accidents, the company says. The same sensors that help manage intersection traffic can also detect when a car might run a red light, or a pedestrian might step onto the street. It can then alert an approaching connected car with limited visibility to slow down and avoid collision.

NoTraffic has seen some serious growth since its Series A in July 2021, when the startup had a handful of U.S. cities under its belt. The startup recently signed on its hundredth department of transportation customer in North America, and is operating in 13 states, including California, Texas, Arizona and Pennsylvania.

NoTraffic hopes to use the Series B funds to expand into additional markets, including Japan, Italy, Germany and the U.K., with an eye toward doubling its geographic footprint in 2023.

M&G Investments led the round, with participation from VNV Global and UMC Capital, as well as existing investors Grove Ventures, Vektor Partners, Next Gear Ventures, North First Ventures, Meitav Investment House, Alchimia Investments and TMG.

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