Aerodome raises $21.5M to expand drone use in emergency response

Drones as First Responder (DFR) tech specialist Aerodome has secured $21.5 million in Series A funding to enhance its solutions and expand its engineering and go-to-market teams. The funding round, led by CRV with contributions from Andreessen Horowitz, Karman Ventures, Immad Akhund, and Ford Street Ventures, brings Aerodome’s total funding to $28 million since its seed round in October 2023.

Aerodome’s system, cofounded by CEO Rahul Sidhu and chief architect Kenaniah Cerny, offers a faster, safer, and more energy-efficient DFR solution. The fully automated, remote air support system reduces the need for patrol officers by 15% and achieves 80% faster response times.

Saar Gur of CRV, Aerodome’s newest board member, praises the technology’s scalable impact on public safety, emphasizing its real-time intelligence capabilities for first responders. “Speed is of the essence in emergencies. Aerodome doesn’t just provide police agencies with ROI, it also gives them an insanely valuable source of real-time intelligence to first responders out in the field,” Gur says.

Sidhu, a reserve police officer and former paramedic, highlights the system’s efficiency, requiring only one operator for multiple drones, and its advanced air traffic awareness system. Here’s Sidhu:

Our DFR 2.0 solution is a true force multiplier, since it only requires a single operator overseeing multiple drones at once. Our air traffic awareness system acts as a better observer than human pilots – capable of tracking planes, helicopters, other drones, and even birds in all directions, which saves precious time and resources for agencies.

Since its inception, Aerodome has secured contracts with several police departments, nearly doubling its earnings projections for Q1 2024, thanks to its rapid 86-second response time to 911 calls compared to the average of 7-8 minutes. Moreover, the company has partnered with Hextronics for a drone dock with automated battery-changing and HVAC systems, enhancing the DFR capabilities in all conditions.

Read more: How to use automatic tracking, Follow Me mode on DJI drones