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Time of India
7 days ago
- Automotive
- Time of India
How India-built AI is transforming global road safety
A safety revolution is being scripted inside fleet vehicles — not with seat belts or speed governors, but with high-powered cameras, edge processors and AI models trained to detect everything from drowsy drivers to heavy snow. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now One of the leaders in such technology is Netradyne, which has its R&D engine in Bengaluru and a footprint that now spans 10 countries – soon to be 15. Backed by Reliance, SoftBank, Microsoft's M12 and Qualcomm, Netradyne recently joined India's unicorn club after raising $90 million in Series D funding. Its core product is an advanced computer vision system that analyses real-time driving behavior via dual/ quad HD cameras and edge AI – delivering live audio alerts to drivers and analytics to fleet operators operating 450,000 vehicles worldwide. It detects risks such as drowsiness, unsafe following distance, or traffic violations, and issues instant in-cab alerts. The system also captures positive driving actions, generating a composite driver score that correlates with accident risk. 'We began in the US and India deliberately because driving conditions are polar opposites. If our models could handle both, we'd have a globally adaptable baseline,' Durgadutt Nedungadi, senior VP for EMEA and Apac at Netradyne, says. Early tests with off-the-shelf hardware, including SD cards and SIM slots, failed under temperature and power constraints, prompting the company to design a custom edge platform optimised for thermal conditions, latency and realtime compute. David Julian, CTO and who co-founded the company with Avneesh Agrawal (both were in Qualcomm for many years before founding Netradyne in 2015), notes that edgefirst processing, instead of cloud-based decisions, remains central to the platform. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now 'When you're delivering incab alerts, you need a very high precision rate. Otherwise, the driver loses trust,' he says. The company has built out a feedback loop that moves data from the field to labelling pipelines and back to the device via over-the-air updates, allowing it to continuously improve model accuracy in live environments. The platform's real-time coaching capability was a major evolution from earlier generations of driver safety systems. 'Legacy systems relied on days-later video reviews. We wanted to cut that feedback loop to minutes, even seconds,' Julian says. 'That shift led to measurable improvements in compliance and safety.' Netradyne's use cases span last-mile delivery vehicles, school buses, oil and fuel tankers, and employee transport fleets. In India, its clients include Shell, Indian Oil Skytanking, Writer Safeguard, and Greenline. 'We're also seeing strong adoption in tier-2 cities where last-mile logistics is growing rapidly,' says Nedungadi. The tech platform has evolved to support facial recognition, seatbelt compliance, U-turn detection, and predictive warnings such as forward collision and pedestrian alerts. Netradyne is also among the few global players capable of traffic light analytics on the edge, a technically complex feature that factors in signal states, lane positioning and surrounding traffic to assess driver behaviour. TRACKING POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR Its unique ₹driver stars' functionality recognises positive behaviour – for instance, if a driver proactively slows down to allow safer merges. 'That's actually harder to detect than violations, because it requires deeper contextual understanding,' Julian says. The platform processes up to a billion miles of driving data monthly and generates a ₹GreenZone' score, akin to a credit score, which aggregates risk and compliance factors. This feeds into a virtual coaching system that prioritises the most critical behavioural corrections for each driver, pushing targeted video training and app-based feedback loops. In colder regions, Netradyne has added modules for snow and fog detection, now live in parts of the US and Europe.
Business Standard
07-05-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Eminent Transit Selects Netradyne Technology to Elevate Safety in Employee Transport Services
VMPL Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], May 7: Netradyne, a leading provider of AI-powered fleet and driver safety technology, and Eminent Transit, a premier pan-India travel solutions provider specializing in corporate travel, employee transportation, and urban mobility announce a partnership to enhance safety, efficiency, and sustainability in transportation services across India. Eminent Transit will integrate Netradyne's cutting-edge Driveri technology into its fleet operations. Driveri provides a real-time data analysis and in-depth insights into driver behavior by analyzing 100% of the driving time. This integration will empower Eminent Transit to deliver exceptional safety standards and operational excellence to its extensive customer base. "We serve over 70 corporates in more than 160 cities across India with a combination of fleets, delivering executive-class journey." shared Ravi Kiran, CEO of Eminent Transit. "Deployment of Netradyne's Driveri will ensure that we enhance and deliver world-class comfort and top-tier safety to our esteemed customers. This innovative solution not only elevates the safety, reliability, and efficiency of our transportation services but also provides essential protection for women employees traveling late at night. Through real-time monitoring, Driveri ensures compliance while safeguarding drivers from false claims. And with real-time insights into risky driving and personalized coaching, we enhance our driver training programs, ensuring an exceptional experience for our customers". "Eminent Transit is known for delivering premium travel experiences to corporate clients across India," said Durgadutt Nedungadi, Sr. Vice President of International Business at Netradyne. "With our AI-powered Driveri™ technology, we're helping elevate those experiences further--by enabling safer, smoother, and more secure rides. From reducing harsh driving events to protecting drivers with real-time video intelligence, this partnership is all about setting new standards in transportation safety and operational excellence." About Eminent Transit Eminent Transit is a pan-India travel solutions company that specializes in business, events, leisure, loyalty, and corporate mobility. The company serves corporate travelers with cost-effective and creative travel management solutions. With over 70 corporate clients, a presence in more than 160 cities, and a fleet of 1,500-plus vehicles, Eminent Transit has continuously evolved, innovated, and expanded its operational network. The company's journey from its inception in 2017 as a local provider in Bangalore to becoming a pan-India travel solutions company reflects its commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction. With a focus on safety, reliability, and innovation, Eminent Transit is dedicated to enhancing the transportation experience for individuals and businesses across the nation. About Netradyne: Netradyne is a global provider of AI-powered fleet and driver safety solutions. Its flagship product, Driveri, leverages AI and edge computing to deliver real-time feedback and insights that improve driver behavior and fleet safety. Today, it is an industry leader in advanced fleet safety solutions with customers across India, U.S., Canada, Germany, U.K., Australia, and New Zealand--with marquee investors on board like Softbank, Reliance, M12 (Microsoft's venture arm), and Point72 Ventures. Netradyne was founded by two Stanford University graduates and technologists, Avneesh Agarwal and David Julian. Netradyne currently markets 'Driveri', a fleet safety and coaching platform. Its technology uses deep learning and edge computing to bring rich contextual insights and solutions to the transportation industry to help fleets establish safe driving practices.
Time of India
30-04-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
SoftBank-backed Netradyne, India's first unicorn of 2025, eyes profitability by year-end
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads SoftBank-backed Netradyne , a fleet safety and video telematics solutions provider, expects to be profitable by the end of 2025, or early next artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning-powered unicorn is registering 50% growth year-on-year, and planning to expand its global footprint in the coming two years, senior executive Durgadutt Nedungadi said on San Diego and Bengaluru-based startup, valued at $1.3 billion, has announced plans to expand its global footprint to 15 countries by the end of 2026, up from 10 nations currently. It will add Japan and Spain in 2025 and expand its presence to Ireland, France and Italy by the end of company's flagship product is an AI-powered, vision-based IoT system that can be mounted on commercial vehicles . It uses cameras to capture video and sensory data both inside and outside the vehicle to detect driving behaviours and events in near real-time. The platform promotes safer driving and aims to reduce road accidents, protect drivers from false claims at the time of an accident, lower insurance costs, and simplify compliance services over 3,000 clients worldwide, many of which are prominent names in sectors such as global online retail, food and beverages, oil and gas, transportation, utilities, field services, passenger transit, and construction. The client list includes Amazon, Shell and Pepsi, as well as Reliance Industries and Hindustan Unilever in this, the company has millions of miles worth of data, which it uses to train its algorithms and make them more efficient as a driver's assistant. 'We anonymise number plates (and pedestrian faces) seen through the external camera. From a privacy perspective, there is no intermingling of data, nor do we provide a customer's data to a third party,' Nedungadi startup entered the unicorn club after raising $90 million in an equity funding round led by Point72 Private Investments, with Qualcomm Ventures and Pavilion Capital latest funding round brings the total capital raised by Netradyne to $308 million, according to Tracxn. The company's existing investors include SoftBank Vision Fund, Silicon Valley Bank, Reliance Industries, and rise of autonomous driving technology in the US, one of its key markets, threw up some questions, but Nedungadi said it is not a threat. He claimed that Netradyne's tech is, in fact, a few steps ahead.'The fundamental difference between autonomous driving tech and us is philosophy. Instead of imparting control to the vehicle, we give proactive control to the driver. We recognise and track far more elements than an ADAS (advanced driver-assistance system) does. We have the ability to detect anything a human eye can see through our cameras,' he said.
Mint
30-04-2025
- Automotive
- Mint
Netradyne targets ride-hailing market with AI dashcams after unicorn tag
US-based Netradyne, which provides artificial intelligence-powered dashcams, is expanding its driver monitoring technology to cab-hailing services, a senior official at the recently-minted unicorn said on Tuesday. 'Some of the pilot projects with fleet operators who provide their cars to ride-hailing services will roll out soon in India. We hope to close our first large deal soon," Durgadutt Nedungadi, senior vice-president of international business at Netradyne, told Mint on the sidelines of a media round table in Bengaluru where it announced its expansion plans. Netradyne was founded by former Qualcomm executives Avneesh Agrawal and David Julian in 2015. While the company is incorporated in San Diego in the US, all of its major research and development (R&D) work as well as testing is done at its office here in Bengaluru. Nedungadi declined to name which ride-hailing provider the startup is currently in talks with, but said that it is a 'global company." 'We've been very cautious in terms of saying that we will go everywhere," said Nedungadi, commenting on the company's commercial expansion into Japan and Spain, which is slated to be completed by the end of 2025. He explained that given how road safety regulations, driver behaviour, signages, and conditions differ across nations, their entry into new markets has been carefully done in order to reduce the number of false alerts its system provides. Netradyne offers a artificial intelligence-based product called Driver I that is capable of monitoring risky driver behaviour like drowsiness, texting while driving and simultaneously issuing real time alerts to make them refocus on the road. The company recently raised $90 million in a Series-D funding round led by Point72 Ventures, which took its valuation to $1.34 billion. Other investors in the company include SoftBank, Reliance, M12 (Microsoft's venture arm), and Qualcomm Ventures. While the money that was raised is being used to fuel global expansion, technology and research continue to account for most of the company's spend this year. 'We've three distinct areas of technology we want to continue investing in: our AI and machine learning capabilities, improving the sensors on our cameras, i.e., device tech and finally, making fleet information easily available to safety managers through the cloud," Nedungadi said. In fact, nearly 80% or over 600 of Netradyne's workers focus on building the company's technology, out of the 850 that it currently employs. While the company does see the consumer segment as a potential market, the focus for now remains B2B. 'The needs of the consumer market both in terms of tech as well as in terms of support infrastructure are very different," he said. Netradyne had initially started out in the US and India. 'These two nations provided very diverse kinds of driving conditions and if your tech can adapt to these two extremities, you should be able to adapt to most most global requirements," Nedungadi said. In the US, the company started with a focus on logistics companies in the north east in order to better understand geographic conditions and build out its data sets. In fact, the company has built its entire AI and ML technology based on data it has gathered itself. While Netradyne started by servicing the US commercial trucking market, it has since expanded to also look at hazardous material and last-mile delivery. Other than that, the company also offers solutions for fleet providers that work in corporate and employee transportation. Last year, the company signed a deal with Taski Technologies, a B2B fleet operator. 'These are areas which have evolved as huge low-hanging fruit for us. The penetration levels in these segments are in the mid to low single digit figures in terms of addressable markets. There is a lot of white space." Currently, the startup's product is operational across several countries in the world including the UK, Canada, Mexico, Germany, Australia and New Zealand. However, 85% of its revenue continues to come from the United States, where it had initially launched, while 5% comes from India.
