The Canadian developer of AI-based (artificial intelligence) traffic management technology Miovision has secured US$15m of funding as a precursor to a larger financing round that will accelerate the global expansion of its open architecture smart city systems.
A leader in the development of smart traffic intersection technology, Miovision has announced that it has raised US$15m from a syndicate including the company’s largest shareholder MacKinnon, Bennett & Co. (MKB) and McRock Capital, which led with new investors BDC Capital and HarbourVest Partners. As part of the financing, Whitney Rockley, co-founder and managing partner at McRock Capital, the first dedicated Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) venture capital fund, has joined the Miovision board of directors. Founded in 2005 by three University of Waterloo researchers, Miovision previously closed a US$30mn Series B round, led by MKB, in 2015. Since its inception, the company has achieved a revenue CAGR of over 50%.
Miovision’s smart intersection management systems have been installed by more than 100 state transportation departments and city agencies in North America, while its AI-based video traffic data collection product has been used in over 17,000 municipalities globally. The new financing, which comes in the form of a convertible note into a significantly larger round, will help Miovision expand the use of its smart intersection technology into the traffic planning and operations of more smart cities worldwide. As the technology is based on open architecture, cities are able to make intersections the backbone of their mobility strategy. The platform’s open architecture makes it easy to connect smart intersections to other mobility systems such as emergency vehicle preemption, which allows first responders to get priority access to intersections.
“Most intersections today use decades-old technology that restricts cities from truly innovating,” explained Kurtis McBride, CEO and co-founder of Miovision. “We’re completely re-imagining the intersection from the ground up, to take advantage of modern computing power, advances in artificial intelligence and open architecture. The result is a smart intersection that can understand and adapt to the constantly changing conditions of city streets.”
Investor and new Miovision board member, Rockley, commented, “Rapid urbanization is a global phenomenon that is driving the need for connected and intelligent smart cities. Miovision has created the digital traffic intersection that enables real-time adaptive traffic control and infrastructure communication with connected cars, emergency response vehicles, public transit, pedestrians and cyclists. These will be critical functions in cities of the future.”
Ken MacKinnon, managing partner of MKB, added, “Miovision’s business has been built on data. With better data, cities have more information to optimize a traffic network to minimize congestion and emissions while making intersections safer for all. Data is incredibly valuable and Miovision is working to ensure cities benefit from it. We’re proud to help Miovision continue to innovate around smart cities.”
