Aerodome Inc., a company that supports first responders such as police, paramedics and firefighters with drones, today announced that it raised $21.5 million in early funding to expand its engineering and marketing teams.

The company provides a fully automated and remote air support solution using drones that can arrive on scene before first responders to provide a “bird’s eye view” of a situation. Its mission is to equip them with information that they can use to assess and respond in ways that they didn’t have access to before.

CRV led Aerodome’s Series A funding round with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Karman Ventures, Ford Street Ventures and fintech firm Mercury Chief Executive Immad Akhund. Following the company’s seed round in October 2023, led by a16z and 2048 Ventures, this investment brings the total funding to $28 million.

Founded in 2023 by CEO and reserve police officer Rahul Sidhu and Chief Architect Kenaniah Cerny, the company does not build its own drones but instead partners with hardware providers and offers a comprehensive distributed solution that launches them when a call is processed and it’s determined that a drone is needed. Sidhu is also a former paramedic, crew chief and pilot, giving him familiarity with all of the different operations that first responders might need extra to know before they reach a situation.

According to the company, the drone-as-first-responder system can arrive on scene in an average of 86 seconds after a 911 call. That’s in comparison with the average seven to eight minutes that many police and first responders might take to arrive in vehicles. It also reduces the reliance on police helicopters, which come with high fuel costs and operational overhead.

“I wanted to build a more advanced, automated solution that would reduce the strain on officer resources,” said Sidhu. “Our DFR 2.0 solution is a true force multiplier since it only requires a single operator overseeing multiple drones at once.” 

Drones can be operated beyond visual range and without a visual observer, which can detect and avoid other objects in their flight path automatically using sensors and 3D radar. This allows for immediate reaction and air traffic awareness when in flight so that drones can operate in otherwise crowded airspaces. The drones can also be operated from any device remotely using only a tablet or mobile phone, giving first responders the ability to stream video on the ground with real-time video and images.

“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,” said Sidhu.

In the year since its founding, Aerodome has secured contracts with multiple police departments and nearly doubled its earnings projections for the first quarter of 2024, the company said.

“Aerodome’s willingness to engage with our staff on the unique characteristics of our jurisdiction, and future directions with which to grow DFR capabilities, has led to high levels of confidence between our department and their company,” said Lieutenant Robert Mitchell at the Hawthorne Police Department.

Aerodome isn’t the only DFR solution in the United States. American drone maker Skydio provides a similar solution. Its setup also allows first responders to deploy drones from vehicles or rooftop docks and scout scenes before they arrive.

Image: Aerodome