VIZGARD named double winner by European Space Agency
In a global competition held by the European Space Agency, we proved our ability to rapidly develop innovative applications based on the latest state-of-the-art Artificial Intelligence technology.
In July 2021, we participated in the prestigious Space App Camp, an exclusive mentorship program by the European Space Agency (ESA) to promote the development of innovative applications using Earth Observation data.
During the two-month intensive mentoring program, we developed a mobile/web app that uniquely combined AI-derived insights from satellite imagery with the dispatch of an unmanned vehicle augmented with our onboard computer vision. The proof-of-concept system demonstrated how large marine environments could be more efficiently managed, with use cases ranging from unauthorised fishing prevention, piracy and smuggling policing, and search and rescue support.
Please click here to learn more about how we proved our AI-powered satellite and unmanned system teaming concept on the Royal Navy’s autonomous unmanned submarine.
The developed solution, called FORTISKY is a mobile app that combines time-critical satellite data from several of our trusted data partners into one place. At the press of a button, one or more unmanned aerial or surface vehicles can be tasked to autonomously capture and analyse real-time data from the scene using our state-of-the-art onboard computer vision software. FORTISKY can thus address limitations in current satellite data regarding resolution and frequency of updates and provide end-users with the fastest and easiest way to gather situational intelligence at the scene before arrival. The application was well-received and won two awards as part of the final evaluation – the only application to have done so.
“VIZGARD clearly stood out from other selected projects in how far they were able to implement their innovative project applying AI on Earth Observation Data. It justly deserved to win two judged categories – as the only project to have achieved this.”
Dr Athanasia Nikolaou – Research Fellow in AI for Earth Observation. ESA Φ-lab Division
We later showcased our award-winning project at the Phi-week International Conference, and we look forward to presenting it again at ESA’s Living Planet Symposium 2022, held in Bonn, Germany.
About ESA Space App Camp
The ESA Space App Camp is an exclusive enhanced mentoring programme by the European Space Agency for up to 25 dedicated participants to bridge the Earth Observation data and applications with the commercialisation strategies leveraging Mobile Apps technology. Please see the official website for more information on the project.
About VIZGARD Ltd
VIZGARD is a UK-based award-winning computer vision start-up on a mission to build a safer future by automating vision for systems that require prolonged monitoring. Optimised for high performance on the edge, their autonomy-enabling AI engine “FortifAI” provides long-range visual analytics, external sensor fusion and camera platform control to reduce false alarms and operator burden.
