The rapid evolution of visual and audio sensor technology, combined with AI-powered analytics, is unlocking innovative new possibilities for our customers. Connecting new capabilities with key customer needs ensures that our solutions deliver impact where it is most valuable.
Since its formation, Axis has been dedicated to understanding and meeting the needs of our customers. Fostering collaborative conversations with partners and customers is key to understand the potential for new applications and value. This customer-centric approach is complemented by our deep understanding of the capabilities of our technology – not only for today but also in the future.
In recent years, the industry has experienced a rapid pace of change, opening the door to an almost infinite number of potential applications based on the Axis technology platform.
- Carl Staël von Holstein, Business Development Manager - Future Business, Axis Communications
The ARTPEC system-on-chip, our in-house developed chip and the foundation for most of our video surveillance cameras, has for several years enabled deep learning-based analytics within cameras themselves. In combination with continually improved image quality, the ability to undertake advanced object recognition and analytics within cameras - commonly referred to as Edge AI - has been transformational.
Surveillance cameras have become powerful visual sensors and computing devices. As such, they also create huge amounts of data and metadata. In itself, this data increases scene insight and operational effectiveness. But when combined with data from other sensors – whether visual, audio, environmental, or more – the depth of insights is increased significantly.
Combining data in real-time delivers benefits in both operational effectiveness and efficiency. Incidents of multiple types can be reacted to immediately and with appropriate resources, while over time the data collected and analyzed can bring insights that improve the ways in which entire organizations operate.
Our open platforms are a catalyst for taking advantage of the new opportunities. AXIS Camera Application Platform (ACAP), VAPIX® APIs, and Axis Cloud Connect enables our global developer community to build valuable new applications, limited only by their imagination. But this openness isn’t only beneficial within our own portfolio of products. It also supports integration with other sensors, systems, and solutions, allowing our technologies to become part of seamlessly connected operational systems.
We also recognize that in an ever more connected environment, cybersecurity is a primary customer concern. Our long-term commitment to working with partners and customers on best practice in cybersecurity, and the transparency around our approach, gives customers and IT managers confidence that risks are managed as new opportunities are realized.
It’s almost impossible to overstate the potential use cases for our platform. It’s certainly become very clear that our solutions now have numerous additional applications beyond the security and safety use cases for which Axis has always been known.
Defining four solution areas
Axis has defined four clear solution areas where our technology, alongside our partners, provides value to our customers.
The first two of these are areas in which Axis has been a leader since the company’s foundation, and which continue to be a key focus for the company: Safety and Security. Alongside these, Operational Efficiency and Business Intelligence have been added as newer solution areas, driven by advances in technology, where our customers are beginning to realize significant value.
Security: Protecting organizations against unwanted and undesirable activities which pose risks to people, property, assets, and confidentiality, still sits at the heart of our proposition. Our solutions cover a wide range of real-time use cases across almost every industry for preventing, deterring, and guarding against criminal and unauthorized behavior. Investigation of security breaches and incidents is also enhanced through advanced solution capabilities.
Swedish postal service operator PostNord has used Axis solutions to solve an ongoing issue of thefts from its depots and ensure security moving forwards.
Safety: Minimizing harm to people – and enhancing their feeling of safety - by protecting their environments against risks, unintended incidents, hazards caused by natural forces, and human errors. Our solutions enable both proactive safety - anticipating and preventing behaviors that could lead to potentially harmful incidents – and reactive safety - minimizing damage, accelerating recovery, and investigating and reporting after incidents.
Axis cameras are helping spot wildfires in their earliest stages across several U.S. states, allowing emergency services to respond more quickly and effectively, and protecting people and property.
Operational Efficiency: Increasingly, our solutions are being applied to an organization’s ability to optimize resources, such as money, energy, staff time, and equipment, while maintaining or improving production quality and service delivery. Benefits can include increased productivity, lower costs, minimized downtime, and a sharper competitive edge.
BMW Group is employing innovative AI-enabled analytics in its quality assurance process to monitor vehicles being produced to a forensic level of detail.
Business Intelligence (BI): The data created by our solutions and other sensors can support technology-driven processes for generating actionable insights, which help professionals make better-informed business decisions. The BI process includes collecting, visualizing, analyzing data, and creating reports. BI provides insightful information that supports proactive strategic and operational planning.
Keeping people moving smoothly through airports is fundamental for efficient operations and passenger satisfaction. The Greater Toronto Airports Authority is employing data analytics to deliver the business intelligence it needs to ensure smooth running of its airports.
The benefits of integrating solution areas
While the four solution areas act as a useful classification to clarify where they can be applied, they do not need to be seen in isolation of each other. Indeed, even greater value can be derived through an integrated approach, where an investment in hardware can support use cases across all four solution areas simultaneously.
For example, the same surveillance technology that has been implemented primarily for a security use case, for instance identifying traffic accidents, could also detect the associated congestion for use in traffic management systems.
Additionally, data from the same traffic camera could be analyzed over time and used for future planning to improve traffic flow or reduce the likelihood of future accidents.
The above is just one simple example. The potential is endless, and every industry is exploring the opportunities in each solution area, from retail logistics to healthcare.
A new world of opportunity
Axis has always seen its role as bringing together a detailed understanding of the advancement of technology with an equally deep understanding of the business and organizational priorities of its customers. This has enabled us to identify how our own technologies – in combination with other sensors and partner applications – can deliver value across the entire customer organization, not solely its physical security and safety requirements. We’re at a transformational moment for our own business, for our global ecosystem of partners, for our existing customers, and for those we haven’t yet met.