Understanding & saving our planet with AI

Our core technology was developed through PhD research at the University of Waterloo, a globally-recognized leader in computer engineering. After being awarded the Science and Engineers in Business grant from the University of Waterloo and Federal Government of Canada, the technology was spun out of the university, and Ecopia AI was founded. 

The founding team was formed in 2015. The same year, we obtained our first customer and hit the ground running with steady sales growth and product development.

With a strong customer base and global partnership network, secured our first continental-scale project, mapping 16 million buildings across the 7.692 million square kilometer area of Australia within 6 months for PSMA (Geoscape), an entity of the Australian Federal Government.

Ecopia continued to advance our AI-based mapping systems to build the foundational layers of a digital twin throughout 2017 while more than doubling revenue and number of employees for the fourth year in a row.

In 2018, we generated the first and only complete HD vector map of every building in the United States, mapping 169M buildings across the 9.834M square kilometer country within 6 months. We continuously update this map to capture change and keep information fresh.

By 2019, Ecopia had secured hundreds of customers around the world, amassing a powerful and growing database of foundational map content spanning 100+ countries. Today we continue to expand both in terms of geography (worldwide coverage) and products (more advanced maps).

In 2020, we continued to expand our global map content, producing the first comprehensive digital maps of Sub-Saharan Africa for use by humanitarian organizations. During this time we also unlocked additional capabilities, including 3D land cover maps and HD road network data.

Ecopia continued to expand our global partnership ecosystem throughout 2021, partnering with leaders like Airbus and CGR to enhance our digital twin layers with the 2D and 3D data of the highest quality.

Ecopia expanded our focus to apply our technology in support of solving some of the world’s toughest problems, including the fight against climate change (Net Zero), and the reduction of traffic fatalities (Vision Zero).

Ecopia continues to push the boundaries of AI-powered mapping technologies, creating systems that can create and maintain a digital representation of the real world in unmatched detail, accuracy, and freshness.