The development of artificial intelligence (AI) was never intended to replace humans, but rather to amplify their abilities, enhance our productivity as a species, and create a brighter future for critical sectors.
However, at Algotive, a tech firm that develops AI-powered video analytics products, transforming obsolete processes with new machinery isn't enough. The Algotive team aims to change the way we interact with technology and reimagine possibilities for a new world.
In the following article, we will delve into the context in which the company's vision is developed, its contributions to the industry, its team, and its future.
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In recent decades, technology has changed at an incredibly rapid pace.
Computers from the past few years are incomparable to the new ones in terms of speed, size, network, and storage capabilities. The same can be said about mobile phones, television screens, cars, cameras, and other technological innovations.
Industries have significantly changed thanks to the new technologies that arise every day, rendering traditional methods useless. For example, the methods of traditional banking, such as going to the bank to make deposits or withdrawals, are not a requirement anymore.
Reducing the risks of transporting cash with the use of transfers via application or websites bring commodity and safety to users all around the world. Fraud and theft have also been reduced thanks to the implementation of advanced technology on these sites. In retail, managing the books of a business’s expenses, gains, or available stock has been made easier thanks to computers that automate these processes, reducing human error and saving innumerable hours of repetitive work.
However, security is one of the industries that has benefited the most from rapid advances in artificial intelligence technology, especially in the public safety sector, where video surveillance operations make up a large part of their activities.
In many real-time centers, traditional monitoring methods are obsolete and haven't changed in the last 80 years. The video surveillance process involves a person watching multiple small screens simultaneously, waiting to locate or track fast-moving targets.
This is a very challenging task in which several factors might affect the human’s attention span. However, as Pablo Castillón, CEO of Algotive, states: “This is not a problem for current systems.” Thanks to the implementation of Artificial Intelligence to video vigilance systems, an object (a vehicle, a person, a weapon, etc.) can be located 10 times faster, thus reducing response times of law enforcers and helping to keep valuable assets and people safer at all times.
This is precisely the process that the company is trying to transform forever, with an AI-powered video analytics product for command centers: vehicleDRX, which we will discuss further later on.
To understand how we got here, we must understand how artificial intelligence has developed and how Algotive fits into the history of this technology.
Historically, the evolution of artificial intelligence has manifested through five stages:
First Era (1956-1980): It all began at Dartmouth College, where the term "artificial intelligence" was coined for the first time. This era ends with the first AI winter, highlighting the technological limitations of the time.
Second Era (1980-1993): A period characterized by innovations and experiments in the field, giving light to projects like intelligent agents. Despite its promise, it concluded with a second AI winter.
Third Era (1993-2008): With a gradual focus on the development and consolidation of concepts, this stage led to the emergence of the first GPUs and the Deep Learning revolution, marking a before and after in the industry.
Fourth Era (2008-2022): Here, the conceptual visions of AI were fully realized. Technology advanced rapidly, bringing innovations such as LLMs and AI-driven video analytics.
Fifth Era: Currently, we are witnessing the rise of artificial intelligence. Its omnipresence is not only felt in technological expansion but also in its penetration into vital industries such as science, smart cities, and video analytics, highlighting tools like vehicleDRX.
It is precisely in the fourth and fifth era where Algotive has emerged as a pioneer in the industry, signaling not only the upcoming technological future but also the transformation in how we perceive and relate to this technology.
For Algotive, artificial intelligence is not about replacing humans but enhancing their skills and increasing their productivity. This is especially useful in industries where precision and speed are essential, such as the security industry.
Algotive has taken particular interest in one of the most worrying problems in public safety matters: motorcycle crime. This implies not only the thefts of motorcycles that occur every day, that are linked to other crimes, but also those crimes perpetrated by using a motorcycle.
In the words of Pablo Castillon: “Vehicle theft is a delicate matter that affects Mexican families, but there is a subject that is sometimes overlooked: vehicle theft is a crime that opens the door for other crimes. No one steals, kidnaps, or hurts anyone in their own vehicle if they wish to get away with it”.
Motorcycles are especially worrying because they provide an easy means of escape for criminals due to their size, their speed, and the lack of proper laws and regulations for these vehicles in many cities or towns.
In 2022 alone, there were at least 36,901 motorcycle thefts in Mexico (more if one considers that not all cases are reported to the proper authorities). Of these, more than 9,000 were perpetrated with violence of some kind. This resulted in a rise in homicides, thefts, kidnaps, or robberies committed by motorcycle riders, which shows an alarming correlation between motorcycle theft and other crimes, according to a comparative study by Algotive. This study demonstrated the need to tackle this issue by implementing Artificial Intelligence in several cities’ surveillance systems.
This is why Algotive created vehicleDRX, a tool based on Autonomous Artificial Intelligence, to deal with this issue and to help the law enforcement branches of state governments follow and prevent these kinds of crimes.
This technology is the only one in the world that detects suspicious or urgent behavior in motorcycles and alerts authorities instantly.
Additionally, it can search for a vehicle with specific characteristics (model, color, and last known location, for example), and through a complex system of algorithms, vehicleDRX will locate the vehicle and track it until its whereabouts are found, without human intervention.
According to Algotive’s CEO, vehicleDRX allows Command and Control Centers to “identify and track objectives automatically through their video surveillance networks, which is still nowadays a complex process for human monitors. Technology, [specifically] Artificial Intelligence, makes it simple and even enjoyable, in the sense that it is easy to use” (Fórmula Financiera). This technology will prove essential to reduce motorcycle thefts and stop them from escalating to other, more heinous crimes.
At Algotive, innovation is one of the driving forces of the company.
Although it hasn't been an easy task, the continuous and hard work of Algotive's employees and directors has made this possible, thanks to an environment that promotes teamwork, creativity, and honesty while seeking to develop and offer top-quality products that have a positive impact on society.
Here, a group of highly trained professionals is creating the next revolutionary technology of our era, not only adapting to technology but changing the market, offering products that are part of a transition to the cities of the future.
This can only be done thanks to the ideas and outstanding work of engineers, designers, operators, and people from different areas. Together, they think, imagine, dare, and create as a team, knowing that even mistakes are part of innovation and can make us stronger and wiser.
Beyond technological solutions, the people behind each idea and project make a difference at Algotive.
These are some of the experiences of the team members, who give us an inside look at what it means to be part of Algotive and how they feel connected to the company's mission:
These voices reflect the commitment, passion, and dedication of the Algotive team. Every day, they work together to take the company to new heights, backed by a culture of innovation that drives them to excel.
For years, Algotive's mission has been to use AI to enhance productivity roles without replacing the human factor.
In an interview for Telediario, Pablo Castillon, founder and CEO, stated: "What we are doing is delegating tasks that machines do better than humans." Regardless of their position, everyone at Algotive works towards the same goal: to make machines our colleagues rather than mere tools for the benefit of humanity. This can only be achieved by leveraging human strengths and weaknesses and those of machines and seeing how they can complement each other.
By working alongside machines, productivity in various industries can be increased or even multiplied.
Castillon believes that Mexico is already part of this change and shows great promise for the coming years: "In Mexico, there is a lot of growth potential and good placement for Mexican engineers in [the field of Artificial Intelligence]. Mexico has very talented engineers; it has good universities and technical schools. We are confident that it will take its rightful place in this field."
The relevance of artificial intelligence in Mexico and the rest of the world cannot be denied, and it's here to stay.
Looking to the future and with several global expansion plans, Algotive seeks to support and work alongside the best international talents, driving a new technological revolution that enhances collaboration between humans and AI.
If you want to be part of the Algotive team, learn more about our open positions here.