How might we develop public-safety technologies so that first responders and critical infrastructure operators can detect, communicate, and act in real time?

First responders — firefighters, police, EMTs, emergency managers — operate in chaotic, high-stakes environments where seconds matter and information is incomplete. They communicate using radio systems designed in the 1980s, operate with limited situational awareness beyond what they can see directly, and coordinate using analog tools like whiteboards and paper maps. Meanwhile, consumer technology has leaped forward: smartphones provide instant access to maps, communications, and information; wearables monitor health continuously; AI can analyze video streams in real time. The gap between consumer technology and public safety technology has never been wider, and it costs lives.

Modernizing public safety technology requires more than just giving first responders better radios. It requires integrated systems that provide real-time situational awareness (where are my units, what are they facing, what resources are available), resilient communications that work when infrastructure fails, decision support that helps commanders allocate resources optimally, and interoperability so that police, fire, and medical teams can coordinate seamlessly. The technology exists — the challenge is adapting it for public safety requirements (ruggedized hardware, offline capability, security, training) and overcoming the fragmentation of public safety procurement across thousands of independent agencies.

Public safety communications have evolved slowly over a century. The first police radio systems appeared in the 1930s, enabling patrol cars to receive dispatch messages. Two-way radios followed in the 1940s. Trunked radio systems in the 1980s improved spectrum efficiency by allowing multiple agencies to share channels. Each advance improved capability but also increased complexity and cost. By 2000, most public safety agencies operated radio systems that were reliable but technologically dated, lacking the data capabilities and interoperability that modern emergency response required.

The September 11, 2001 attacks exposed critical gaps in public safety communications. First responders from different agencies couldn't communicate with each other because their radio systems were incompatible. Firefighters in the World Trade Center towers didn't receive evacuation orders because radio signals couldn't penetrate the buildings. Commanders lacked visibility into where units were deployed and what they were facing. The 9/11 Commission identified communications and coordination failures as major factors in the response, leading to calls for modernization and interoperability.

Congress responded by creating FirstNet, a nationwide broadband network for first responders, funded by $7 billion from spectrum auction revenue. FirstNet promised to give public safety agencies access to modern LTE data networks with priority access during emergencies. It launched in 2018, providing a foundation for next-generation public safety applications. But adoption was slower than expected because the network itself didn't solve agencies' operational problems — it was infrastructure that enabled new applications, but those applications needed to be built and deployed at the agency level.

Meanwhile, commercial technology was racing ahead. Companies like Uber and Lyft demonstrated real-time location tracking and dispatch at massive scale. Google Maps provided situational awareness to millions of users. Ring and Citizen app showed that crowdsourced information could provide early warning of incidents. Military systems like ATAK (Android Tactical Assault Kit) demonstrated that tactical coordination could run on commodity smartphones. The technology to transform public safety existed — the challenge was adapting it for public safety requirements and navigating the complex procurement landscape of thousands of independent agencies.

COVID-19 and civil unrest in 2020-2021 accelerated demand for better public safety technology. Emergency managers needed real-time data on hospital capacity, PPE supplies, and testing resources. Police departments faced protests that required coordinating hundreds of officers across shifting situations. Fire departments responded to wildfires that evolved faster than traditional coordination tools could handle. Agencies that had modern situational awareness and coordination tools managed more effectively than those still using analog systems. This created urgency around modernization and demonstrated that the return on investment wasn't just efficiency — it was lives saved and communities protected more effectively.