Insights from data experts at Geotab ITS

There are many variable factors that impact the trajectory of a start-up’s journey. You must constantly navigate factors like rising costs, supply chain disruptions, talent shortages, and aggressive environmental mandates.

So, to understand how start-ups can navigate these challenges, we turned to one of the Centre for Integrated Transportation and Mobility’s (CITM) partners and data experts, Geotab ITS. Backed by the Government of Ontario through the Ontario Vehicle Innovation Network (OVIN), Innovation Factory’s CITM is an accelerator program that helps innovators in smart, connected, and electrified transportation and infrastructure sectors bring their solutions to market faster. From funding identification to technical expertise and strategic partnerships, CITM provides the resources entrepreneurs need to scale in Ontario’s growing automotive and mobility ecosystem.

“It’s not about bouncing back to the way things were. It’s about bouncing forward,” shares Bob Bradley, VP, Data Science & AI Engineering at Geotab. While in conversation with Bradley and Abhinav Narayanan, Sr. Data & AI Advocate at Geotab, we gained some insights into how a transportation and mobility start-up can “bounce forward.”

From Dashboards to agents, taking automation to the next level

For years, the gold standard in transportation tech was the dashboard. We collected data, visualized it, and presented it to management. But the reality is that founders are often drowning in data, and managers are too busy to look at it.

Enter Agentic AI.

“Agentic AI is taking center stage where now you have an agent looking at all this information—the context, the models—and it can then plan and actually take action,” explains Narayanan. “It removes manual and administrative overhead typically left to those in operational roles, and allows for their time to be used more effectively.”

ApoSys Technologies is a prime example of this shift. Through their Apollo Framework, they aren’t just monitoring railway tracks; they are automating the entire inspection process.

By integrating data from their Apollo Sense framework, which utilizes LiDAR and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) with satellite and drone imagery, ApoSys doesn’t just show a railway company that a track is worn. Their algorithms generate accurate predictions and recommendations, allowing for preventative maintenance before a derailment can even occur. By focusing on these proactive, autonomous agents, ApoSys is moving the industry from reactive monitoring to truly intelligent, self-solving infrastructure.

Getting past the 80/20 barrier of product development

One of the most interesting insights Bradley and Narayanan shared was the ‘80/20 rule’ of engineering. “The 80% with all of these generative AI technologies is pretty remarkable,” says Bradley. “But that last 20% is not easy. You need the staff and the tools to tackle the really difficult problems in safety, sustainability, regulations and maintenance to get it production-ready.”

It is relatively easy to build a prototype that works in a controlled lab environment. But the final 20%—where your product must function safely and reliably in the unpredictable real world—is where true commercial value is created. To cross this barrier, your innovation must move beyond ‘digital logic’ and master ‘physical reality.’

With GravitySlide’s product, ‘GravityDrive’, we can see that it solves the problem of maneuvering and parking a heavy, towable RV. While many start-ups might stop at a digital visibility aid, GravitySlide tackled the difficult “final 20%” by developing a patented electric drive system that allows users to steer and park their trailers with their smartphone. 

By focusing on the rigorous engineering required to make autonomous movement safe and accessible for consumers, GravitySlide moved past the demo phase into a production-ready solution that is already gaining traction with major retailers and manufacturers.

Your start-up’s value isn’t just in the 80% that everyone sees—the “cool” AI or the sleek interface. It’s in the 20% of safety, hardware reliability, and real-world precision that most people overlook. By mastering the physical execution of your technology, you aren’t just building a demo, you are building a business that is ready for the market.

Making your solution multi-use 

Narayanan mentions, “You can’t manage what you don’t measure.” But he also challenges founders to think bigger. Don’t just measure your own product; use your product to see the world.

This is a big pivot for a founder. Instead of just asking, “How is my product doing?” Narayanan suggests asking, “What can my product tell me about the environment it’s in?”

LIVESENS followed a similar school of thought. The team has turned ordinary transit vehicles into ‘roaming satellites’ for our streets. Their sensors don’t just track the vehicle; they track the pulse of the city, detecting things like potholes, traffic patterns, and air quality.

By doing this LIVESENS has created a platform that is valuable to everyone, from fleet managers to city planners.

The lesson for founders? Don’t just build a tool that measures one thing. You can create a competitive advantage by building a platform that digitizes the very environment it’s in. When your data solves problems for both private companies and the government, your start-up becomes indispensable.

Finally, Bradley reminds us that resilience is a culture, not a technical spec. By maintaining a ‘no-door’ policy and blending diverse teams during events like hackathons, Geotab ensures that their AI is ‘augmented’ by human intuition rather than just replacing it. The most important shift you can make is empowering your people to work alongside your technology. When you combine urban data with a team that is encouraged to stay curious and collaborative, you create a business that is truly built to bounce forward.

Ready to move from insights to action? Connect with us to explore how we can help you leverage resources and opportunities to grow.