Neighborhood watch startup Flock Safety is expanding its Atlanta headquarters amid a local crime spike that increased demand for its cameras.
Flock Safety produces solar-powered cameras and surveillance equipment that reads license plates and vehicle characteristics. After a crime has been committed, law enforcement or a neighborhood group could pull footage from a specific time or place to use as evidence. The cameras are connected to the FBI’s network, so it can also ping local police when it picks up a vehicle on the most-wanted list.
The startup, which may be on its way to a $1 billion valuation if its growth continues, is opening a new office space in Westside Provisions District in early fall.
The 9,700-square-foot space is next to its current office, which is also located in Westside Provisions, a mixed-use development that includes shops, bars and restaurants.
The original, 4,600-square-foot office will be converted to an “Engineering Hub,” a Flock Safety spokesperson said.
The new space will accommodate 86 people. The engineering hub holds about 30 people and includes engineering hardware and equipment.
The startup has more than 50 job openings on its website. Engineering jobs are based either in Atlanta or remote, while operation and sales are in cities across the country.
Founded in 2017, Flock Safety has more than 200 employees and saw a 400% revenue increase in 2020. It has cameras in more than 1,000 cities. Rising crime rates and a need for cost-effective tools for police departments with tight budgets are fueling its growth. The startup raised a $47 million Series C round last November, a $15.8 million last April and two $20 million rounds in 2018.
The surveillance startup is another example of technology companies investing in the Westside, an area that’s suffered decades of disinvestment.
Georgia Tech is planning a biosciences and health innovation district in West Midtown. Microsoft is opening a massive East Coast tech hub in Grove Park, which promises to have a plan for long-term community revitalization.
Flock Safety is implementing a hybrid return-to-office plan for its Atlanta employees. Employees will spend two days in the office and three at home, a spokesperson said. The company will also have quarterly in-person meetings for all its employees, who span 30 states.
The startup doesn't have offices in other states, but a spokesperson said the company will pay for those employees to work two days a week at local co-working spaces.
The hybrid office model is becoming a popular alternative to the five-day office commute that was the norm before the pandemic. Terminus, a high-growth marketing startup, has also implemented a hybrid work schedule. Global Payments, one of the nation’s largest financial technology companies, is using the model for its new Alpharetta office.
