What Policing Lab does

Policing Lab is a U.S. nonprofit organization, headquartered in Miami, Florida, and operating as the technical-assistance and optimization program of the Partnership for Policing Innovation (PPI). Founded in the wake of a 2016 Department of Justice initiative to study violence in Chicago led by Sean Malinowski, PhD (formerly LAPD Chief of Detectives), the organization delivers data-driven, embedded support to municipal and county law enforcement agencies at no direct cost to the departments. Active partnerships include the Chicago, Baltimore, Philadelphia, City of Miami, North Miami, and Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office police departments, with documented homicide reductions ranging from 24% in Philadelphia to 54% in Miami and zero homicides in North Miami in 2024.

The organization's product surface combines embedded human technical assistance with a proprietary technology stack. Core solutions include the PUG (Police Unmanned Ground) Patrol Partner — positioned as the nation's first autonomous full-sized patrol vehicle, with AI-guided patrol routing, 360° video, LPR, biometric field booking, and drone launch capability — and Crime Central, a generative-AI-powered crime briefing platform featuring interactive chatbots, podcast-style briefings, and shift-specific updates. Supporting sub-products include the Data Bodega centralized data hub, Enhanced Proactive Intelligence Centers (EPICs) deployed in Miami-Dade, Strategic Decision Support Centers (SDSCs) originally developed with the University of Chicago Crime Lab, Community/Crime Information Centers (CICs) deployed in Baltimore and Philadelphia, Operation Pinpoint, and the Micro Hot Spot Policing Program.

The business model is grant- and philanthropy-funded: services are delivered at no cost to partner agencies, supported by grants from the Bureau of Justice Assistance (National Public Safety Partnership and National RTCC Toolkit), the Philadelphia Police Foundation ($1.5 million for CICs), and the Chicago Sports Alliance (SDSC funding), with PPI serving as the strategic parent that secures funding and sets direction. Distribution occurs exclusively through direct embedded on-site technical assistance, supplemented by earned media, case-study publication, and the National Crime Fighters Conference.

Name

Policing Lab

Legal name

Policing Lab

Website

https://policinglab.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Policing Lab is a Miami-based nonprofit that delivers embedded data-driven policing solutions — including the PUG autonomous patrol vehicle and Crime Central AI briefings — at no cost to U.S. municipal police departments, funded by philanthropic grants and federal partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Safety Technology

NAICS

Investigation, Guard, and Armored Car Services (56161), Justice, Public Order, and Safety Activities (922)

SIC

Services-Detective, Guard & Armored Car Services (7381)

akta.pro primary industry

Police Services (Patrol, Response & Community Policing) (BPAIAGAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Criminal Investigations & Forensics (Detectives, Crime Labs, CSI) (BPAIAGAI)

Keywords

• Public safety technology
• Law enforcement consulting
• Crime data analytics
• Predictive policing
• Police technical assistance

Headquarters

HQ city

Miami

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations

Revenue model

1. Grant and Philanthropic Funding: Policing Lab is a nonprofit that delivers services at no cost to partner police departments. The organization is funded through grants and philanthropic support, including funding from the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) National Public Safety Partnership program, the Philadelphia Police Foundation ($1.5 million grant for Crime Information Centers), and the Chicago Sports Alliance (funder of SDSCs in Chicago). The Partnership for Policing Innovation serves as the strategic parent organization that sets direction and secures funding.
2. Embedded Technical Assistance Services: Policing Lab embeds its staff within partner agencies to deliver hands-on technical assistance, training, and co-developed solutions — all at no cost to the departments. This creates a demand-generation model where proven outcomes in one city drive inbound interest from other jurisdictions, reducing the need for traditional sales and marketing spend.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Policing Lab is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers embedded, data-driven technical assistance to police departments, working alongside agency staff to redesign patrol, investigative, and crime-reduction workflows. It complements this consulting work with proprietary technology products such as the PUG autonomous patrol vehicle and the Crime Central AI crime briefings platform, and convenes partners through the Partnership for Policing Innovation.

Product overview

Policing Lab is a nonprofit that delivers data-driven policing solutions through a platform-plus-services model. The core offerings include Embedded Technical Assistance & Support (on-site experts working alongside police staff), the PUG (Police Unmanned Ground) Patrol Partner (the nation's first autonomous patrol vehicle with AI capabilities), and Crime Central (AI-powered crime briefing platform). Supporting sub-products include the Data Bodega (centralized data hub), Enhanced Proactive Intelligence Centers (EPICs), Strategic Decision Support Centers (SDSCs), Community Intelligence Centers (CICs), Crime Information Centers (CICs), Operation Pinpoint, and the Micro Hot Spot Policing Program—all interconnected tools designed to enable real-time crime analysis, predictive deployment, and data-informed decision-making across police departments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• PUG (Police Unmanned Ground vehicle): Nation's first autonomous, full-sized patrol vehicle that acts as an AI-enabled patrol partner, deterring crime and enhancing community and officer safety. Features include 360° video, thermal imaging, LPR, drone launch capability, real-time streaming, biometric field booking, two-way audio, augmented reality display, and AI-guided patrol routing.
• Crime Central
• EPIC (Enhanced Proactive Intelligence Centers)
• Data Bodega
• Micro Hot Spot Policing Program

Products and services

• Embedded Technical Assistance Direct, on-site technical assistance engagement in which Policing Lab staff are embedded within a partner police department to redesign patrol, investigative, and crime-reduction workflows using data-driven methods. Targeted at U.S. law enforcement agencies seeking evidence-based operational change.
• PUG (Patrol Unmanned Ground) Autonomous Patrol Vehicle
• Crime Central
• Partnership for Policing Innovation
• Operation Pinpoint
• Micro Hot Spot Policing Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Baltimore homicides reduced by 41% (from 348 in 2019 to 204 in 2024)
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability10 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, foundational, key and supporting.

• Partnership for Policing InnovationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPolicing Lab is the technical assistance and optimization program of the Partnership for Policing Innovation (PPI), a nonprofit committed to enhancing public safety. PPI sets the strategic direction while Policing Lab executes — focusing on data-driven innovation, operational transformation, and effective policing solutions for law enforcement agencies.
• University of Chicago Crime LabcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMembers of the Policing Lab team were the architects of the Strategic Decision Support Center (SDSC) concept, developed in partnership with the University of Chicago Crime Lab. Policing Lab's Managing Partner, Sean Malinowski, previously served as Director of Policing Innovation & Reform at the University of Chicago Crime Lab. The Crime Lab conducted external research validating SDSC effectiveness.
• Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD)foundationalStrategic or Co-development PartnerSean Malinowski served 25 years with LAPD, rising to Chief of Detectives and Chief Information Officer. His work at LAPD developing data-driven crime-fighting strategies formed the foundational experience and methodology that Policing Lab now deploys across partner agencies.
• Bureau of Justice Assistance — National Real-Time Crime Center ToolkitkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerKimani Cameron-Perry contributed to the development of a National Real-Time Crime Center (RTCC) toolkit under a national initiative led by Dr. Sean Malinowski as a Visiting Fellow at the Bureau of Justice Assistance. This toolkit is being disseminated to police departments nationwide.
• University of ChicagocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSean Malinowski is a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Chicago. Policing Lab grew from a 2016 University of Chicago engagement where Malinowski led a multidisciplinary team studying violence in Chicago, in partnership with the university.
• University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Policy LabsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerMarjolijn Bruggeling served as a Research Fellow at UCLA Policy Lab (2018–2019), conducting research on sociotechnical change in policing alongside the Los Angeles Police Department. This academic partnership informed Policing Lab's approach to technology implementation.

Scale indicators19 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• SoundThinking: Public safety technology company best known for ShotSpotter gunshot detection and recently acquired crime intelligence and predictive analytics products. Comparable to Policing Lab's CIC and EPIC programs that include gunshot detection and predictive crime software deployed within police departments.
• Mark43: Cloud-native public safety software platform providing computer-aided dispatch, records management, and analytics for police departments. Comparable as a data-driven law enforcement software provider serving municipal agencies with technology that modernizes patrol and crime analysis workflows.
• Flock Safety: Public safety technology company specializing in automated license plate recognition (LPR), gunshot detection, and video surveillance networks for law enforcement. Comparable to Policing Lab's surveillance, LPR, and predictive crime components integrated into the PUG vehicle and CIC programs.
• CentralSquare Technologies: Public sector software provider offering CAD, RMS, mobile data, and analytics for police, fire, and EMS. Comparable to Policing Lab's mission of modernizing law enforcement data infrastructure and enabling data-driven decision-making for municipal police departments.

Broad incumbents

• Axon Enterprise: Public safety technology leader providing TASER conducted energy weapons, body cameras, evidence management, and AI-powered analytics (including license plate recognition and real-time crime center software). Directly comparable to Policing Lab's law enforcement technology stack with a much broader commercial product portfolio.
• Palantir Technologies: Data analytics platform provider serving defense, intelligence, and increasingly public safety/law enforcement customers through products like Palantir Gotham and Foundry. Comparable to Policing Lab's data integration and analytical intelligence work supporting crime reduction at municipal agencies.
• Tyler Technologies: Major provider of software and technology services to the public sector, including public safety and justice products for courts, police, and corrections. Comparable as a broader public-sector software incumbent serving police departments with data management and operational systems.
• Motorola Solutions: Provides mission-critical communications, command center software, video analytics, and AI-driven intelligence solutions for public safety. Comparable as an incumbent provider of integrated public safety technology to police departments, including real-time crime operations and data analytics.

Emerging players

• Truleo: AI-powered body camera analytics platform that reviews officer footage to surface praiseworthy conduct and policy concerns. Comparable as an AI-driven analytics tool serving police accountability and quality assurance, aligning with Policing Lab's accountability and transparency positioning around the PUG vehicle.
• Peregrine Technologies: Data analytics platform purpose-built for public safety that integrates disparate agency data sources to deliver real-time insights to law enforcement. Closely comparable to Policing Lab's Data Bodega and real-time intelligence work, but operating as a commercial venture rather than nonprofit.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/policing-lab
• Instagraminstagram.com/policinglab
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Policing Lab