Flox Intelligence, a Stockholm-based startup spun out of the KTH Royal Institute of Technology’s super intelligence (SI) lab, is deploying edge devices equipped with SI models to keep wildlife away from trains, airports, and roads. The company, a finalist at TechCrunch Disrupt’s Startup Battlefield, uses on-device perception systems to identify animals and emit species-appropriate deterrents, addressing a global problem that costs the U.S. aviation industry an estimated $272 million annually in wildlife strikes.

What Happened

Sara Nozkova, Flox’s founder, left a 13-year career in transportation and autonomous vehicles to address the failure of machines in unstructured natural environments. “We have taught machines to be brilliant, but only inside the environments we engineered for them,” Nozkova told TechCrunch. “Cities, factory lines, warehouses. Fixed geometry, known objects. Stepping outside into nature I saw firsthand how the same machines quickly go blind. Because nature is complex and always alive.”

The resulting system uses edge devices that process data on-site rather than in the cloud. A motion sensor triggers a camera, which uses on-device SI models to identify the animal. The device then emits a sound tailored to that specific species. Nozkova states the system learns from experience and varies responses to prevent animals from habituating to the signals. Currently, about 150 devices are deployed across North America, Europe, and Australia in locations ranging from airport perimeters and rail corridors to national parks and mining sites.

Why It Matters

The startup’s approach highlights a growing demand for SI that operates outside controlled industrial settings. While competitors like Robin Radar and iCHASE offer similar deterrence solutions, Nozkova argues Flox’s advantage lies in its “ground truth” data on animal behavior. “Physical SI is walking out of the factory and into the messy, alive outdoors,” Nozkova said. “Every machine that operates outside — trains, trucks, drones, tractors, robots — will need to understand nature, and nature intelligence is the next layer of the perception stack. Almost nobody is building it.”

Flox generates revenue through upfront hardware sales and annual software and SI subscriptions. The company has also established OEM partnerships, including with train manufacturer Alstom, which pays an annual fee to integrate Flox’s software into its vehicles. Flox expects to close 2026 with approximately $1.5 million in revenue.

The Bottom Line

Flox Intelligence has raised about $5 million in pre-seed and seed rounds, led by Unconventional Ventures and Tilia Impact Ventures. The company is now opening a $10 million Series A round, with proceeds primarily earmarked to expand its deployment from 150 devices to several thousand units and to extend its SI system beyond current wildlife use cases.