Axon says it has inked a “definitive agreement” to acquire Prepared.
Terms were not disclosed though an earlier report said the deal could be worth at least $800 million.
Prepared, launched in 2019, uses artificial intelligence to bring more efficiency to emergency call center operations, with its products seeking to combine audio, text, video and GPS data.
It offers real-time translation and other features that can ease the burden on emergency call professionals and quicken responses for police, fire and medical personnel.
The company serves more than 1,000 agencies in 49 states, according to the statement announcing the deal. The company has raised more than $130 million, a sign of how much public safety tech and the use of AI in that sector have appealed to investors.
Axon, which traces its roots back to 1993, is a publicly traded company that sells non-lethal weapons, body cameras, tech for real-time crime centers and other products to law enforcement and, lately, retailers. Axon reported a 33 percent year-over-year increase in revenue, to $669 million, in the second quarter.
“AI is reshaping public safety at an unprecedented pace," said Rick Smith, Axon founder and CEO, in the statement. "With Prepared, we’re harnessing that power to eliminate blind spots in the earliest moments of an emergency and give responders the speed and clarity they need to save lives. This is about setting a new standard for how technology supports communities in their most critical moments.”
The transaction should close in the early part of the fourth quarter, according to the statement. Further details about the deal were not immediately available.
