It’s not every day a tech company declares that it can eliminate all crime in America, but Flock Safety insists it has the means to do just that— with drones, a latticework of license plate readers, and fixed cameras that never blink, among other tools.
The Atlanta-based firm, which already has over 80,000 AI-powered cameras across communities nationwide, claims it has not only put a dent in the crime rate but can eventually all but erase it with its public safety technology system. The company does maintain that city-run programs that focus on crime prevention are a component of that equation.
That system includes the Flock License Plate Reader with Vehicle Fingerprint, which can identify vehicles not just by license plate, but by unique characteristics. The technology can spot a suspect vehicle even if it doesn’t have a plate, capturing details such as make, body type, color, state of registration, plate type, missing plate, and other identifiers such as roof racks, window stickers or toolboxes.
The network also includes video cameras that capture images in real time with searchable playback. For example, if a viewer wants to see only red trucks that passed a certain address, the AI can extract that footage without requiring someone to review hours of video. The cameras are equipped with advanced analytics features, including Guardian Mode, People Detection Alerts, Visual Alerts, and Flock FreeForm.
Flock FreeForm expands on Vehicle Fingerprint by enabling searches in plain language, such as “white sports car with a racing stripe.” The company says it helps agencies and businesses quickly locate the vehicles they are seeking.
Flock’s Enhanced LPR upgrade adds advanced analytics, real-time insights, and tools for multi-jurisdictional collaboration, making it easier to detect plate swaps, uncover organized crime and connect cases faster. Both video cameras and license plate readers can be mounted on the same pole.
The company also touts its Drone as First Responder program, which it says can put “eyes” on the scene faster. According to Flock, the system saves time, multiplies police resources and improves safety by helping clear scenes more quickly and allowing officers to take more strategic positions in potentially dangerous situations.
Flock Safety says the confidence behind its sweeping claim comes down to numbers. By saturating cities, towns and neighborhoods with drones, license plate readers and cameras, the company argues that even the stealthiest criminals will be unable to escape detection.
Legal challenges over privacy loom large. Still, Flock notes that Americans already live in a society surrounded by cameras, including the ones in nearly everyone’s pocket.
The company points to results. It says its technology was used in 10% of successful crime investigations nationwide and has aided in the recovery of more than 1,000 missing persons.
In Tulsa, for example, police use Flock technology to help detectives identify suspect vehicles, find leads and close homicide cases. Flock says that resulted in a 100% homicide clearance rate in 2024.
The technology was credited with helping capture a man suspected of arson at a Tesla facility in Las Vegas on March 18, 2025. In another case, an individual with dementia was located after an alert from one of the company’s license plate readers. Flock also says its system can give domestic violence victims instant alerts when someone barred from approaching enters a restricted area, and can track suspicious travel patterns by specific vehicles.
Flock has built additional tools to support its goals, including Flock Nova, which allows law enforcement agencies across the country to share arrest information.
The company’s origin traces back to a string of unsolved break-ins in Atlanta in 2017. Founder and CEO Garrett Langley said he started the company after several vehicles in his neighborhood were burglarized overnight, leaving little evidence for police to investigate.
He turned to crime statistics and found that most such cases go unsolved. Langley contacted two former Georgia Tech classmates, and together they developed the license plate reader. Months later, when another round of break-ins occurred, the cameras captured the suspect vehicle. Atlanta police tracked it, recovered stolen items from both incidents, and arrested the suspect.
Flock has expanded rapidly and now operates in more than 6,000 cities.
At Atlanta Tech Village, one of the largest tech hubs in the U.S., the surveillance system is part of a larger security strategy.
“We’re very focused on how do we get food, how do we get retail, how do we get hospitality, all of the things that you as an entrepreneur need to be able to walk around the corner and grab. But a bigger issue that we face is safety,” said Aly Merritt, managing director of Atlanta Tech Village. “So we’re trying to get in front of it by being proactive. That’s not only things like working with off-duty police officers, and private security, but it’s also working with companies like Flock Safety to make sure that we have eyes in the sky and are able to be not just reactive, but proactive. And that’s why Flock Safety is super important to this project.”
Despite its rapid growth, Flock Safety has faced backlash. In Oakland, California, where more than 200 Flock cameras are deployed, some residents and community groups have argued to elected officials that the surveillance is heavy-handed and lacks safeguards to ensure personal information won’t be used beyond solving specific crimes.
Flock says its data is stored for only 30 days and notes that California’s Senate Bill 34 prohibits local law enforcement from sharing such data with federal agencies.
