Bricks And Bytes Building the Google Maps of Underground America - This Ex-Soldier Mapping What's Beneath Our Feet
From clearing landmines to building the "Google Maps of what's beneath the ground" - sometimes the most unexpected backgrounds create the biggest breakthroughs.
Most people can't imagine that we don't actually know where underground utilities are buried. Yet there are 169,000 construction projects happening every single day in the US that need this critical information.
In today's episode of Bricks and Bytes, we had Itzik from 4M Analytics and we got to learn about turning military explosive detection expertise into construction tech, the tragic consequences when underground mapping fails, and how AI is revolutionizing subsurface data... and many more!
Tune in to find out about:
✅ How military landmine detection skills translate to finding buried utilities
✅ Why 8% of every construction budget goes to unknown underground risks
✅ The business model that maps once but sells the same data forever
✅ From 104 employees to mapping 22 US states in one year
Ready to discover how one founder is preventing construction disasters while building a unicorn? Listen now on Spotify.
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Chapters
00:00 Intro
02:00 From Military to Mapping: The Journey Begins
04:56 Building the Google Maps of the Subsurface
08:07 Navigating the Challenges of Investment
10:49 Understanding the Utility Coordination Landscape
13:57 The Pain Points in Construction and Excavation
17:01 The Value Proposition of 4M Analytics
19:56 The Role of Technology in Mapping Subsurface Utilities
23:13 AI and Its Impact on Data Accuracy
25:48 The Importance of Timing in Tech Solutions
28:56 Innovations in Data Collection and AI Integration
41:01 The Future of Construction and AI
42:17 Expansion and Focus on the US Market
45:36 Navigating Challenges and Learning from Mistakes
51:41 Adapting Go-to-Market Strategies
57:01 Achieving Product-Market Fit
01:02:21 The Role of a CEO in a Growing Company
01:10:14 Closing Thoughts and Future Initiatives