Sparrow Analytics partners with Swiss Post to deliver air quality information in major Swiss cities
12 June 2024
Sparrow Analytics is collaborating with Swiss Post to provide the country’s citizens with critical air quality information by equipping postal vehicles with its advanced sensors.
Air pollution poses significant health risks, including respiratory diseases, sleep disorders, and in severe cases, cancer. With European and Swiss regulations tightening permissible levels of particulate matter and toxic gases, the demand for accurate, hyperlocal air quality data is critical.
Sparrow Analytics, a Vaud-based start-up specializing in environmental monitoring, has partnered with Swiss Post to deliver hyperlocal air quality data to the country’s citizens. This collaboration involves equipping Swiss Post’s postal vehicles with Sparrow Analytics’ patent-pending Nodes (Multi Micro Sensors Unit) to collect and aggregate air pollution data at street level.
This initiative aims to provide crucial air quality information directly to residents in five major cities. Initially, the project will cover Geneva, Lausanne, Bern, Basel, and Zurich, encompassing almost 100 zip codes and nearly 2.3 million inhabitants, with plans for nationwide expansion in the future. Philip Michel, project manager at Swiss Post, emphasized the alignment of this project with their vision: “This project fits perfectly with our vision of powering a modern Switzerland with our capabilities. That’s why we’re working with Sparrow Analytics.”
Sparrow Analytics, founded in 2021 by Maxim Interbrick and Elshad Hajiyev, has already made significant strides in environmental monitoring. The company’s innovative Sparrow Node sensors attach to vehicles to provide real-time data on urban air quality and road conditions. COO and co-founder Max Interbrick highlighted the recent achievements of Sparrow Analytics, noting that hyperlocal air quality data collection began two months ago in Lausanne and Geneva. The start-up’s sensors were among the first to detect Saharan dust clouds over Switzerland, demonstrating the potential of Sparrow’s solution.
Expansion and innovation in air quality solutions
Currently, Sparrow Analytics offers two products in Switzerland: an air quality index (AQI) linked to specific streets and addresses, and an air quality certificate (AQC) for particular locations. The company has seen growing demand for hyperlocal air data, which is being integrated into real estate platforms like Sherlockhomes.ch and has attracted interest from insurance companies for risk calculations and broader healthcare applications.
Looking ahead, Sparrow Analytics plans to expand its services to additional Swiss cities in collaboration with Swiss Post, with a review planned in the coming months. Internationally, the startup has secured an agreement with a major ground fleet operator in the United States and aims to monitor 6 to 7 North American cities by the end of the year. Additionally, Sparrow Analytics plans to launch a Series A financing round to support its growth ambitions.