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Startup inspiration can strike anywhere. But for Atlas.co*, a freemium browser-based real-time mapping tool, was created by a team of engineers (initially students) in Oslo, Norway, and the founders realized there might be a business opportunity in competing with older, expensive mapping software during class.
“When we took an introductory GIS class, half the class couldn’t download it because their computers didn’t meet the software requirements,” Frederic Mauger, CEO and co-founder, told TechCrunch. . “That’s a drawback in general, right? And I think if you look…maybe 10 years ago, Adobe kind of had the same problem. And then Figma came into the field.”
Atlas wants to unleash the power of GIS data in a similar way, avoiding the burden and cost of legacy software by offering a more flexible, easy-to-use cloud-based collaboration platform and a software-as-a-service business model that starts at free and scales with usage.
Mauger points to other cloud platforms — like Airtable, Canva, and Notion — that also provide the kind of collaborative template you want to provide for doing cool things with GIS data. While, on the ancient cartographic side, he verifies the names Esri As the main competitor to the GIS platform.
Google Maps also provides custom map features and an API for developers who want to include rich interactive maps elsewhere. Although it is not a complete GIS platform. So it’s unlikely to be fully served enough for the B2B users Atlas is after.
Typical users so far include people who work in renewable energy development, urban planning and real estate, according to Mauger. Journalists were also, perhaps unsurprisingly, among its early users – maps could be a powerful means of conveying information quickly.
Making maps is really easy
Running Atlas doesn’t require particularly powerful computers, according to Mauger. There is no need to download and install the software, as everything runs in the browser.
He suggests that the tile rendering component the team created allows it to stream map data from its infrastructure to the user’s browser “highly efficiently,” which in turn means no fancy hardware is needed.
On the UI side, the goal is to maximize accessibility as well, by designing a clean, modern software experience that’s easy to get to. “(What) we do with GIS is make it available to everyone,” he said. “I think everyone should be able to create interactive maps and spatial applications very easily.”
Atlas was founded in 2021 when the founders were still at university. They started working during the early stage of the startup, choosing to leave the jobs they were preparing for after college to focus full-time on the startup. They launched the platform in June on Product Hunt. Moger confirms that they have approximately 20,000 sign-ups in over 140 countries so far – most of whom are free users at this early stage.
Key features currently include a creation tool that allows users to create spatial maps and interactive dashboards. It supports data layers as well – users can upload information to display on maps and use tools to visualize and model the data.
The software also provides spatial analysis tools to automate functions such as proximity searches, data aggregation, and density analysis. Real-time collaboration is also integrated, with support for things like real-time cursor display to help teams work together on visual location data collection.
The startup has just closed a $2 million seed round to further develop the product. Therefore, hiring more engineers is at the top of the team’s to-do list as they focus on continuing to expand Atlas’ feature set.
Mauger points out that there is a growing need to analyze geospatial data visually and tell stories, including as a result of the climate crisis. (One topical example is satellite maps of Valencia, Spain, made the rounds in the wake of Storm Dana’s flooding disaster earlier this month, which show Before and after shots.)
“With all the climate change that’s happening, and all the actions we need to take to combat climate change, a lot of new industries actually need to work more and more with geospatial data,” he suggested. “They currently don’t have the competency and skills to work with existing tools. And (these are) the new users or industries that we want to target. That’s the person we want to enable to use and work with spatial data.”
Mauger explained that while previously only one person on a target team might have served as an in-house GIS expert adept at using legacy software, the goal with Atlas is to enable multiple team members to collaborate on geospatial data. .
The funding is led by climate-focused European venture capital fund Pale Blue Dot. Other “high-profile” investors in the round include Ben Lange (early employee and former head of community at Notion), and Andreas Klinger (former CTO and founding team
In searching for the product).
Commenting, Joel Larson, partner at Pale Blue Dot, said in a statement: “Atlas.co is an important step towards making spatial data accessible for essential causes like climate action. We are excited to support a team that views maps not only as data tools but as As catalysts for environmental and social change.
*Not to be confused with Atlas 3D AI tool; Atlas is a business benefits tool for global companies; Atlassian Atlas Teams Program; Boston Dynamics Humanoid Robot Atlas; Or VC Sequoia’s interactive map of European tech talent, to name just a few of the countless uses of the term Atlas in technology. So it might be time to retire that name tbh.
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