urban mapping

footpath.ai

Turn street-level imagery into urban intelligence for city planners using AI-powered feature extraction to map infrastructure, accessibility, and safety.

Free plan available

A$149/km

footpath.ai screenshot

About footpath.ai

footpath.ai is a specialized urban intelligence platform that converts street-level panoramic imagery into actionable spatial data. Originally a spinout from the University of New South Wales, the tool focuses on the sidewalk-level view of cities, providing a more granular perspective than traditional satellite mapping. By leveraging its proprietary DeepWalk™ AI stack, the platform builds digital twins of urban environments, allowing users to visualize and analyze infrastructure, mobility, and environmental factors with high precision. It currently hosts data for over 18 major cities across 12 countries, comprising more than 130,000 panoramic images. The core technology utilizes a sophisticated pipeline of computer vision and geoAI algorithms. This includes visual semantic segmentation, monocular depth estimation, and object detection to identify specific urban features. The system does not just display images; it georeferences identified objects such as trees, benches, garbage bins, pedestrian crossings, and curb cuts as points, lines, or polygons within multilayer spatial networks. This allows for the extraction of complex data like tree canopy shade, sidewalk surface materials, and weather protection coverage, all of which are crucial for detailed urban modeling. This tool is primarily designed for local governments, urban planners, civil engineers, and researchers who require detailed audits of city infrastructure. It is particularly effective for accessibility studies, where understanding the condition of curb cuts and sidewalk widths is essential, or for climate resilience planning through shade and heat mapping. Unlike general-purpose mapping services, footpath.ai offers a focused, routable sidewalk network and provides data in developer-friendly formats like GeoJSON. What sets footpath.ai apart is its transparent, linear pricing model based on distance rather than subscription duration. For a one-time fee per kilometer, users gain unlimited access and download rights for a specific geofenced area. This model is ideal for project-based work where a definitive snapshot of a district is needed. Additionally, the integration of AI-detected furniture and environmental layers directly into GIS-compatible formats streamlines the workflow for professionals who would otherwise spend hundreds of hours on manual field surveys.

footpath.ai pros & cons

Pros

  • Provides high-resolution 360° panoramic imagery across 18 major cities in 12 countries.
  • Offers precise AI detection for specific urban objects like garbage bins and bike racks.
  • Data is available for download in standardized GeoJSON formats for GIS integration.
  • DeepWalk™ technology integrates semantic segmentation and monocular depth estimation.
  • One-time license fee for geofenced areas prevents recurring costs for the same data snapshot.

Cons

  • License fees are based on linear distance, which may become costly for large-scale municipal projects.
  • Data updates are not included in the original fee and require the purchase of a new license.
  • The entry-level paid tier is limited to a single-user account access only.
  • Imagery coverage is currently limited to specific major cities and university campus environments.

footpath.ai use cases

  • Urban planners can use the AI Plus tier to analyze tree canopy shade and surface materials to develop heat-mitigation strategies for city streets.
  • Accessibility auditors can utilize the AI tier to identify and map the location of curb cuts to improve city-wide mobility for disabled residents.
  • Municipal maintenance teams can leverage the 360° imagery to perform remote inspections of street furniture, saving time on physical site visits.
  • Transport researchers can use the routable sidewalk network data to model pedestrian flow and safety across complex urban intersections.
  • Commercial developers can purchase geofenced data to understand the existing infrastructure and environmental features surrounding a construction site.

footpath.ai features

  • monocular depth estimation
  • visual semantic segmentation
  • tree canopy shade mapping
  • routable sidewalk network generation
  • ai object detection
  • geojson data export
  • deepwalk™ ai computer vision stack
  • 360° high-resolution panoramic imagery

footpath.ai pricing

Is footpath.ai free? Yes, footpath.ai has a free plan, and paid plans start at A$149 / km.

Free

Free

  • Browse map imagery
  • View selected city data
  • Explore 18+ cities
  • Interactive map interface

360° Vision

A$149 / km

  • Unlimited 360° imagery access
  • Geo-fenced data license
  • Routable sidewalk network
  • GeoJSON format downloads
  • Single-user account

AI

A$199 / km

  • Everything in 360° Vision
  • AI-detected sidewalk features
  • Furniture data (benches, bins)
  • Accessibility curb cut detection
  • Multiple-user account

AI Plus

A$249 / km

  • Everything in AI tier
  • Surface material detection
  • Tree canopy shade mapping
  • Weather protection data
  • Polygon data downloads

footpath.ai FAQs

How is the pricing for data licenses calculated?

footpath.ai charges a one-time license fee based on the linear distance of the sidewalks in kilometers within a purchased geofenced area. If you need updated data for the same area later, each update is treated as a new license purchase.

What kind of AI-detected features are included in the AI tier?

The AI tier includes point data for various urban features and furniture such as trees, benches, garbage bins, bike racks, pedestrian crossings, and accessibility curb cuts. This data is provided in GeoJSON format for easy integration into mapping software.

Can I use the data for commercial purposes?

Yes, the Vision, AI, and AI Plus tiers are specifically designed for commercial users and include unlimited access and downloads for the purchased geofenced area. Licenses for commercial use are granted upon a one-time fee.

What geographical areas are currently covered by the platform?

The platform currently covers 18 major cities across 12 countries, including major Australian cities like Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane, as well as specific campus locations like UNSW, KAIST, and IIT Delhi.

What file formats are available for data downloads?

Users can download routable sidewalk networks and AI-detected feature data in GeoJSON format, which includes point, line, and polygon data depending on the license tier. This ensures compatibility with most GIS and urban planning software.

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