Building the “See Something, Say Something” AI for Every Camera

Shikhar Shrestha, CEO and founder of Ambient, discusses with a16z's Martin Casado how AI is transforming physical security. Shrestha shares his personal experience of being a victim of armed robbery, which motivated him to create Ambient, a company that uses AI to make every camera intelligent. He explains how Ambient's technology can prevent incidents by detecting suspicious behavior, responding in real time, and providing AI forensics. Shrestha also discusses the challenges and opportunities of selling software to non-software buyers, the impact of COVID-19 and the rise of generative AI on the physical security industry, and the importance of privacy-aware approaches to AI-powered security. He envisions a future where AI acts as a real-time assistant, automating responses to security threats and enabling more proactive and agentic physical security operations.