“In a time-constrained environment, technology has to be as intuitive as possible.” - Damian McKeon

There’s a big problem that first responders face. When you arrive on the scene of an emergency, and it’s somewhere you’ve never been before, you waste a lot of time figuring out where to go. Mission-critical teams typically have 300 seconds or less to solve problems where the consequence of failure is death or catastrophic loss.

Today, I have the pleasure of hosting two extraordinary guests, Ashley Hamilton and Damian McKeon, the co-founders of Aiki. Ashley and Damian recognized this problem and are now revolutionizing the world of emergency response with intuitive, symbol-based indoor mapping. Damian brings over 29 years of experience in the fire service and 27 years as an EMT paramedic in Texas. A seasoned professional, Damian has served in the United States Army as a Green Beret and the 19th Special Forces. He has traveled the world sharing his expertise, tactics, and tactical medicine. With 15 years of firefighting experience, including six years in the Special Operations Battalion, Ashley excels in solving complex problems in hazardous and restrictive environments. She serves as an Emergency Planning Specialist for the Austin Fire Department. She has pioneered programs that require and enable first responders and command staff to make rapid, secure, and efficient decisions using symbols instead of written language.

In this conversation, Damian, Ashley, and I discuss the need to leverage technology for emergency response, their mission to empower children in crises, the need for more effective responses to active shooter incidents, the power of real-time communication and instant notification systems in schools, the future of Aiki, and more.

Highlights

Ashley’s journey from financial advisor to firefighter

Damian’s unique background in the fire service, Special Forces, and as a medic

Leveraging data and technology to help first responders save lives

The process of digitizing paper plans and maps to turn unstructured data into structured data

Recognizing the need and opportunity to empower children in emergencies

The horrific statistics on mass shootings and the need for faster response times

How real-time, intuitive, visual data can transform the way first responders and individuals respond to a crisis situation

Empowering students and teachers during a school shooting

The individual use cases for Aiki for end users and first responders

Creating an interface for real-time communication during emergencies

Using visual references and symbols for efficient information transmission

The future of Aiki

What people-driven tech means to Damian and Ashley

Connect with Damian McKeon and Ashley Hamilton

Aiki Website https://www.aikiplans.com/

Ashley Hamilton on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/whatahamiam/

Damian McKeon on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/damian-mckeon-955428223/

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