Jeremy Renner partners with public safety AI company
Jeremy Renner backs RapidSOS AI technology to improve 911 response, a system used by the city of Reno and Washoe County Sheriff’s Office.
Actor Jeremy Renner has partnered with a public safety company whose artificial-intelligence technology is used by the city of Reno and Washoe County Sheriff’s Office.
Renner is a new investor in RapidSOS, a New-York based company founded in 2012. His involvement follows his 2023 near-fatal accident at his home south of Reno.
“There’s 150 people that are responsible for me not dying,” Renner told Fortune magazine earlier this month, referring to the first responders and medical staff who helped save his life.
Renner was run over by his own snowplow on New Year’s Day 2023 near his home off Mount Rose Highway following a winter storm. He suffered dozens of broken bones, a crushed chest and multiple facial and jaw injuries.
RapidSOS has now partnered with the Oscar-nominated actor to highlight the role of emergency response and communication during life-or-death situations.
The company will debut a documentary-style short film featuring Renner in Reno next week. The film focuses on his accident and his perspective after recovery.
Shot in Reno, the documentary will debut first to Northern Nevada first responders, followed by a panel discussion with emergency personnel and elected officials.
“The documentary shines a light on the often unseen work of dispatchers and first responders, and how modern tools are supporting safer, more effective emergency response,” RapidSOS said in a statement. The company’s technology is used by emergency agencies in more than a dozen countries, including the United States.
RapidSOS aims to provide real-time data during emergencies, including precise location information and medical or crash data gathered from smartphones, vehicles, buildings and cameras. The city of Reno uses the technology to help handle nonemergency calls.
In the film’s trailer, Renner said, “The more I understand about their job, who is going to help our helpers?”
Renner told Fortune he has long been wary of artificial intelligence, particularly after fraudulent uses of computer-generated images of his likeness. But he said he strongly supports AI when it is used for lifesaving work.
A live virtual screening of the film, “Behind the Emergency,” along with the panel discussion with Northern Nevada public safety leaders, will stream from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 29. Registration information is available at https://info.rapidsos.com/virtual-behind-the-emergency
