The debate over where the line should be drawn between privacy and public safety has only intensified in the AI era. And Flock Safety, a company that has seen both an influx of investment and an intense public backlash, sits right at the center of that debate.Â
Thatâs why at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, weâre bringing Flockâs founder and CEO Garrett Langley to the stage to speak about those very issues. Disrupt has always had its fair share of hard-hitting conversations, and you should expect no less from this session.Â
And Langleyâs discussion of AI, surveillance, and the future of public safety is just one of the many compelling conversations happening at Disrupt this year, which will take place October 13-15 at San Franciscoâs Moscone Center. You can dive into the programming weâve announced so far here, or take advantage of lower, early ticket prices right here.Â
How Flock Safety, and Langley, got to Disrupt 2026Â
Atlanta-based Flock Safety isnât Langleyâs first experience within the startup space. In past roles, he worked on the car subscription service Clutch and the platform Experience, where he oversaw several teams, including engineering and design prior to its sale to Cox Enterprises for $200 million in 2014. Â
Flock started in 2017, with Langley partnering with co-founders Matt Feury and Paige Todd, going through Y Combinator before experiencing significant success selling its surveillance technology to businesses and law enforcement agencies. You may associate the company with license place recognition, though it has more general surveillance use cameras and has been developing drone first responders following its acquisition of Aerodome.Â
The companyâs most recent fundraise last year, a $275 million round, placed Flock at a $7.5 billion valuation, which was a sharp increase from the prior yearâs $4.8 billion valuation. Altogether, the outfit has secured $950 million in total funding since inception.Â
Flockâs business success has been paired with pushback from privacy advocates like the ACLU and members of the general public, with some people going so far as destroying Flockâs surveillance cameras as it continues to offer its cameras and databases to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in particular. Among the biggest apparent setbacks for Flock, Amazonâs Ring recently ended a partnership with the company, and the LAPD let its deal with Flock lapse this month. Â
Langley will discuss the companyâs approach to the increasingly interwoven nature of AI and the surveillance industry in a discussion thatâs certain to prove illuminating to Flockâs supporters and its critics.Â
To watch the discussion in person and join the other 10,000 founders, investors, tech enthusiasts, and innovators who will be flocking to San Francisco for TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 on October 13-15 for a wide array of workshops, speaker talks, after-parties, and networking, snag a ticket at the best price youâll be seeing for the rest of the year right here.Â
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