A Bristol-based technology company has landed a $200 million contract with US Customs and Border Protection to deploy its fibre-optic sensing systems along American borders — a significant expansion of a relationship that began with a $34 million deal back in 2020.
Sintela, founded in 2017 and rooted in research from the University of Southampton’s Optoelectronics Research Centre, builds what it describes as a “listening” infrastructure using distributed acoustic sensing (DAS). The technology works by running data through existing fibre-optic cable networks to detect and interpret vibrations and sounds over long distances. The system can identify specific events — footsteps, digging, fence-cutting, climbing — and feed that information in real time to AI models that classify and prioritise potential threats.
The appeal over traditional surveillance methods is clear, particularly across remote or expansive terrain where cameras are costly to install and maintain. For border protection over large distances, the ability to piggyback on existing fibre infrastructure and generate actionable alerts without constant human monitoring represents a practical and scalable alternative.
The US-Mexico border is a central focus, but Sintela’s systems are already operational across multiple international borders and in maritime environments. The company has also extended the technology into critical infrastructure protection — through a joint venture with SLB, sensors have been fitted to offshore pipelines to detect potential sabotage. In urban settings, the same underlying technology is being applied to monitor water networks for leaks and assess wear on railway lines and roads. In parts of Africa, utilities are using it to detect tampering with electricity pylons.
CEO Magnus McEwen-King called the contract a breakthrough, describing the company as inventing capabilities others can’t yet match and deploying them at meaningful scale. Several members of the original Southampton research team are part of Sintela’s current workforce.
The company posted revenues of around £13 million in 2023 and has been growing its international footprint, including a $10 million investment in its Michigan operations. The new three-year contract is expected to drive further expansion — Sintela has already hired 50 additional staff across the UK and US in anticipation and plans to recruit another 50 in the near term.