Derq Inc. has raised a seed funding round of $1.5 million

The company, founded in Dubai, is opening an office in Detroit

Derq uses artificial intelligence to warn drivers of imminent danger from other vehicles

Derq Inc., one of the 11 companies in the current class of the Techstars Mobility incubator program at Ford Field in Detroit, has raised a seed funding round of $1.5 million and is opening an office in Detroit to serve as its U.S. headquarters.

The company, which is based on technology developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was founded in Dubai after a U.S. patent on its technology was granted at the end of 2015. The company uses artificial intelligence to warn drivers of imminent danger from other vehicles, such as sensing when drivers at intersections appear to be about to run a red light.

The funding came from Techstars, angel investors and family offices. CEO Georges Aoude, who got his Ph.D in aerospace engineering from MIT in 2011, said the company will begin raising a much larger funding round in the next few months. The seed round will be used to staff the Detroit office, expand its patent base and fund software and hardware development.

Aoude is looking to hire for the Detroit office now, aiming for a handful of staff in the future as Derq seeks contracts with OEMs, tier one suppliers and others.

For now, the local office will be at Ford Field. Aoude said he is talking with city of Detroit officials about incentives to move into another space in the city.

"Going through the program, we saw a lot of potential partnerships in Detroit. It became important for us to have our first U.S. office here, and we're in the midst of setting up a legal U.S. entity," he said. "As soon as we hire more people, we'll look for other space."

Early this month, the company signed a memorandum of understanding with agencies in Dubai to set up a pilot program, including the city's Road and Transport Authority, the Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority and Smart City Dubai.

The company was co-founded by CTO Amer Abufadel and COO Karl Jeanbart.

"The team behind Derq is incredible. Literally, rocket scientists out of MIT. They are committed to making the roads safer for everyone. They have a tremendous pilot in Dubai that is underway," said Ted Serbinski, who runs the Techstars Mobility program.

"It is incredibly rewarding to see the team's commitment to Detroit and to hire locally. This supports Techstars Mobility's mission of continuing to bring mobility startups from around the world to Detroit and connecting them across the automotive dominance of the region."

Editor's note: The original version of this report misspelled Georges Aoude's last name. This version is correct.