“A Massive Change”: How Vexcel Intelligence Moves High-Resolution Aerial Imagery From Training Algorithms to Asking Questions

Rob Agee, chief operating officer of the Vexcel Data Program, explains that from the beginning, Vexcel built its high-resolution aerial imagery dataset with high redundancy and high accuracy, enabling automated computer models to extract features from it.

Recently, Vexcel took the next step, running its entire image library through vector embeddings, which makes it searchable with plain-language queries.

For clients, that means a different way of working with the data. Instead of spending a lot of time labeling, training, and fine-tuning, Agee says users can ask Vexcel Intelligence what it sees, whether they’re looking for hay bales next to a road or graffiti on the side of a building.

Agee says Vexcel Intelligence also opens up a whole new set of users. People who aren’t trained in geospatial, or don’t know what geospatial information is, can now query the real world in plain language. They can also use their favorite agent to find details about the Earth, without being advanced geospatial operators.