Deloitte and May Mobility recently announced a strategic partnership to improve safety in autonomous transportation through data analytics. By combining Deloitte’s expertise in data analysis with May Mobility’s autonomous vehicle (AV) technology, the two companies will track safety events, provide actionable insights, and help cities and businesses optimize their AV systems.

This builds on their previous collaboration, including the 2024 Accessibili-D program in Detroit, and is now expanding globally.

Details of the Partnership

The partnership aims to address growing concerns about AV safety, a key issue highlighted in Deloitte’s 2025 Global Automotive Consumer Study. As autonomous vehicles become more widely deployed, regulators, businesses, and the public increasingly demand greater transparency and data-driven safety assurances.

Combining real-time AV decision-making with robust analytics, the initiative provides municipal and commercial operators with an independent, scalable solution to enhance safety and improve trust in AV technology:

1. Real-Time Safety Monitoring and Risk Assessment
   • The system tracks safety events such as near-misses, pedestrian interactions, and road condition hazards.
   • May Mobility’s Multi-Policy Decision Making (MPDM) technology runs thousands of real-time simulations per second to determine the safest course of action.
   • Deloitte’s analytics layer integrates additional data sources, including weather conditions, city infrastructure, and ridership trends, to provide a full risk assessment.
2. Turning AV Data into Actionable Insights
   • May Mobility collects real-time data from its AV operations, including sensor inputs, rider interactions, and environmental conditions.
   • Deloitte’s autonomous vehicle data platform processes this data to generate safety insights.
   • Transportation planners and operators can subscribe to this platform to track safety trends and make data-driven decisions.
3. Initial Deployment and Expansion Plans
   • The partnership was first tested in Detroit’s Accessibili-D program, where it helped optimize AV services for older adults and individuals with disabilities.
   • Researchers from the University of Michigan and Detroit city planners have used insights from the platform to refine the AV system.
   • Deloitte and May Mobility plan to extend these capabilities to more cities and commercial AV deployments in the U.S. and globally.

The Role of the GSI in Smart City Programs

Global Systems Integrators like Deloitte play a crucial role in developing and deploying autonomous mobility and smart city infrastructure. GSIs provide the expertise, data integration capabilities, and consulting frameworks necessary to scale and operationalize these systems. Their role spans multiple domains: strategy, technology deployment, regulatory compliance, and risk management.

GSIs act as intermediaries between AV developers, city governments, and enterprises. They help integrate AV technologies into existing urban infrastructure by:

• Developing interoperability frameworks that connect AV platforms with municipal traffic systems, public transportation networks, and emergency response services.
• Standardizing data exchanges between AV operators, city planners, and policymakers to improve decision-making and system efficiency.
• Implementing cloud-based and edge computing solutions to enable real-time processing of transportation data.

As cities transition to smart infrastructure, real-time data analytics becomes essential for optimizing mobility and resource allocation. In this case, GSIs provide:

• AI-driven analytics platforms that monitor AV performance, traffic patterns, and environmental conditions.
• Predictive modeling tools to help cities anticipate congestion, optimize traffic signals, and improve pedestrian safety.
• Integration with IoT and sensor networks that feed AV systems with real-time data from roads, weather stations, and connected devices.

Closely related, Autonomous mobility is subject to evolving regulations, requiring compliance with both local and national policies. GSIs assist AV companies and cities by:

• Mapping regulatory frameworks and ensuring AV deployments meet legal and safety standards.
• Developing auditing and compliance tools that provide transparency and third-party validation of AV performance.
• Creating governance models for data privacy, cybersecurity, and ethical AI use in smart city applications.

Analysis

GSIs like Deloitte are essential to the successful adoption of autonomous mobility and smart city technologies. Its expertise in data integration, regulatory strategy, AI-driven analytics, and public-private collaboration ensures that AV systems operate safely, efficiently, and in alignment with broader urban development goals.

For Deloitte, the expanded partnership strengthens its position in the growing autonomous mobility sector by embedding its analytics expertise into real-world AV deployments. The collaboration expands Deloitte’s presence in smart city initiatives, AI-driven transportation, and mobility-as-a-service (MaaS).

By offering a subscription-based data platform, Deloitte creates a scalable revenue stream and positions itself as a key analytics provider for municipalities and businesses deploying AVs. It also enhances its ability to help clients navigate the complexities inherent in AV adoption and regulatory compliance.

For May Mobility, the collaboration reinforces its safety-first positioning, a crucial factor in AV commercialization. Regulators and customers demand greater transparency, so May Mobility’s integration with a trusted third-party analytics provider strengthens its case for widespread adoption. Deloitte’s industry credibility also improves May Mobility’s ability to secure municipal and enterprise partnerships.

The partnership intensifies competition in the AV sector against players like Waymo, Cruise, and Zoox, all of which have historically developed proprietary in-house safety analytics. Deloitte’s independent data platform allows municipalities and businesses to deploy a solution that offers third-party safety validation, a more compelling approach than many closed-loop AV systems.

By addressing one of the biggest barriers to AV adoption — trust — the collaboration between Deloitte and May Mobility addresses real-world challenges. It’s is a step forward in accelerating AV adoption across municipalities, and we expect other AV players to adopt similar transparency. It’s a strong partnership for May Mobility that also highlights the power a GSI like Deloitte brings to solving complex challenges of initiatives like autonomous mobility.