In an emergency, a couple of minutes can mean the difference between life and death. That’s why Echo Data Analytics, founded in 2023, was driven to develop a tool to help first responders make every second of their actions count.

“The problem Echo set out to solve was helping fire and emergency medical services agencies quickly turn raw operational data into insights that improve response, readiness, and resource allocation—without needing to be data experts,” says CEO Tariq Bashir.

With its data visualization dashboards, the Golden Valley-based company ensures precise reporting that is easy to understand, giving departments a clear picture of their performance, tools to defend budgets and staffing, and a way to improve safety and outcomes for first responders and the communities they protect.    

“Echo Data Analytics is driven by a mission to make fire/EMS data actionable and accessible,” Bashir says. “Many departments struggle to aggregate information across different systems, limiting their ability to make informed decisions. Our platform addresses this challenge.”

Bashir leads the company with a deep understanding of both the operational and technical needs of emergency services. In addition to previously serving as a full-time firefighter/emergency medical technician—and currently serving as an on-call fire captain—he has more than two decades of experience as a data architect and software engineer.

After gaining traction with its initial fire/EMS analytics product, the Echo team realized a much greater problem existed: Data across public safety systems is fragmented and disconnected. “The bigger opportunity was not just analyzing data but merging and cleaning it across fire, EMS, police, dispatch, and computer-aided dispatch systems,” Bashir says. “Once data is connected, it unlocks far more product value [with] deeper insights, predictive capabilities, and cross-agency collaboration. This realization propelled Echo’s second stage of growth and enabled us to expand from fire operations into EMS, Computer-Aided Dispatch, and beyond.”

Echo Data Analytics’ solutions are available for purchase and already in use by fire and EMS agencies. The team continues to enhance the platform with new modules and capabilities. The next step in further integrating into the $40 billion public safety and security software market—of which Echo estimates an $8 billion addressable market and $1.8 billion serviceable obtainable market—involves scaling nationally, expanding into other areas of public safety, and making the platform available to more communities. Additionally, the team will be expanding its product capabilities, including new AI features that make the data easier to use for everyday decision-making.

“Many fire departments operate within limited budgets, creating a strong need for data-driven efficiency. With tight resources, departments must do more with less, making analytics solutions essential,” Bashir says. “We’re excited to continue growing in Minnesota, where we can leverage local talent, partnerships, and a collaborative ecosystem to deliver meaningful impact.”

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