Applied research • Academic partnerships • Technical consulting • Grant collaboration
WHO WE ARE
Bridging Research and Practice
Urban Geo Analytics operates at the intersection of academic research and applied consulting. Founded by Joan Perez — a researcher with peer-reviewed publications in spatial analysis, geoinformatics, and AI — UGA brings scientific rigor to practical problems and practical relevance to scientific inquiry. We are not a pure consultancy that applies off-the-shelf methods, nor a pure research lab that publishes without regard for operational needs. We occupy the space between: designing new methods, validating them through publication, and deploying them for real clients on real problems.
This dual orientation means our work is held to two standards simultaneously. Our tools must be technically correct and methodologically sound, and they must be operationally useful and cost-effective for deployment. Clients benefit from research-grade methodology delivered with consulting-grade pragmatism.
RESEARCH PARTNERSHIPS
Grant Collaboration
We participate as partners or subcontractors in funded research projects at national and international level — ANR, Horizon Europe, ERC, NIH and thematic partnerships like Driving Urban Transition. UGA contributes to proposals, work packages, and deliverables, typically covering software development, tool deployment, and methodological innovation. Our involvement in the emc2 project (co-funded by ANR, FFG, MUR, Vinnova, and the European Commission) produced both SAGAI and UVLM as open-source outputs.
Co-Authored Publications
We collaborate with university research groups on joint projects leading to peer-reviewed publications. UGA typically contributes methodology design, software development, and quantitative analysis. Recent publications span Geomatica (streetscape analysis with generative AI), SoftwareX (population accessibility modelling), Lecture Notes in Computer Science (15-minute city analysis), and Urban Science (urban fabric clustering). We bring operational speed and engineering discipline to academic partnerships, complementing domain expertise with production-quality tool development.
Methodological Development & Dataset Creation
For projects that require new analytical frameworks, we design indicators, workflows, and validation protocols from concept through prototyping to peer-reviewed publication. We also build ground-truth datasets for benchmarking and model validation — expert-annotated image collections, classified building inventories, labelled street network segments — with documented annotation protocols and inter-annotator agreement metrics.
CONSULTING ENGAGEMENTS
Technical Studies, Expert Review, Bespoke Analysis
Feasibility Studies
Is AI applicable to your use case? Can VLMs reliably extract the data you need from your images? Is blockchain the right infrastructure for your data governance requirements? We assess feasibility through targeted benchmarking, prototype development, and cost-benefit analysis — delivering a clear recommendation with accuracy estimates, cost projections, and a deployment roadmap. Clients use these studies to secure internal buy-in, inform procurement decisions, or scope larger engagements.
Architecture & System Design
For organisations building geospatial AI platforms, data pipelines, or decision-support tools, we design the technical architecture: model selection, data flow, infrastructure requirements, API design, frontend specifications, and integration points with existing systems. Delivered as a technical specification document that your engineering team or a systems integrator can implement.
Expert Review & Audit
Independent technical review of existing systems, models, or analytical workflows. We identify weaknesses, validate results against ground truth, benchmark against alternative approaches, and deliver a written assessment with prioritised recommendations. This service is particularly relevant for organisations that have built internal AI or geospatial tools and need external validation before scaling or publishing.
Bespoke Analysis
One-off analytical engagements: mapping a city, scoring a portfolio of sites, classifying a building dataset, benchmarking VLMs on your images, computing accessibility indicators for a metropolitan area. Delivered as a report, a dataset, an interactive map, or a combination — depending on the client’s needs and downstream use.
Interested in a research partnership or consulting engagement? Get in touch.