Smart buildings are at an inflection point. Organizations want richer occupancy insights to improve energy efficiency, workplace experience, safety, and operational productivity—without compromising privacy or creating data liabilities. That is where anonymous people sensing comes in. By combining camera-free thermal sensors with AI analytics and an API-first platform, teams gain real-time visibility and automation at scale while avoiding personally identifiable information (PII). In this playbook, we break down how anonymous people sensing works, where it delivers the fastest ROI, and how to integrate it across your building stack in 2025.
What Is Anonymous People Sensing?
At its core, anonymous people sensing uses camera-free thermal sensors and on-device intelligence to detect presence, activity, and movement patterns—without capturing faces or identity. Unlike cameras, thermal arrays provide coarse heat signatures that are inherently privacy-preserving. Combined with AI and spatial analytics in the cloud, teams unlock occupancy, dwell time, traffic flow, and safety alerts without the risks of video recording or facial recognition.
How It Compares: Thermal vs. Camera, Wi‑Fi/BLE, PIR, and LiDAR
- Thermal occupancy sensors (camera-free): Anonymous by design, robust day/night, strong for presence, counts, dwell, and activity zones. Better privacy posture for workplaces, healthcare, and public areas.
- Cameras: High granularity and features (e.g., demographics) but greater privacy, compliance, and data-governance risks. Higher network/storage costs and heavier approvals.
- Wi‑Fi/BLE footprint: Useful for coarse occupancy and asset tracking, but accuracy varies based on device carry rate and RF noise. Less suitable for room-level presence without calibration.
- PIR (passive infrared): Low-cost binary presence; limited analytics and often needs dense placement. Good for lighting but weak for utilization or flow insights.
- LiDAR/Depth sensors: High-quality counts and paths but higher cost and installation complexity. Some privacy concerns depending on fidelity and storage.
In privacy-sensitive spaces—offices, restrooms, clinics, eldercare rooms—anonymous people sensing with thermal outperforms alternatives on privacy, cost to deploy, and integration versatility.
How It Works: Thermal Sensors + AI Analytics
Our Heatic family of sensors was designed to deliver anonymous people sensing at scale. The Heatic 2 (wired and wireless) and Heatic 2+ (wireless) are marketed as the world’s first thermal wireless occupancy sensors that detect human presence and activity without cameras. Sensors securely transmit signals to the cloud, where AI models enrich raw events into space-level insights and automations.
Hardware: The Heatic Family
- Camera-free thermal arrays: Capture heat signatures to recognize presence, counts, dwell, and movement—without PII.
- Wired and wireless options: Flexible retrofit for modern and legacy buildings; wireless accelerates deployment and lowers installation costs.
- Edge intelligence: On-device processing minimizes bandwidth and supports privacy-first design.
Software: Analytics, Alerts, and APIs
- Spatial analytics: Real-time occupancy, historical utilization, heatmaps, and predictive patterns for space planning and staffing.
- Automations and webhooks: Trigger HVAC, lighting, and access workflows based on presence and thresholds.
- API-first platform: Integrate with BMS, CMMS, IWMS, HR/space-planning tools, and data lakes to unify building intelligence.
Security and privacy are foundational. We operate with SOC 2 Type II controls, encrypt data in transit with TLS, and avoid capturing PII. For healthcare and public-sector deployments, anonymous people sensing simplifies compliance reviews and builds stakeholder trust.
Why Privacy-First Sensing Matters in 2025
- Trust and adoption: Employees, residents, and visitors are far more likely to accept camera-free sensing. That accelerates change management and avoids policy barriers.
- Data minimization: Privacy-by-design aligns with GDPR principles and emerging state privacy acts. Fewer data categories mean fewer governance risks.
- Resilience and cost: No video storage, lower bandwidth, and lighter IT footprint reduce total cost of ownership.
Global enterprises are shifting toward anonymous people sensing to balance insights with compliance and ethics. That shift is especially visible in workplaces, senior living, and retail, where operations depend on accurate but privacy-safe occupancy signals.
Hard ROI: Energy and Sustainability
Energy is the fastest path to measurable ROI. According to the U.S. EIA’s Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey, HVAC can account for a substantial share of building energy. Industry analyses from national labs and efficiency programs consistently show that occupancy-based controls can unlock double-digit savings—often 10–30% for HVAC setbacks and scheduling, and 20–60% for lighting depending on space type.
Occupancy-Driven HVAC and Lighting
- Live setpoint control: Adjust temperature and ventilation based on actual presence, not static schedules.
- Zone-level optimization: Use anonymous people sensing to direct air flow to occupied zones and relax setpoints in empty ones.
- Smart lighting: Pair thermal presence with daylight and task needs to cut waste while improving comfort.
Illustrative ROI Scenario
- Portfolio: 500,000 sq ft across offices and meeting spaces.
- Baseline: $2.50/sq ft annual energy spend; inconsistent schedules; frequent over-conditioning.
- Occupancy control impact: 12–18% HVAC savings from live setbacks and zone optimization; 15–25% lighting savings in shared areas.
- Outcome: $375,000–$575,000 annual savings, with 6–12 month payback when leveraging wireless retrofit and API-based BMS integration.
Results vary by climate, building systems, and operating hours, but the pattern holds: anonymous people sensing makes schedules smarter, not stricter—delivering comfort and savings simultaneously.
Use Cases by Vertical
Workplaces and Corporate Real Estate
- Space utilization: Understand how neighborhoods, conference rooms, and collaboration zones are actually used.
- Portfolio right-sizing: Align leases and fit-outs with demand; rationalize underused floors and assets.
- Experience and safety: Inform cleaning, security, and amenity staffing based on real-time occupancy patterns.
Enterprises across 22+ countries covering tens of millions of square feet have used anonymous people sensing to guide seating models, reduce meeting room congestion, and improve workplace experience—while maintaining strong privacy posture.
Smart Buildings and Automation
- BMS integration: Feed real-time occupancy into HVAC and lighting sequences to cut energy waste without sacrificing comfort.
- Demand response: Use presence-aware strategies to meet grid events with minimal disruption.
- Commissioning insights: Validate control sequences with occupancy baselines and anomaly detection.
Senior Living and Homecare
- Ambient monitoring: Support safer, more dignified care with camera-free presence and activity cues.
- Fall detection and response times: Detect unusual inactivity or patterns indicative of falls and trigger alerts—without video.
- Privacy-preserving dignity: Families and residents accept anonymous people sensing far more readily than cameras in bedrooms and baths.
Retail and Branch Networks
- Foot-traffic analytics: Measure conversion funnels, peak staffing windows, and queue management.
- Layout optimization: Test endcaps, entrances, and service placement to improve flow and dwell time.
- Operations: Align cleaning and security rounds with real occupancy patterns.
Integration Playbook: API-First from Day One
Anonymous insights are most valuable when they flow through your existing systems. Our platform is API-first, making it straightforward to integrate with:
- BMS/Building automation: Tridium, Siemens, Schneider, and other systems via secure APIs or webhooks for closed-loop HVAC and lighting control.
- CMMS/IWMS/FM tools: Automate work orders, cleaning schedules, and service-level checks based on live occupancy.
- HR/space-planning platforms: Feed utilization data into seating plans and resource allocation while safeguarding privacy.
- Data platforms: Stream signals into data lakes and BI for portfolio-level analytics and sustainability reporting.
Because anonymous people sensing avoids PII, legal and IT teams typically clear pilots faster, and integrations scale with fewer data-sharing constraints.
Deployment: From Pilot to Scale
- Wireless retrofit: Rapid installs minimize disruption and enable quick time-to-value; wired options support dense, permanent coverage where needed.
- Design and coverage: We map spaces by ceiling height, materials, and expected occupancy to ensure reliable presence and counts.
- Field logistics: Certified installers, RF planning, and battery/power management are coordinated to support multi-site rollouts.
Proof-of-value typically arrives in weeks: verify utilization baselines, tune automations, and expand based on measured savings and stakeholder buy-in.
Security, Privacy, and Compliance
- SOC 2 Type II: Operational controls validated for confidentiality, integrity, and availability.
- TLS encryption: Data in transit is secured end-to-end.
- Privacy by design: Thermal signals, not identity; no face capture; ability to set data-retention windows and aggregation policies.
For healthcare and public-sector clients, anonymous people sensing simplifies risk assessments versus camera-based systems. Clear documentation on retention, anonymization, and data flows supports HIPAA- and GDPR-aligned deployments.
Risks, Limits, and How We Mitigate
- Environmental conditions: Thermal signals can be affected by HVAC plumes, sun patches, or reflective surfaces. We mitigate with sensor placement, calibration, and model tuning.
- Occlusion and density: In high-density or occluded areas, counting precision may vary. We use multi-sensor fusion and zone layouts to improve accuracy.
- Benchmarking: We support independent validation and encourage pilots that compare against ground truth for confidence and continuous improvement.
Every sensing modality has trade-offs. The privacy, scalability, and cost advantages of anonymous people sensing make it a strong default—enhanced by careful design and transparent performance metrics.
Proven at Enterprise Scale
With deployments across 22+ countries and coverage exceeding 40 million square feet, our platform processes millions of daily data points. Global enterprises and partners have integrated anonymous people sensing into workplace analytics, building automation, and retail operations—reinforcing that privacy and performance can go hand-in-hand. Testimonials from leading brands and partners underscore the value of a camera-free, API-first approach.
What’s Next: Standards, Validation, and Vertical Packs
- Independent benchmarks: Publishing third-party performance studies to compare accuracy versus alternatives in real environments.
- Certified integrations: Deep partnerships with major BMS, CMMS, and HVAC vendors to accelerate co-sell and deployment.
- Healthcare readiness: Expanded documentation and certifications tailored to senior care and clinical workflows.
- Value packs: Pre-built dashboards, alerts, and KPIs for energy teams, care providers, and retail ops to shorten pilot-to-scale timelines.
Conclusion: Privacy-First Insight, Practical ROI
Anonymous people sensing gives you the best of both worlds: rich, real-time occupancy data without the privacy trade-offs of cameras. From energy savings and space optimization to safer care and smarter retail, the path to ROI is clear—and faster with API-first integrations.
Ready to pilot, benchmark, and scale? Let’s design a privacy-first rollout that delivers measurable results in weeks, not years.
FAQs
What exactly is anonymous people sensing?
Anonymous people sensing is a camera-free approach that uses thermal occupancy sensors and AI to detect presence, counts, dwell, and movement patterns without capturing identity or PII. It enables utilization analytics, automations, and safety alerts while maintaining a strong privacy posture suitable for workplaces, healthcare, and public spaces.
How does it differ from traditional occupancy sensors?
Traditional PIR sensors generally provide binary presence only. With anonymous people sensing, thermal arrays and AI deliver richer insights—room-level counts, dwell, traffic flow, and activity zones—while remaining privacy-preserving. Compared to cameras, it reduces data-governance risks, lowers storage and bandwidth needs, and accelerates stakeholder approvals.
What energy savings can we expect with occupancy-based control?
Actual savings vary by building, climate, and systems. Industry studies often show 10–30% HVAC savings from live setpoint setbacks and scheduling based on occupancy, and 20–60% lighting savings in appropriate zones. Anonymous people sensing provides reliable signals to drive these controls, supporting faster payback and measurable sustainability gains.
Is anonymous people sensing compliant with privacy regulations like GDPR?
Because anonymous people sensing avoids PII by design, it aligns well with GDPR’s data minimization principles. Our controls include SOC 2 Type II practices, TLS encryption, and configurable retention policies. For regulated environments (e.g., healthcare), teams still perform risk assessments, but the absence of identifiable video substantially simplifies compliance.
How do we integrate the data with our BMS and workplace systems?
Our API-first platform uses secure APIs and webhooks to connect with BMS, CMMS/IWMS, HR/space-planning tools, and data lakes. This lets you trigger HVAC and lighting automations, generate work orders, and enrich portfolio analytics in near real time, making anonymous people sensing a foundational signal for smart-building orchestration.
