How Outsight’s spatial intelligence could have protected the Louvre

In light of the recent security breach at the Louvre, global provider of spatial AI technology Outsight explained how its lidar-based Spatial Intelligence platform can help protect iconic cultural sites, museums, and public venues around the world.

Outsight’s Spatial Intelligence platform tracks and digitizes human and vehicle motion using 3D lidar data and spatial AI, providing real-time spatial intelligence that can enhance operations, improve visitor experiences, and strengthen safety and security.

Its technology is deployed at large scale in airports, transportation hubs, sports venues, roadways, and industrial facilities across North America, Europe, and Asia. Outsight said these systems have demonstrated its ability to monitor high-traffic areas, optimize mobility flows, and enhance safety with reliability.

The same capabilities that help manage pedestrian density at airports or traffic movement in smart cities can easily be adapted to secure cultural landmarks and critical infrastructure, where real-time visibility and data accuracy are paramount.

It even works in the dark

While traditional security systems rely heavily on video cameras and motion sensors, light detection and ranging (or lidar) technology delivers an entirely different dimension of insight.

By using millions of laser points per second to map environments in 3D, lidar enables precise detection, localization, and movement tracking of people and objects without recording any personally-identifiable information.

Lidar data can be combined with motional digital twin technology to create real-time digital replicas that continuously track and analyze how people and vehicles move through physical spaces. It also works perfectly in complete darkness, which would have been essential during the Louvre heist.

“In a heist like the one at the Louvre, 3D lidar could have been a true game changer - instantly mapping every movement and spatial detail in real time through laser technology,” said Raul Bravo, Outsight president and co-founder. “Its precision enables it to detect both subtle changes and suspicious behavior, even in complete darkness and at a cost comparable to cameras.”

Outsight’s Spatial Intelligence software translates raw lidar data into actionable insights through intuitive dashboards and AI-driven analytics. Security teams can visualize and monitor spaces in 3D, receive live alerts about unusual movements, and respond faster to emerging threats.

Lasers don’t capture personal information

In complex indoor and outdoor environments like museums, airports, or transport hubs, traditional video surveillance faces significant limitations, including variable lighting, crowd density, and even privacy regulations that restrict image capture.

Lidar overcomes these barriers by capturing geometry - not imagery - generating an anonymous, continuous 3D “point cloud” of the environment. This method of data capture allows systems powered by Outsight’s software to detect and classify moving objects with centimeter-level accuracy as well as being able to track individual trajectories in real time, even through large or crowded spaces.

Unlike traditional camera-based systems, lidar-based monitoring ensures compliance with privacy laws such as GDPR. It provides high-resolution awareness without surveillance, offering both operational value and public trust.

“Because it doesn’t capture any images, it provides an inherent layer of privacy - while still being able to observe the street or surrounding areas - a crucial advantage in places that attract large crowds, such as museums,” Bravo said.

If deployed in and around a site like the Louvre, such a system could have created time-stamped 3D movement trajectories of every person approaching, entering, or leaving the museum. When correlated with existing CCTV footage, this spatial data would allow security personnel and investigators to reconstruct events in real time, narrowing search zones and identifying patterns instantly without compromising public privacy.