RapidSOS Acquires Northern911 to Strengthen 911 Backup and Mutual Aid Capabilities

RapidSOS, the emergency response technology company, has acquired Northern911, a backup 911 service provider with more than 20 years of experience supporting public safety agencies across North America. The acquisition expands RapidSOS’ safety network, which already covers 22,000+ state and local agencies and connects data from over 600 million devices.

The move brings Northern911’s APCO-certified telecommunicators into RapidSOS’ ecosystem, providing a “last resort” option for agencies during outages, disasters, or staffing shortages. Northern911 has a long history of exceeding NENA standards for call answer times and is capable of integrating with ESInets and legacy routing systems.

"911 was built on the resilience of agencies backing each other up in the most challenging moments," said Michael Martin, Founder and CEO of RapidSOS. "Inspired by this resiliency and commitment, we are excited to continue our partnership with public safety by providing mutual aid during natural or manmade disasters, outages, and staffing shortages."

RapidSOS’ HARMONY AI, designed to detect anomalies and route intelligence during emergencies, highlights the importance of redundancy. In 2024, the company noted a greater than 10% error rate in incidents affected by connectivity issues or legacy infrastructure outages, impacting more than 200 emergency communications centers.

"For decades, Northern911 has been a trusted partner for ECCs in need of backup across North America, maintaining call flow and documentation during outages, staffing shortages, or surge events. Joining forces with RapidSOS is the ultimate validation of our mission and our people," said Mike Shantz, president of Northern911. "Together, we are creating a unified system of trained telecommunicators and technology to serve as the last line of defense when the worst strikes. As states, provinces, and ECCs are facing rising threats of cyberattacks and disasters, continuity of operations is more important than ever."

The acquisition reinforces RapidSOS’ goal of connecting every device, agency, and community in a resilient safety network, ensuring emergency services remain operational during catastrophic events.

RapidSOS and Northern911 will host an information session at 2 p.m. ET on November 25 for interested agencies and partners.