In this exclusive conversation, Urban Transport Magazine speaks with Amos Haggiag, CEO and Co-Founder of Optibus, and Miki Szikszai, CEO of Snapper Services, about the evolving role of data and AI in public transport planning. As cities face growing pressure to deliver more efficient, resilient, and sustainable mobility, Optibus and Snapper have joined forces to offer powerful cloud-based tools for transit agencies and operators around the world. We discuss their shared vision, the importance of cybersecurity, the reality of planning across diverse markets, and how AI can empower—not replace—human planners.
UTM: Amos, let’s start with Optibus. Since 2021, how has the company evolved?
Amos (Optibus): We’ve expanded from 1,000 to over 6,000 cities and grown our team from 100 to almost 400. Geographically, we’re now active across Europe, North and South America, Asia, and Africa. We’ve raised two major funding rounds—each around $100 million—which made us a unicorn in 2022.
We also launched a strategic planning tool for long-term network design and invested in electric fleet planning, with support from Volvo. We’ve improved our real-time capabilities with the launch of Operations and Control for live service monitoring and debuted a Driver App for better driver-depot communications.
UTM: This is quite impressive. Miki, can you tell us how the partnership between Snapper Services and Optibus came about?
Miki (Snapper Services): We’ve been focused on transit analytics for years and launched our Mosaiq platform to help agencies make sense of their historical data. Many were overwhelmed by untrusted and disorganized data, often historical data. Many operators use homegrown data tools. Mosaiq offers a clear, visual overview, helping stakeholders work from a shared, accurate foundation. Snapper Services entered the market roughly 2 years ago, starting with operators in the UK.
That’s how we connected with Optibus — our products are complementary. While Optibus focuses on planning and operations, Mosaiq analyzes past performance to inform future decisions.
UTM: What makes the partnership work so well?
Miki: It’s both technical and cultural. Our teams are highly aligned — it feels like one team. Mosaiq delivers reliable, structured data, and Optibus uses it for planning and optimization.
Amos: Right. Accurate data is key. For example, when planning a new route, you need to know how long trips actually take — on weekends, holidays, during rush hour. If you assume that a trip takes an hour but it’s consistently running at 90 minutes, everything fails and the bus is late every day or trips are cancelled. There are many boundary conditions and data which need to be taken into account in order to plan and optimise the line.
With Snapper, we have real-time, accurate network data to ensure that run-times considered for optimisation are accurate. Snapper enhances the ability to monitor service in real-time and analyze schedule performance.
The next step is using historical data to improve service performance moving forward – this is where Optibus comes into play. Using data from Snapper, Optibus analyses timetables and adjusts running times to make trips more punctual.
Miki: Our data tells you exactly what happened, when, and why. Cleaning and structuring that data is complex, but crucial.
Amos: Once we have it, we can simulate and optimize. Say your on-time performance is 70%, and you want 90% — Optibus uses Snapper’s data and AI to adjust trips, shifts, and vehicles accordingly thanks to the optimisation algorithm.
UTM: But doesn’t higher performance mean higher cost?
Amos: Not necessarily. Anyone can improve performance by adding resources, but that’s costly. Our system balances reliability with efficiency, often improving service significantly without major cost increases. When you do the process the first time, it feels like magic.
Miki: We’ve seen this clearly. Some agencies depart on time but arrive way too early — not efficient. Together, Snapper and Optibus highlight such gaps and optimize resource use.
UTM: How do you handle unpredictability, like traffic?
Amos: While we can’t predict accidents, we can model patterns — congestion every Monday morning, or consistent delays Friday evenings. That helps us build smarter, more resilient schedules.
Miki: Exactly. You can’t predict everything, but you can prepare better with the right data.
Amos: Data shows probabilities — for example, a route may usually take one hour, but there’s a 10% chance it takes much longer due to accidents or delays. With Mosaiq, you can drill down and find specific causes. Maybe a bus takes too long to leave one stop — that’s actionable.
If delays are random, you adjust schedules to build in buffer time. Say a trip ends at 9:00 and the next starts at 9:05 — you might change that to avoid delays cascading across the day.
UTM: Makes sense. You mentioned Optibus began as a startup. What about Snapper?
Miki: We’ve been around since 2008 but still operate with a startup mentality — fast, innovative, growth-focused. Mosaiq is a SaaS (Software as a Service) product, growing both in customers and data volume.
UTM: Do market approaches vary a lot across regions?
Amos: The motivation to use Optibus depends more on customer type than region. Authorities care about service quality, while operators focus on efficiency and cost. Each country needs a local team — Germany, the UK, Latin America — because regulations and expectations differ, even down to how “on-time” is defined.
UTM: And electric buses—how does Optibus handle those?
Amos: It’s a major focus. We optimize which routes suit electric buses, charging times, battery type, and electricity costs — which can vary by time of day. In some places, like the UK, operators are even paid to charge when renewable energy would otherwise go unused.
UTM: Impressive. So you also handle real-world fluctuations, like battery draining faster in winter?
Amos: Yes. We account for technical vs. real-world conditions — like passenger loads, temperature, etc.
Miki: That’s why Optibus’ operating system vision attracted us. Handling all that complexity in the cloud makes real sense.
UTM: What does your partnership look like moving forward?
Amos: We bundle both our tools under the Performance Suite Suite. Customers get Optibus Planning tools plus Mosaiq data insights together.
Miki: It’s two systems now, but they’re integrated. Many features run seamlessly via APIs (Application Programming Interfaces), so the customer experiences it as one.
UTM: And what about cybersecurity?
Miki: Cybersecurity is important. Mosaiq mostly uses anonymized data — no PII (Personally Identifiable Information, abbreviated PII, is a set of data that could be used to distinguish a specific individual). But we treat it seriously and invest in strong security.
Amos: Optibus handles some personal data, mostly about drivers. It’s fully encrypted and GDPR-compliant. We do annual penetration testing and meet high security standards — often more secure than the legacy on-premise systems customers are leaving behind.
Amos: People think servers in offices are secure — but often they’re not. Public transport systems are mission-critical. If someone hacks your scheduling system, they can disrupt entire cities. That’s why cybersecurity is a serious concern, including fears around terrorism.
Miki: Exactly. It’s critical. Everyone on our team gets cybersecurity training — people are usually the weakest link, not the system.
UTM: This makes sense. Good to know you’re taking it seriously. Now that we’re in Berlin — anything you’d like to share about your projects in Germany?
Amos: We already have several German customers using our solutions, mainly transport authorities. We can’t name them yet, but we’re seeing strong growth here. I can mention two public projects elsewhere: Transport for Wales, where they’re redesigning the entire network, and Jacksonville, Florida, which is using our system to improve operations. So far, they’ve been able to improve on-time performance by 13% on average, sometimes even hitting 18%.
UTM: That sounds very interesting. And what about the future? With AI and GenAI becoming mainstream, will planning jobs disappear?
Amos: Not disappear, but they will evolve. AI supports planners, helping them work faster and make better decisions. It’s about amplifying human expertise, not replacing it.
Miki: Right. Planning is complex — balancing cost, coverage, and impact. AI helps clarify trade-offs, but humans still need to decide. Also, planners bring crucial local and political knowledge.
Amos: And where there’s a planner shortage, like in Germany, AI can help fill the gap. It even empowers smaller agencies without big teams to do high-quality planning.
UTM: So, it’s about enabling more efficient and adaptive planning?
Amos: Exactly. Cities are constantly changing. Planners need tools to quickly respond to new data — from demand, operations, or passenger feedback.
Miki: That’s why we see the future as smarter, not less, planning — with Mosaiq and other tools driving that shift.
UTM: Great insights. Anything else to add?
Amos: Just that we’re excited about what’s ahead. Better public transport is essential for livable cities.
Miki: And partnerships are key. No one can do it all alone. Collaboration is the way forward.
UTM: Thank you both — a very enlightening conversation.
Amos & Miki: Thank you.
15.06.2025
