Can your smartphone detect gunfire? Chicago startup puts new technology to the test

A Chicago-based startup is testing a new approach to gunshot detection technology that transforms smartphones into acoustic sensors, potentially saving lives. The testing comes almost two years after the city ended its contract with SoundThinking.

SplitSec, which was founded in Chicago in 2025, has developed an app that is capable of detecting gunshots using the microphones that are already built into Android phones. The technology has the potential to eliminate the need to install fixed sensors, such as the ones used by SoundThinking.