How the Safety Score is Calculated
The five factors behind your Guardian AI driving score, and what you see after every drive on Dubai's roads.
Guardian AI gives you a driving score after every drive. It is a score out of 100 built from five factors, each shown in the app: Braking, Acceleration, Cornering, Speeding and Phone use. Hard brakes, hard accelerations, sharp turns and speeding are counted per 100 km, so long drives are not marked down for their length, and trips under 500 metres or under a minute are not scored. Drive them well on Sheikh Zayed Road or Emirates Road and the score shows it. Smoother driving usually means lower fuel costs too.
The Five Key Driving Factors
In the app the five factors are named Braking, Acceleration, Cornering, Speeding and Phone use. Here is what each one means on Dubai's roads.
Smooth Braking
In stop-and-go traffic on Sheikh Zayed Road and in Business Bay, smooth braking prevents rear-end crashes and saves fuel. Harsh braking events count against your score.
On UAE Roads:
- Keep a three-second following distance on Emirates Road
- Anticipate traffic light changes in Downtown Dubai
- Lift off early on long downhill stretches instead of braking late
Harsh braking events are marked on the trip, so you can see where they happened.
Hands on Wheel, Not Phone
UAE fines for handheld phone use start at AED 800 plus black points. Set your route before you move and leave the phone mounted.
On UAE Roads:
- Set the destination before you pull away
- Use CarPlay or a fixed mount, never a hand-held phone
- Pull over safely if you need to change anything
Your score is only as good as your attention. Keep the phone out of your hand.
Speed Management
Limits on major Dubai roads change between sections, and cameras enforce them. Steady speeds within the limit score better than repeated surges.
On UAE Roads:
- Watch for limit changes on the Dubai-Sharjah and Dubai-Abu Dhabi roads
- Slow down early for school zones in residential areas
- Ease off through construction zones
Speeding stretches show up on the trip, alongside the score.
Smooth Acceleration
Hard launches away from lights or while merging waste fuel and raise risk. Smooth, gradual acceleration scores better and costs less.
On UAE Roads:
- Ease onto the throttle when the light turns green
- Build speed gradually when merging onto a highway
- Avoid hard launches in Downtown and Business Bay traffic
Smoother starts help your score and your estimated fuel cost.
Controlled Cornering
The UAE's roundabouts and multi-level interchanges reward controlled cornering. Sharp or rushed turns count against your score.
On UAE Roads:
- Slow before entering a roundabout, not during
- Take interchange ramps at a steady speed
- Keep a consistent line through long bends
Sharp cornering events are flagged on the trip.
What You See After Every Drive
The score is one number per trip. It sits next to what the trip cost, so you can see how habits and costs move together.
A Score After Every Drive
Every trip gets its own driving score, so you can see which drives went well and which did not.
What the Drive Cost
Estimated fuel and Salik cost for each trip, next to the score.
Safer, Cheaper Routes
Fastest, Safest and Cheapest route options, Salik-aware, plus a heads-up about a kilometre before accident-prone stretches during navigation.
What Goes Into the Score
Guardian AI works from your phone's own sensors, with no hardware to fit. The trip is scored on Guardian AI's servers from:
- Accelerometer data for detecting harsh braking, rapid acceleration, and cornering forces
- GPS positioning for speed, route, and where each event happened
- Phone handling: how many seconds per hour of driving the phone was handled while the car was moving
- Sun position, for a small allowance for the risk of driving into low sun glare (not shown as a separate factor)
Never drive alone.
Guardian AI runs on your phone. No hardware. Free on iPhone and Android.
- Estimated fuel and Salik cost per trip
- A driving score after every drive
- Fastest, Safest and Cheapest routes, Salik-aware