Member in Focus: Flashnet

Flashnet is a Romania-based technology company founded in 2005, currently employing around 80 professionals. Since becoming part of the UK-based Lucy Group in 2022, we’ve significantly expanded our global footprint. Our smart street lighting solution, inteliLIGHT®, is now active in over 60 countries across all continents, including large-scale deployments in cities like Washington D.C., Brussels, Riyadh, and Santiago de Chile.

With over 1 million smart lighting controllers delivered, Flashnet is currently ranked as the third-largest smart street lighting solution provider worldwide, according to a recent Northeast Group study. Our in-house R&D, hardware manufacturing, and software development capabilities allow us to offer fully interoperable, future-ready solutions that help cities transition into smarter, more sustainable communities.

Alexandru, what is your role in Flashnet?

Alexandru Buzatu, CCO

As Chief Commercial Officer at Flashnet, I lead our global Sales and Marketing efforts. My role focuses on developing and implementing strategic commercial plans, managing a cross-functional team and aligning our go-to-market activities with the evolving needs of cities and utility partners around the world.

What is the service offer of your company?

Flashnet is a leading provider of smart street lighting and IoT solutions for cities and utilities. Our flagship platform, inteliLIGHT®, combines hardware and software to enable real-time control, monitoring and automation of public lighting systems. With a strong focus on open standards and interoperability, we help cities optimize energy use, reduce maintenance costs and build future-ready infrastructure that integrates seamlessly with broader smart city initiatives.

Why did your organization join TALQ?

At Flashnet, we've always believed that the future of smart cities depends on openness: open standards, open systems and open collaboration. Joining TALQ felt like a natural step because it brings together exactly that kind of mindset. For us, it was about standing behind a shared vision where cities have the freedom to grow, integrate and innovate, without being tied down by proprietary limitations.

What are the biggest challenges for Smart Cities in the next 5 years?

One of the biggest challenges is making the leap from small pilots to full-scale city deployments - without ending up locked into one vendor or a system that can’t grow. A lot of cities still deal with legacy tech, tight budgets, and disconnected systems that make things harder than they need to be.

And as everything gets more connected, questions like

'Who owns the data?',
'Is it secure?', and
'Will this still work in five years?'

start becoming more important.

What do you personally like within TALQ?

What I really appreciate about TALQ is the mindset, it's a community of people who aren’t just talking about the future but actually building it together. Everyone comes in with different experiences, from different parts of the world, and somehow, we all speak the same 'language' when it comes to smart, open, future-ready cities.

It’s that mix of collaboration, real-world focus, and shared purpose that makes being part of TALQ so valuable.

Your favourite TALQ function or profile?

The Lighting Profile stands out to me, as it aligns with Flashnet’s direction of enabling multi-service integration. I appreciate its modular, flexible nature: it reflects how I like to work - connecting the dots between teams, markets, and technologies to create something greater than the sum of its parts.

Your favourite TALQ moment?

For me, it was the moment we received TALQ2 Certification for our inteliLIGHT® CMS. It validated years of work pushing for open, interoperable platforms. That certification proved that what we’ve been building aligns with the direction smart cities are heading globally.

It was a proud moment for the whole team - and a big win for every city and partner counting on us to do things the right way.

What is Flashnet’s vision regarding the future role of TALQ?

Flashnet sees TALQ as a key enabler for the future of smart cities — a standard that ensures openness, interoperability, and long-term sustainability. As an active member, we are committed to contributing to its evolution and aligning our solutions with TALQ to empower cities with true flexibility and control.

If you would like to learn more about Flashnet’s approach to smart city innovation, we’re always happy to share our experience. Feel free to reach out at solutions@flashnet.ro or through our website: www.flashnet.ro.