Data Blanket
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Drone technology, Artificial intelligence, Wildfire control |
| Founded | March 2022 |
| Founder | Omer Bar-Yohay, Yair Katz, Gur Kimchi |
| Headquarters | Bellevue , United States |
Area served | United States |
Key people | Omer Bar-Yohay, Yair Katz, Gur Kimchi |
| Products | AI-powered wildfire boundary delineation software, Autonomous drones |
Number of employees | 14 (2023) |
Data Blanket is a U.S.-based startup located in Bellevue, Washington, focusing on drone technology and artificial intelligence for wildfire control. The firm has created AI-powered software designed to delineate wildfire boundaries and deliver up-to-the-minute information on ground conditions to firefighting teams. Their drones function autonomously, featuring capabilities such as automatic landing.
History
Established in March 2022 by Omer Bar-Yohay and Yair Katz, who previously held leadership roles at the electric aviation company Eviation Alice, Data Blanket’s founding team also includes Gur Kimchi. Kimchi formerly directed Amazon Prime Air's drone delivery initiative and participated on the FAA’s Drone Advisory Committee. The founders bring a blend of military and technological expertise to the company. By 2023, the startup had raised upwards of $4 million in capital from investors like Breakthrough Energy Ventures, backed by Bill Gates, and Innovation Endeavors, co-founded by Eric Schmidt.
As of August 2023, Data Blanket was pending FAA authorization for two essential waivers: one permitting unrestricted UAV operations and another enabling flights beyond visual line of sight, with approvals anticipated shortly. The company’s workforce numbers 14 employees.
System
Data Blanket employs coaxial drones produced by Ascent Aerosystems combined with its own proprietary AI platform. These drones are outfitted with RGB and infrared imaging sensors, 5G and Wi-Fi communication modules, and sophisticated navigation systems. They autonomously deploy to fire zones and return independently to their base stations; however, human supervision is maintained to ensure safe airspace management.
Generally, a fleet of four drones surveys an area spanning two miles in radius, relaying data through 5G/Wi-Fi connections to a generative AI model. This system accurately maps fire perimeters and generates vital three-dimensional analyses of terrain features, vegetation density, and fuel conditions to aid firefighting operations.
The company plans to advance its technology by incorporating microweather data generation and refining fire behavior predictions through continuous AI learning based on accumulated wildfire data.