Key facts
- US Air Force to buy data from WindBorne Systems' weather balloons.
- Contract value could reach $49 million.
- WindBorne operates about 700 autonomous weather balloons globally.
- Company uses data for its AI weather forecasting model, WeatherMesh 6.
- Contract awarded without competitive bidding.
- WindBorne previously raised $37 million in Series B funding.
The U.S. Air Force has awarded WindBorne Systems a contract to purchase data collected by the startup's fleet of autonomous weather balloons, a deal that could be worth nearly $50 million. WindBorne currently operates approximately 700 weather balloons globally, gathering atmospheric sensor readings that are sold to customers and utilized in its proprietary AI weather forecasting model, WeatherMesh 6.
Founded in 2015 and based in Redwood City, California, WindBorne is a pioneer in feeding empirical data directly into deep-learning weather models. While the company has collaborated with U.S. government entities like the National Weather Service, U.S. Air Force, and Navy, this marks its largest contract to date. The $49 million contract allows the Air Force to procure data based on specific regional needs and timing. To date, $1.7 million worth of data has been ordered, with executives anticipating further orders.
Andrey Sushko, WindBorne's co-founder and CTO, explained that the contract will support the expansion of the balloon constellation and fund research and development to enhance balloon hardware and performance. He noted that the contract, awarded without competitive bidding, signifies the government's recognition of WindBorne as the sole provider capable of meeting their global data collection needs for these operations.
In August, WindBorne CEO John Dean announced the company had secured $37 million in Series B funding to fuel its business scaling efforts. Earlier that summer, WindBorne released WeatherMesh 6, its latest forecasting model, which the company claims surpasses the accuracy of traditional models like the one run by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). AI weather forecasting has emerged as a significant application of deep-learning technology, leveraging transformer model architectures and large weather datasets to provide faster predictions than conventional supercomputer-based methods.
WindBorne also made headlines in August for being the first organization to successfully guide an unpowered flight system into the eye of a typhoon to collect data. The company navigates its balloons by adjusting altitude, releasing air, or dropping ballast, utilizing wind patterns for directional control. Sushko highlighted that this maneuver required sophisticated wind and weather models, effective navigation strategies, and a sufficiently large balloon constellation to ensure balloons were positioned correctly.