
Artificial intelligence is helping identify and treat diseases faster with better results for humankind. Natural disasters like wildfires are next.
Fires in the Los Angeles area have claimed more than 16,000 homes and other structures so far this year. Damages in January were estimated as high as $164 billion, making it potentially the worst natural disaster financially in U.S. history, according to Bloomberg.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Forest Service have reportedly been redirecting resources in recent months toward beneficial fires to reduce overgrowth.
AI enables fire departments to keep more eyes on controlled burns, making them safer and more accepted in communities, say industry experts.
This is just like cancer treatment, said Sonia Kastner, CEO and founder of Pano AI, based in San Francisco. You can do early screening, catch it when it's in phase one, and hit it with really aggressive treatment so it doesn't progress - what we've seen this fire season is proof that our customers across the country use our solution in this way.
San Ramon, California-based Green Grid, which specializes in AI for utility companies, in September alerted its customer at a Big Bear resort that a fire started in the San Bernardino National Forest was near, said Chinmoy Saha, the company's CEO. By acting early, the resort customer was able to prepare for the needed suppression measures for the fire before it reached and became uncontrollable, he said. Due to the favorable weather conditions, the fire did not reach the customer territory.
In the recent Los Angeles area fires, Saha said he had been in discussion with a customer seeking to bring AI to cameras located at the site of the now-devasted Eaton fire that has claimed 17 lives and more than 9,000 buildings.
If we had our system there, this fire could have been mitigated, said Saha. Early detection is the key, so the fire is contained and it doesn't become a catastrophic wildfire.
Aiding First Responders With Accelerated Computing Pano's service provides human-in-the-loop AI-driven fire detection and alerts that have enabled fire departments to act faster than from 911 calls, accelerating containment efforts, said Kastner.
The company's Pano Station uses two ultra-high-definition cameras mounted on top of mountains like a cell tower, rotating 360 degrees every minute to capture views 10 miles in all directions. Those images are transmitted to the cloud every minute, where AI models running on GPUs do inference for smoke detection.
Pano AI's Pano Station in Rancho Palos Verdes Pano has a daytime smoke detection model and a nighttime near infrared model looking for smoke, as well as a nighttime geostationary satellite model. It has a human in the loop for verifying the detections, and it can be confirmed using digital zoom and time-lapse imagery.
It trains on NVIDIA GPUs locally and runs inference on NVIDIA GPUs in the cloud.
Harnessing AI for Controlled Burns California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) is carrying out prescribed fires, or controlled burns, to reduce dry vegetation that creates fuel for wildfires.
Controlled burns are necessary, and we didn't do a good job in California for the past 30 or 40 years, said Saha. Green Grid has deployed its trailer mounted AI camera sensors for monitoring fires and control burns before they go out of control.
Pano can be used by fire departments to monitor controlled burn zones with its AI-driven cameras to make sure that plumes of smoke don't appear outside of the permitted zone, maintaining safety.
The company has its cameras stationed at Rancho Palos Verdes, south of the recent Los Angeles area fires.
The area around the palisades fire was a very overgrown forest, and with a lot of dead fuels, so our hope is that there is going to be more focus on prescribed fires, said Kastner.
Embracing AI at Fire Departments for Faster Mitigation CAL FIRE is partnered with Alert California and UC San Diego for a network of cameras owned by investor-owned utilities, CAL FIRE, U.S. Forest Service and other U.S. Department of the Interior agencies.
Through that network, they've implemented an AI program that looks for new fire starts. It pans every two minutes and continuously updates, and Alert California has the most up-to-date information from this network.
If AI can enable fire departments to get to the scene of a fire when it's just a few acres, it's a lot easier to control than if it's 50 or more acres, said David Acuna, battalion chief at CAL FIRE, Clovis, California. This is particularly important in remote areas where it might take hours before a human sees and reports a fire, he added.
They use AI to determine if this looks like a new start, said Acuna. Now the key here is the program will then send an email to the relevant emergency command center, saying Hey, I think we spotted a new start, what do you think?' And it has to be verified by a human.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
07/08/2026
Diversified has appointed industry veteran Pete Emminger as global chief technology officer. Emminger will lead the company's global go-to-market technology...
07/08/2026
O'Shea Jackson Jr., Dave Franco, and Mason Thames appear in Idiots by Macon Blair, an official selection of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. (Courtesy of ...
07/08/2026
An instrument made for the adventurous composer
Described as an instrument made for the adventurous composer , Sonuscore's latest sample library has b...
07/08/2026
Latest solo Synchron libraries arrive
VSL have just released the final two instalments in their range of muted solo string libraries. Recorded in the large ...
07/08/2026
Channel strip offers plug-in control & recall
Along with some new additions to their Inherit modular preamp system, GC Audio's announcements for NAMM 20...
07/08/2026
Opening Statement: Public hearing of the Inquiry into Racism, Hate and Violence ...
07/08/2026
DoubleVerify Shareholders to Receive $13.60 Per Share in Cash, Representing a 30...
07/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/08/2026
The Award Recognizes ACT's Outstanding Sales Performance, Marketing Collaboration and Long-standing Commitment to the NEUTRIK Brand
ACT Entertainment, one ...
07/08/2026
Beamr Imaging Ltd. (Nasdaq: BMR), a leader in video optimization technology and solutions, today announced it is bringing AI upscaling to live sports, broadcast...
07/08/2026
Berklee City Music Presents Nine Scholarships and Awards at Annual Concert Student recipients from seven states and Canada received scholarships, housing awar...
07/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/08/2026
Riedel Communications at IBC2026: Live Production Experience Showcasing Integrated IP Production Workflows
At IBC2026, Riedel Communications will bring modern ...
07/08/2026
Shotoku Showcases Expanding Aura PTZ Ecosystem and Award-Winning Swoop Robotic Crane at IBC2026
Shotoku Broadcast Systems will officially introduce its Aura fa...
07/08/2026
Highlights will include new Dante fiber connectivity, expanded IPMX capabilities and award-winning signal processing solutions
Cobalt Digital, the leading des...
07/08/2026
Bob Moses Concert at Red Rocks Captured with URSA Cine 12K LF
Brie Clayton August 6, 2026
0 Comments
PYXIS 12K and URSA Cine 12K LF enable cinematic c...
07/08/2026
Use It or Else Is Not an AI Implementation Strategy
Andy Marken August 6, 2026
0 Comments
Source - Hitchhikers Guide to the Universe, Touchstone Pi...
07/08/2026
Friday 7 August 2026
Heated Rivalry will return to Sky and NOW in Spring 2027 e...
07/08/2026
Migration of more than 1,000 radio services delivers improved resilience, efficiency and sustainability
07 August 2026, Winchester, UK Arqiva, the UK's l...
07/08/2026
On 6 August, the European Commission and the SpaceRISE consortium concluded nego...
07/08/2026
The Traitors Ireland Uncloaked is also back with all the behind the scenes drama...
06/08/2026
The broadcaster's 14-race schedule begins in Iowa and ends in November with ...
06/08/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
06/08/2026
As media organizations consolidate teams, technology platforms, and content libr...
06/08/2026
Firmware updates introduce Dolby's next-generation picture engine, content-aware optimization, and new motion and ambient-light tools...
06/08/2026
TNT Sports will have wall-to-wall coverage of the upcoming FIBA Women's Bask...
06/08/2026
swXtch.io (Stand 5.MR13) has unveiled groundSwXtch for Audio over IP (AoIP), a software application that lets broadcasters and media organizations move audio in...
06/08/2026
At IBC2026, Riedel Communications (Stands: 10.A24, 10.A31, 10.A38) will bring modern media production to life with the Live Production Experience - a connected ...
06/08/2026
The first live-sports director to receive the prestigious honor, eight-time Emmy...
06/08/2026
NBC Sports will continue to present the Preakness Stakes on NBC and Peacock thro...
06/08/2026
Cobalt Digital (Stand 8.F90) continues to reinforce its commitment to delivering...
06/08/2026
Wave Central has promoted promotion Jeff Daubert to Director of Sales, Americas.
In his expanded role, Daubert will lead Wave Central's sales strategy and ...
06/08/2026
KMH Integration is expanding its ability to serve media, broadcast, and IT organizations by adding Keith Hanadel, an accomplished architect with decades of indu...
06/08/2026
Advanced Systems Group (ASG) has promoted Michele Ferreira from Vice President of its Systems Integration team to the newly created position of Chief Business O...
06/08/2026
Demonstrations will include new JPEG XS, Dolby audio, cloud-gateway, stream-processing, and distribution capabilities...
06/08/2026
The deal includes three premium mobile units, engineering personnel, existing br...
06/08/2026
Broadcast Management Group produced Amazon Prime's inaugural Obsessed Fest a...
06/08/2026
Exhibit will feature new variable-ND functionality, OLED viewfinders, remote-camera tools, and UHD production monitors...
06/08/2026
Compact full-frame E-mount lens targets sports, wildlife, and other long-range shooting applications...
06/08/2026
Live broadcast will honor Roger Federer and Mary Carillo on Aug. 29, with onsite...
06/08/2026
End-zone board receives higher-resolution LED technology and an updated Show Control system ahead of the 2026 football season...