ArgentinaOther · Fires
Wildfires are detected late and spread before response arrives. Satellites on Fire, created in Argentina by young people, is an early warning platform that combines satellite images, cameras on towers and artificial intelligence to detect fires in minutes, send alerts by WhatsApp, SMS or email and estimate how the fire will spread. It currently operates in 21 countries and monitors 50 million hectares.
Wildfires are detected late and spread before response arrives. Satellites on Fire, created in Argentina by young people, is an early warning platform that combines satellite images, cameras on towers and artificial intelligence to detect fires in minutes, send alerts by WhatsApp, SMS or email and estimate how the fire will spread. It currently operates in 21 countries and monitors 50 million hectares.
Argentina faces growing climate threats in a context of weakening environmental policy and budget cuts. 95% of fires are of human origin and their intensity increases with drought, heat and wind, with between 300,000 and 1.15 million hectares burned per year. They also cause service cuts and respiratory risks for children, the elderly and people with chronic diseases.
The project seeks to reduce the time between the start of a forest fire and the response, to put it out before it spreads. It seeks to limit the area burned, protect communities, biodiversity and forests, and help firefighters and emergency agencies better plan the use of their resources with continuous surveillance, even in areas without infrastructure.
The platform integrates satellites that are updated every few minutes, optical or thermal cameras on towers with 360° rotation and its own AI that distinguishes real outbreaks from controlled burning or false positives. Send alerts by WhatsApp, SMS or email, show the fire in real time, estimate its spread and detect lightning. It also offers free consulting and risk reports by area, and allows you to define who receives each alert.
Volunteer firefighters, brigade members, Civil Defense and National Park organizations, and forestry and agricultural companies that receive the alerts, in addition to rural communities near risk areas. The platform has more than 70,000 users in 21 countries.
The youth lead the project from its conception, technical development and management. In 2020, at just 16 years old, its founders programmed the first predictive algorithms with AI to respond to forest fires in Córdoba. They validated the technology together with fire stations and local brigades, consolidating a solution that scaled to the regional level under the direction of a team made up mainly of young professionals.
In 2025, the platform helped respond to more than 600 forest fires and today it has more than 70,000 users in 21 countries, with more than 50 million hectares monitored. It detects outbreaks on average 35 minutes before the NASA system. Civil Defense of La Pampa gained an hour of advantage and 24/7 surveillance, and in the State of Mexico there were no deaths of brigade members for several months in 2025. Thus, response times are shortened and outbreaks are contained before they become uncontrollable.
Franco Rodríguez Viau (franco@satellitesonfire.com), Satellites on Fire. Website: https://www.satellitesonfire.com/
Private
Forest fires are a growing threat in Argentina, especially in Córdoba (Satellites on Fire's first target), where in 2020 they devastated more than 60,000 hectares. Prolonged droughts, high temperatures and dry vegetation, added to the lack of early detection, cause small outbreaks to become catastrophes with loss of ecosystems, homes and production. Each hectare lost costs about USD 17,000 and takes 20 years to regenerate.
Argentina has the Fire Management Law (26,815, 2013), which sets minimum budgets and creates the Federal Fire Management System. Its 2020 reform (Law 27,604) prohibits changing the use of burned land for 30 to 60 years. Limitations persist: strong budget cuts to the National Fire Management Service and, in August 2026, an attempt to relax those prohibitions that the Government withdrew in the Senate.
Satellites on Fire works with governments and emergency bodies (Civil Defense of La Pampa, volunteer firefighters), companies (Genneia, Quilmes, Pomera), the insurance company Aon, investment funds (Dalus Capital, Draper) and a community of users that validates spotlights in the field. The startup provides AI alerts from satellites and cameras, field teams respond, companies protect their properties, Aon integrates the data into insurance, and funds finance expansion.
Implementation was facilitated by private financing (seed round of USD 2.7 million) and a 100% software model that integrates existing satellites and cameras without its own hardware, which makes scale cheaper and faster. A difficulty overcome is that the first version did not respond to the needs of the brigade members and had to be redesigned with them.
The measure protects the safety of brigade members and communities (in the State of Mexico there were no deaths of brigade members for several months in 2025), helps preserve ecosystems by stopping early outbreaks and optimizes response resources. Its free basic access democratizes information for more than 70,000 users, and it is planned to measure avoided CO₂ emissions.
The measure has already been replicated in 21 countries. As it is software that integrates existing satellites and cameras, it does not require its own hardware. To replicate it, access to satellite data is needed, local validation with brigade members and users, and a counterpart that uses the alerts: governments, companies or insurers.
The measure is sustainable due to its B2B model: companies, governments and insurers pay for advanced services (more than 30 clients globally), while free basic access expands the user base. As it is software without its own hardware, its maintenance costs are low. The $2.7 million seed round and integration with Aon insurance provide financial stability.
Satellites on Fire: https://www.satellitesonfire.com/ ; Satellites on Fire – Next from Argentina (Cancilleria Argentina): https://cancilleria.gob.ar/es/nuevas-tecnologias/next-from-argentina/satellites-fire ; Technology to prevent fires: an Argentine startup promotes solutions with AI: https://gerencia-ambiental.com/tecnologia-para-prevenir-incendios-una-startup-argentina-impulsa-soluciones-con-ia/ ; Satellites On Fire: US$2.7M to detect fires with AI: https://ecosistemastartup.com/satellites-on-fire-us27m-para-detectar-incendios-con-ia/