What Is Torch?
We've worked at Microsoft. We've taught at UC Berkeley. We've led startups worth $300 million
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Torch is the most important project of our lifetimes.
Founding team
Timeline
We felt shocked and helpless during the destructive Northern California firestorm…that’s when the idea for Torch was born.
As a Bay Area resident, Vasya witnessed the horrific 2017 Napa Valley fires burn entire communities down to the ground. For weeks, hazy smoke lingered in the sky. Vasya was struck with the realization: ~“Why isn’t there a mainstream solution to detect outdoor fires quickly and accurately?”~
This is when Torch’s revolutionary concept was born: ~Using multiple sensors in one solar-powered device – to recognize outdoor fires early~. Vasya demonstrated this concept at Intel’s International Science Fair, winning the top award. Judges passionately encouraged Vasya to turn his project into a real fire detection product which could help mitigate the fire crisis.
On the other side of the San Francisco Bay Area, Michael observed similarly chilling scenes: 2 weeks of pitch black darkness in daytime San Francisco. Horrific air pollution for months. ~An atmosphere he describes as “almost post-apocalyptic”~.
Soon, the Torch founding team came together: a ~University of Pennsylvania student, a PhD physicist, and a successful entrepreneur~ – combining talents and expertise to develop a crucial solution.
The team continues to grow but the focus remains the same: ~create an early-stage outdoor fire detection solution that is affordable to all~. We are conscious that outdoor fires have left a damaging mark on the health of citizens and on the environment. That’s why Torch Sensors empower users to detect fires early and prevent disaster at the start.
Let’s finally reduce the dangerous impact of outdoor fires on the climate
Torch’s mission is clear: Create the first distributed approach to outdoor fire detection – at an affordable price.