OroraTech: Protecting Earth's Forests from Space with Google Cloud
Customer Company Size
Startup
Region
- Europe
- America
- Asia
- Pacific
Country
- Germany
- Australia
- United States
- Chile
Product
- Google Cloud
- Vertex AI
- Docker Swarm
Tech Stack
- Machine Learning
- Cloud Storage
- Containerized Applications
Implementation Scale
- Enterprise-wide Deployment
Impact Metrics
- Environmental Impact Reduction
- Customer Satisfaction
- Digital Expertise
Technology Category
- Analytics & Modeling - Machine Learning
- Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Data Management Platforms
- Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) - Cloud Storage Services
Applicable Functions
- Business Operation
- Quality Assurance
Use Cases
- Remote Asset Management
- Predictive Maintenance
Services
- Cloud Planning, Design & Implementation Services
- Data Science Services
- System Integration
About The Customer
OroraTech is a German-based intelligence-as-a-service company focused on protecting Earth's forests from wildfires. The company utilizes innovative thermal-infrared cameras mounted on satellites to detect fires early, monitor forests in real-time, and assess risks and damages. OroraTech's Wildfire Solution is used by governments, local authorities, NGOs, and commercial forestry organizations worldwide, covering over 1.6 million km² of forest. The company was founded as a university project and later joined the Google for Startups Accelerator: Sustainable Development Goals program. OroraTech is committed to sustainability and aims to become a carbon-neutral company, aligning with Google Cloud's goal of operating entirely on carbon-free energy by 2030.
The Challenge
The world's forests are under threat from wildfires, which are exacerbated by climate change. In 2021, wildfires consumed vast areas of forest, equivalent to around 16 football pitches of trees per minute. Detecting these fires early is crucial to minimizing damage and protecting the environment. OroraTech, an intelligence-as-a-service company, aims to address this challenge by providing thermal data from space to detect and monitor wildfires. The company has launched thermal sensors on satellites to continuously monitor Earth's temperature and provide data-based trends. However, to effectively tackle the global wildfire problem, OroraTech needs a reliable and scalable infrastructure that can support its operations and facilitate international growth.
The Solution
OroraTech migrated its core infrastructure to Google Cloud to enhance the reliability and scalability of its Wildfire Solution. The migration was completed in just one month with minimal downtime, ensuring high availability and responsiveness. The company uses containerized applications and Cloud Storage with Docker Swarm as the orchestration service to scale with the number of users. Machine learning models trained with Vertex AI are employed to improve the detection of fires and prediction of risks. By abstracting lower levels of infrastructure, OroraTech's team can focus on developing new features and improving the Wildfire Solution. The global Google Cloud infrastructure supports OroraTech's international growth by complying with various data security guidelines.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
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