Fighting Wildfire with AI: Prediction, Detection, Response

Join AI for Good Colorado for a Colorado Startup Week session on fighting wildfire with AI at the Alliance Center in Downtown Denver!

When a wildfire ignites in our backyard, three things shape what happens next: how well we've modeled the risk, how fast we detect the spark, and how effectively we respond. AI is increasingly behind all three - as researchers, startups, and public agencies work together. This session follows a fire's lifecycle to show where AI is being used to reduce risk and speed response: the climate and fire-behavior modeling that predicts how severe a season will be and where a blaze will spread, the detection systems spotting ignitions in real time, and the emergency responders and public-health partners who act on that intelligence to protect Colorado communities.

Speakers Include:
Tyler Svitak, Executive Director, Colorado Smart Cities Alliance (Host / Moderator)
Sam Malloy, R&D Director, National Science Foundation ASCEND Engine
Debra Deininger, Chief Revenue Officer, N5 Sensors
Jared Leidich, Co-Founder & CTO, Urban Sky

Agenda:
2:45 pm: Doors open
3:00 pm: Panel Presentations & Discussion
4:00 pm: Q&A
4:30 pm: Close & networking

Hosted by AI for Good Colorado and co-produced by the Colorado Smart Cities Alliance and beneAI as part of Colorado Startup Week.

About the National Science Foundation ASCEND Engine
The NSF ASCEND Engine (Advanced Sensing and Computation for Environmental Decision Making) is a U.S. National Science Foundation Regional Innovation Engine led by Innosphere. Based along the I-25 Innovation Corridor, the ASCEND Engine connects Colorado and Wyoming’s federal laboratories, R1 universities, and technology companies to develop scalable solutions for wildfire, drought, extreme weather, and environmental resilience. Every NSF ASCEND Engine program is built with commercialization as a design requirement — moving scientific advances efficiently from discovery to deployment through three technical layers: advanced sensing and data generation, computational analytics, and decision support tools that translate research into commercial products and public services. Projected 10-year impact: $3B in regional GDP and 18,000 new jobs by 2034. More info.

About Innosphere
Innosphere is the Colorado-based nonprofit venture development organization built for entrepreneurs turning discovery into companies. It brings acceleration, capital, infrastructure, and partners together to advance the region and enhance national competitiveness. Innosphere offers sector-specific accelerators, advances capital access, leads the NSF ASCEND Engine, and convenes the Colorado Innovation Council across four R&D-intensive industry sectors. Cumulative impact since 2013: 400+ companies served, 2,000+ jobs created, $3.6B in capital raised and $300M+ in revenue by client companies. More info.

About N5 Sensors
N5 Sensors is a Colorado-based technology company that develops cloud-connected, AI-enabled environmental intelligence platforms to detect invisible airborne hazards, toxic chemicals, and early-stage wildfires. Built on patented Semiconductor-Photocatalytic Hybrid sensing cores and edge intelligence, N5’s multimodal IoT sensor nodes act as a digital "nose" that continuously analyze ambient air to detect micro-changes in gas signatures, temperature, humidity, and particulate matter. Its flagship platform, N5SHIELD™, fuses ground-level sensor data with machine learning algorithms to detect wildfire ignitions within minutes, often alerting first responders up to 30 minutes before smoke becomes visually detectable or a 911 call is placed. Deployed across fire-prone regions in partnership with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, local fire districts, and utilities, N5 Sensors delivers real-time situational intelligence to protect critical infrastructure, first responders, and communities from catastrophic environmental threats. More info.

About Urban Sky
Founded in 2019 by Andrew Antonio and Jared Leidich, Urban Sky is a Denver-based aerospace company revolutionizing Earth observation and remote sensing through its proprietary Microballoon™ technology. Operating out of its North Denver headquarters, the company designs, manufactures, and deploys the world’s first fully reusable, rapidly launchable stratospheric balloon platforms to fill a critical gap between high-altitude satellites and low-altitude aircraft. Urban Sky's small, zero-emission balloon systems carry ultra-lightweight optical payloads into the stratosphere to capture high-resolution aerial imagery over broad geographical areas at a fraction of traditional costs. By offering flexible, low-cost access to high-frequency stratospheric data, the company supports a wide array of commercial and government applications, including real-time wildfire tracking and disaster response. More info.

About Colorado Smart Cities Alliance
The Colorado Smart Cities Alliance is a statewide coalition that brings together municipal governments, private sector technology leaders, academic institutions, and research organizations to accelerate civic innovation. The Alliance serves as a collaborative platform for developing, testing, and scaling outcome-driven, human-centered technology solutions to address complex regional challenges. Focused on key pillars such as smart mobility, environmental sustainability, digital equity, and infrastructure resilience, the Alliance utilizes an "Actionable Innovation" framework to help local governments de-risk, pilot, and replicate emerging technologies across jurisdictions. By bridging the gap between public policy, community needs, and 21st-century technology, the Colorado Smart Cities Alliance transforms local communities into dynamic ecosystems designed to improve the overall quality of life for all Coloradans. More info.

About beneAI
Denver-based beneAI is a consultancy dedicated to helping mission-driven organizations understand and adopt artificial intelligence in ways that align with their mission, values, and resources. The firm provides training, governance support, strategic planning, and implementation services to an array of organization types and sizes. More info.

About AI for Good Colorado
AI for Good Colorado is a subgroup within the Boulder-based nonprofit, Rocky Mountain AI, serving as Colorado’s intentional community for ethical and altruistic AI exploration, discourse, and development. Our community is values-based, human-centered, and practical. Moving away from hype and technical elitism, we focus on how AI can be applied responsibly, ethically, and innovatively to solve real-world social, economic, and environmental problems. We strive to bridge the gap for mission-driven leaders who want to explore AI's potential but seek a supportive community, practical support, and ethical guardrails to turn potential into responsible action. Whether you have deep technical expertise, budding curiosity, or bubbling ideas, AI for Good Colorado is designed to be an accessible, welcoming environment for all. More info.