Orbital Sentry, a deep-tech startup building persistent infrared imaging systems for geosynchronous orbit (GEO), has announced the close of a pre-seed funding round led by Ridgeline, with participation from Superorganism and Hustle Fund.
With the newly secured capital, Orbital Sentry can move into its next phase of growth, specifically by helping to accelerate the development of continuous satellite monitoring for wildfire risk and national security applications.
By delivering continuous, high-sensitivity infrared tracking, Orbital Sentry aims to overcome the constraints of legacy systems that rely on intermittent “point in time” data and fail to match the pace of world events.
This pioneering commercial solution is designed to supply real-time intelligence, bridging a vital operational gap for insurers.
For national security, the technology provides real-time alerts for missile launches alongside enhanced battlefield awareness. For climate and environmental safety, it facilitates more rapid fire detection and superior validation for catastrophe models.
“We’re building an entirely new space capability in the shape of an imaging platform which will enable a true livestream of the Earth. Our plan is to deliver an unprecedented ability to support real-time defense needs while supporting critical, commercial challenges,” said Dr. Mark Keremedjiev, CEO of Orbital Sentry.
He added: “Our ability to detect a wildfire in its first seconds and deliver that intelligence to insurers, first responders or government agencies is going to change the way our ongoing wildfire crisis is combatted. The fact that our first investors bring both a defense and climate lens isn’t a coincidence. It reflects how this is a true, dual-use platform. We’re thrilled to have partners who see the full scope of what persistent infrared from GEO can do.”
The company is actively building relationships with insurers, reinsurers, and utilities who stand to benefit from earlier, more precise fire intelligence.
Additionally, this pre-seed round will fund the initial development of the imaging sensor and expansion of the company’s early commercial and government partnerships.
“The government has utilized the unique value of persistent overhead infrared for decades,” said Ryan Clinton, Managing Partner, Ridgeline. “Orbital Sentry is commercializing that capability for the first time. The applications span defense and a full range of industries that can capitalize on real-time intelligence leveraging these same sensors. The company represents our dual-use thesis in its purest form.”
Andrew Notohamiprodjo Chief Data Officer at Delos Insurance Solutions added: “One of the biggest challenges in wildfire science is understanding what happens between observations. Satellites like Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) provide critical detections, and aircraft like FIRIS deliver extraordinary detail, but there is still a temporal gap that limits our understanding of how fires actually evolve. Orbital Sentry has the potential to help bridge that gap. If successful, this type of capability won’t just improve situational awareness—it could enable an entirely new generation of wildfire research focused on the dynamics of fire spread.”
The company’s other commercial use cases include industrial monitoring, natural systems monitoring, weather and peril monitoring, and applications in AI/prediction leveraging a dense time series data set.
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