Understory

Understory is a weather technology company that develops advanced ground-level weather detection systems. Its core offering is a patented solid-state sensor called "Dot" that measures various atmospheric parameters like wind, rain, hail, temperature, pressure, and humidity at an incredibly high sampling rate of 125,000 times per second. This allows Understory to capture hyper-local, granular weather data with unparalleled accuracy compared to traditional radar or satellite-based methods.

The company's proprietary weather sensors are strategically deployed across different regions to create dense surface observation networks. The data collected is processed in real-time to generate actionable insights, visualizations, and early risk detection for various applications such as broadcasting, insurance, agriculture, forecasting, and risk mitigation. As of June 2016, Understory had expanded its weather detection platform to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex in addition to existing deployments in Kansas City and Boston.

In June 2019, Understory diversified into the insurance industry by launching "Auto-Hail Safe," an affordable hail insurance solution tailored for auto dealerships. The company's unique data-driven approach enabled it to provide risk management capabilities that could significantly reduce claim trends and associated costs. By 2024, Understory's "Dealers Open Lot" insurance product had insured over 1,000 dealership rooftops nationwide, mitigating hail damage worth over USD 65 million.

Following its success in the automotive sector, Understory received USD 15 million in Series A funding in June 2024 to extend its risk mitigation technology to the renewable energy industry, particularly solar farms. The company's ability to predict severe weather events up to 45 minutes in advance allows solar operators to take preventive measures, thus reducing repair costs by up to 50%.