The challenge 

Data is, and always has been, imperative to tackling any issue. However, when the process to obtain data is expensive and labor-intensive, it becomes much harder for most people to access it. Specifically, data collection and monitoring of key ecosystems is an expensive, long and people-intensive process. According to World Wide Fund (WWF), they spend 5,014 USD a day to hire helicopters to monitor orangutan populations in the forests - this process involves an individual in the back with a pair of binoculars, manually trying to spot and count the number of orangutan nests.

The solution

Syfly aims to be a sensor network for the planet, generating and democratizing access to data which can then be used to monitor and protect key natural ecosystems. Syfly does this by employing autonomous fixed wing aircraft (or drones) equipped with sensor payloads that can be used to monitor key features of natural landscapes. The real-time data generated can then be immediately uploaded to a cloud and accessed by any party anywhere on the globe; the goal being to increase the accuracy, accessibility and quantity pertaining to data while lowering the costs and labour traditionally involved.

This project is being coached by