The company will use part of the funding to advance its wildfire suppression project, which uses autonomous drones and acoustic waves.

Dryad Networks, a start-up developing forest fire detection technology, has secured multi-million euro funding.

The Berlin-based startup has received a total of €6.3 million in funding, including €3.8 million from the European Regional Development Fund and €2.5 million from climate investor First Imagine.

Founded in 2020 by Carsten Brinkschulte, Marco Boenig and Cherian Mathew, Dryad Networks has developed a wildfire early detection and forest monitoring system, which uses solar-powered and AI-driven networks.

With the latest funding, the German startup will advance the development of its wildfire suppression project, titled “Florian,” an autonomous drone-based system designed to fight wildfires as soon as they break out using a fire suppression technology, such as acoustic waves.

It will also continue to evolve its Silvanet sensing platform, which has been deployed in more than 20 countries across the United States, Europe, Asia and Australasia with 20,000 sensors shipped to date.

Brinkschulte, CEO and co-founder of Dryad Networks, said the new funding from both the EU grant and First Imagine will help the startup “revolutionize wildfire management.”

“Our vision is not only to detect wildfires in their early stages, but also to suppress them quickly, minimizing damage to communities, ecosystems and infrastructure,” he said.

Boris Dorin, partner at First Imagine, said the startup’s “revolutionary approach” is exactly the type of technology the investment firm seeks to support.

“As wildfires increase in intensity and frequency due to climate change, the need for scalable and proactive solutions has never been more urgent. We are excited to partner with Dryad Networks in their mission to protect critical ecosystems and build a more resilient and sustainable future.

In 2022, Dryad Networks secured €10.5 million in Series A funding in a round led by eCapital. Other investors included Toba Capital, Marc Benioff’s TIME Ventures and Semtech.

Don’t miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Register at Daily BriefSilicon Republic’s summary of essential science and technology news.