A South Dakota startup called Synthetik Insurance Analytics won a $199,948 Phase 1 Other Transaction award from the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) last week for development of flood data analysis technology.
The third applicant to receive an award for the Flood Data Collection and Analysis solicitation, Synthetik will use a machine learning and artificial intelligence-driven platform to gather data and provide analytics of it to the global insurance industry. Data, in this case, includes items like the source, location and depth of floodwaters. The National Flood Insurance Program – a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) endeavor – can use this information to assess the impact flooding could have on policyholders.
“Synthetik’s technology could provide the NFIP a deeper understanding of potential flood impacts before they occur,” Melissa Oh, SVIP managing director, said. “This, along with the ability to gather detailed information post-flooding, could reduce the time it takes to assess losses and help affected areas rebuild sooner.”
Synthetik’s data takes satellite and geospatial datasets for its predictive insurance efforts. Theoretically, that could improve the ability to predict and prepare for floods, quantifying impacts on infrastructure and more, and allowing preparations to make more flood resilient communities.
Phase 1 Other Transaction authorities like this allow DHS to invest in new concepts in lieu of more traditional government contracts, such as procurement contracts, grants and cooperative agreements.