AirNow’s fire map includes data from PurpleAir sensors (represented by small circles on the map), and Watch Duty, a non-profit fire tracking app, also displays PurpleAir data. However, air quality indices reported by the same sensor can vary widely from map to map, likely due to differences in calculations and processing delays. For what’s known as PM2.5 pollution, or small particles of inhalable smoke and dust, PurpleAir sensors south of Los Angeles International Airport were tested simultaneously on Monday at 28 on AirNow’s website, 20 on WatchDuty, and 20 on PurpleAir’s website. returned an air quality index of 5. Official page.
Each of these values typically indicates that the air is healthy, but the situation can become more complex when other types of data are added to the calculation. Companies like BreezoMeter and Ambee are doing just that in hopes of providing accurate “hyperlocal” estimates over many miles between sensor locations.
BreezoMeter was founded in Israel and raised tens of millions of dollars in venture capital funding before being acquired by Google in 2022 for more than $200 million, according to Israeli media. (Google declined to comment on the deal value.) It powers the air quality data that appears in the Weather and Google Maps apps on Apple devices. Meanwhile, Indian startup Ambee is responsible for air quality data for the app WeatherBug, one of the world’s most popular weather apps.
Yael Maguire, Google’s vice president of geographic sustainability, said BreezoMeter provides time-based estimates of air quality across a wide range of pollutants and locations, and generates more data than many government systems. He said he is doing so. To make the calculations, the company uses sensors from the EPA and PurpleAir, as well as information collected from satellites and other sources such as weather and traffic information. Ambee’s proprietary algorithms incorporate similar data, CEO Jaideep Singh Bachher said. “We want to give people the right data whenever and wherever they need it,” he says.
Volkens says he doesn’t trust these systems. He says the low-cost PurpleAir sensor that it partially utilizes is not well-suited to situations in which it is frequently deployed in the United States, such as during wildfires. But while they have a lot of margin for error when it comes to raw numbers, these sensors are accurate about 90% of the time in determining advisory levels, or the green-to-maroon scale that’s enough for people to make decisions. He admits that. About how to protect their health.
Purple Air representative Andrew White said the company’s sensors have been found to be accurate and that it does not control how other services use that data to perform calculations. Google’s Mr. Maguire said the company “provides industry-leading, highly accurate air quality information, even in areas with limited monitoring.”
Jennifer Richmond Bryant, an associate professor of forestry and environmental resources at North Carolina State University who is researching the PurpleAir sensor, says the safest option for those concerned about air quality is the highest It says it’s about trusting numbers or color levels. “I trust the AirNow numbers more because I understand it,” she says. But “to protect yourself, it’s never a bad thing to make overly conservative decisions.”
In countries where government oversight is inadequate, startups are filling an important void. BreezoMeter and Ambee were founded by people concerned about their families’ exposure to harmful air particles in their homes in Israel and India, respectively. BreezoMeter provides data for over 40 countries and Ambee for over 100 countries.
That breadth of coverage also makes the company’s service attractive to Apple and other global companies looking to incorporate atmospheric data, including pollen forecasts, into apps, product tests, or marketing campaigns. . Breezometer’s customers include companies in the automotive, health and fitness, and beauty industries. Ambee includes healthcare companies such as Sanofi, which makes the Allegra allergy drug, and last year launched a tool to find walking and biking routes with the cleanest air.
Although BreezoMeter has laid off some staff under Google, Maguire said the company remains focused on providing reliable atmospheric data. As demand for air quality data increases, researchers are scrambling to improve the output of low-cost sensors and are advocating for more types of monitoring equipment, including more pollen counting stations. What’s not clear these days is that the atmosphere is deteriorating and that we’re slow to accurately measure it, Volkens said.
