Seneca, a Bay Area startup, has signed its first customer for wildfire-fighting drones with Colorado's Aspen Fire Protection District. The fleet of five drones will deploy this summer, making Aspen the first US wildfire agency to adopt this technology. Each drone carries enough water to create over 50 gallons of foam suppressant and can operate within a three-to-five-mile range, designed to reach and extinguish small fires before ground crews arrive. The drones complement AI cameras that detect fires but can't guarantee rapid human response, particularly for remote blazes. Founded in 2024, Seneca is amongst several firetech companies addressing increasingly destructive wildfires. Aspen Fire Chief Jake Andersen views the drones as an early suppression resource that could eventually operate from permanent bases around the region.

A US startup, Seneca, has secured funding to expand the production of its autonomous firefighting drone technology. Based in Seattle, Seneca is developing the first fully autonomous fire suppression system. The drones can deliver fire-suppressing agents at high pressure and utilize AI to address the increasing number of wildfire incidents.