Firemaps secures $5.5 million to save homes from wildfires

Firemaps, a San Francisco-based startup that uses satellites and drones to defend homes from wildfires, raised $5.5 million in seed funding led by Andreessen Horowitz.

Why it matters: The world is burning more regularly and with more intensity. As of today, 88 large fires are burning just within the U.S., covering 2.4 million acres, per the National Interagency Fire Center, with nearly 27,000 wildland firefighters and support personnel assigned to incidents. In California, nine of the 10 largest fires on record have occurred since 2010.