Bushfire AI platform Firestory appoints Rob James as managing director

Cloud and AI bushfire intelligence platform Firestory has appointed Rob James as its managing director to drive the company’s next phase of growth.

Prior to this role James was the chief digital and information officer at Vodafone. He has also previously served as group CTO at Qantas.

Firestory was developed by Australian technology company, Kablamo, in the wake of the 2019-2020 Black Summer bushfires.

The software platform builds on Kablamo’s experience of developing a global award-winning AI/ML cloud platform for Victoria Department of Environment Land Water & Planning (DELWP).

The DELWP solution has enabled Victorian fire agencies to perform advanced risk assessments and predictions for bushfire risk across the entire state, based on more than 40 years of bushfire data. 

Firestory said its platform combines the power of human-centred design, cloud technology, data science and AI to enable enhanced operational decision-making by fire agencies.

Firestory can turn almost limitless amounts of bushfire data into decision-making intelligence, all on a “single pane of glass”. In turn, fire agencies are provided access to real-time data and insights, presented via an easy-to-understand user interface, which can inform critical operational decisions. 

Commenting on his appointment, James said, “After witnessing the devastating effects of the 2019 bushfire season, I am excited to be part of a technology company that is designing and building technology to prevent something like that from ever happening again.”

Angus Dorney, co-CEO of Kablamo said Firestory could be a world leader in bushfire intelligence.

He said, “James brings to the company a wealth of leadership and technology experience, including in aviation and communications - both of which are extremely relevant to the Firestory vision.

“That someone of Rob’s calibre has chosen this role is an exciting sign of the potential impact of the product, and the future of the Australian Firetech industry.”

With a strong and growing pipeline of potential future customers, Firestory is targeting growth in Australia and North America. In his new role as MD, James will help to accelerate the development of the Firestory product, to interface with Australiana and Global Fire agencies and to develop Firestory’s ecosystem of firetech partners.

Momentum is growing rapidly for Firestory, including a recent announcement in the US of $35 million venture fund solely focused on backing tech that combats wildfires.