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Prime Minute Exits Stealth With $15M to Fight Wildfires in the First Hour
Eclipse leads the pre-seed for a Palo Alto team from Palantir, Forterra and Datorios building night- and wind-capable aerial suppression.
Prime Minute, a Palo Alto company building technology to fight wildfires in their first hour, has come out of stealth with a $15 million pre-seed round led by Eclipse, with 8VC participating.
The founding team comes out of public service, aerospace and national security, and includes former operators and technology leaders from Palantir, Forterra and Datorios.
Fighting Fire in the First Hour
Wildfire response is largely a race against the first hour. Once a fire escapes initial attack, suppression costs and destruction climb steeply, and aircraft are typically grounded at night or in high winds, exactly when conditions can turn.
Prime Minute is building an end-to-end system that combines real-time intelligence, AI-assisted mission analysis and precision aerial suppression, designed to keep working in high winds, at night and in degraded visibility.
"Natural disasters are among the most urgent national security challenges we face today. Yet, we still mobilize most resources after the damage is done," said co-founder and chief growth officer Gabe Sganga.
Where the Money Goes
The pre-seed will fund technology development, expanded local manufacturing, hiring, testing and validation, and broader resilience work beyond wildfire.
"Prime Minute is building an end-to-end system that brings together technology and operations to help responders act faster," said Lior Susan, founder and CEO of Eclipse.
Dealroom reported the company exiting stealth with wildfire detection, coordination and suppression as its first market.
The Defense Tech Playbook
The team's background points at the model: build hardware and software as one system, sell to government agencies, and treat disaster response as a national security problem rather than a municipal budget line.
That approach has worked for a generation of defense technology companies, but selling to fire agencies means navigating federal, state and local procurement at once, each with its own cycle and standards.
Why It Matters
Wildfire seasons have grown longer and more destructive across the western United States, and suppression spending has followed. Most of that money goes to response after a fire is established.
A $15 million pre-seed is small against that problem, but it is enough to prove whether aircraft and analysis that work at night and in wind can change what happens in the first hour.