ACERCA DE ESTE EPISODIO
What if earthquakes could be forecast up to 25 days in advance? That's the premise behind one of the most unconventional companies in risk management today.
Itamar Zabari, CEO and CTO of AstroTeq, joins host Pete Miller, CPCU, to explain how his company leverages cosmic radiation data combined with multi-channel machine learning to do exactly that. Itamar shares the origin story behind the venture — sparked by his wife Noemi's astrophysics Ph.D. research — and explains how their approach fundamentally differs from traditional seismology, which currently offers only seconds of warning at best.
The conversation explores the enormous implications of early warnings. Itamar shares the example of nuclear power plants being able to move to safe mode ahead of a major event — potentially preventing disasters like the Fukushima meltdown in 2011, which caused nearly half a trillion dollars in damage and widespread radiation contamination.
The episode also covers what advance warning means for insurance and risk management, where earthquake forecasting could eventually become a coverage requirement similar to sprinkler systems or anti-theft devices. Itamar also addresses the skepticism AstroTeq has faced from traditional seismologists — and makes the case that earthquake forecasting not only is possible today, but already is happening.
Resources:
AstroTeq.ai: https://astroteq.ai/
The Institutes: https://web.theinstitutes.org/
Predict & Prevent website: https://www.predictandprevent.org/
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