The Story Behind Building the Google Maps of Water: A Vision for Climate Risk Assessment

Most startup origin stories begin with a founder frustrated by an existing problem. But sometimes, they start with someone who sees a problem that others haven’t yet recognized. In a recent Category Visionaries episode, Javier Marti shared how his experience managing billion-dollar space projects led him to tackle one of climate change’s most overlooked challenges: water risk assessment.

From Space Projects to Water Data

After years of working on publicly funded space endeavors worth up to “$1.2 billion,” Javier found himself increasingly frustrated by a fundamental disconnect. While these projects were scientifically valuable, he noticed they often lacked practical impact. As he explains, “there is a limited value into understanding whether there is a neo quasar in the universe or a supernova quasar, especially in the timeframe and the type of life that we have.”

This realization, combined with his growing concern about climate change’s impact on water systems, led to a pivotal moment in 2016. While others focused on temperature changes, Javier saw a different pattern emerging: “people are looking into can we adapt to a hotter environment, to a colder environment? We can always adapt to temperature, but unfortunately, the sight of these changes in temperature are leading us to changes in weather patterns and with that, to water and water extremes.”

Identifying the Real Problem

The challenge wasn’t just about predicting water-related events – it was about the fundamental lack of data. At COP28, Javier coined the term “water data scarcity” to describe this gap. As he explains, “If you look at the map of the United States, you see about 12,000, 17,000 at most data points or locations where we’re collecting data about water… If you do the math about the geographical extension of the United States, and you divide it by 15,000 just to do a quick math, you realize that’s not enough coverage.”

This data scarcity explains why existing models often fail to accurately predict water-related events. Drawing from his experience at the European Space Agency, Javier’s team developed sensing technology to augment existing data sources, creating a more comprehensive picture of water risks.

Building the Google Maps of Water

Today, when asked to explain his company, Javier has a simple response: “I’m building the Google Maps of water.” This analogy resonates because “everybody understand what Google Maps is, and we all understand how traffic is affecting our ability to go from a to b and how useful that is to many industries.”

The platform serves a diverse range of customers trying to “understand what are the risks and the real impacts of climate change into their balance sheet at large.” This includes companies making operational decisions, planning sustainability efforts, managing supply chains, and insurance companies assessing risk.

The Vision for the Future

Looking ahead three to five years, Javier envisions democratizing access to water risk data. “I really hope that we can have everybody using our water risk insights to understand the water risk that is around themselves,” he explains. Whether you’re in San Francisco wondering about tidal surge impacts or concerned about neighborhood flooding, the goal is to put this critical information “in your fingertips.”

Ultimately, Javier’s vision extends beyond building a successful company – it’s about fundamentally changing how we understand and live with water risks. As he puts it, the goal is to help us “learn how to live with water risks in a way that we can be more in control if we can ever be.”

This vision represents a shift from treating water-related climate impacts as unpredictable disasters to manageable risks that can be understood, anticipated, and mitigated. For a world increasingly grappling with climate change’s effects on water systems, this transformation couldn’t come at a more critical time.