Torch Systems has raised $11.5 million as it moves beyond wildfire detection and builds a broader platform for watching outdoor infrastructure. The company plans to use the new capital to make more TerraNode sensing devices, place them in the field, and expand the teams responsible for sales and field operations.
The round includes $9.5 million in equity from Khosla Ventures, Abstract, Construct Capital and Starship Ventures, along with $2 million in venture debt from Silicon Valley Bank. Torch Systems previously raised about $2 million. An earlier fundraising description said, “Torch Systems, then called Torch Sensors, was raising up to $10 million.”
From wildfire alerts to outdoor asset intelligence
Torch Systems has shifted its focus from products built mainly around wildfire detection to outdoor asset intelligence. That means the company is using the same network of field devices to watch equipment, land and environmental conditions across sites that can be difficult to power or connect.
Its TerraNode device combines optical and thermal cameras with acoustic, gas, air-quality and environmental sensors. The unit is solar-powered, uses on-device edge AI and wireless connectivity, and can work without external power or a wired network. Torch says a device can be installed in minutes, including at remote solar farms, transmission corridors and other sites.
The system is designed to spot early signs of fire, overheating equipment, security or access events, vegetation growth and environmental changes. Torch has also expanded its monitoring work to include weather, humidity and air quality, giving utilities and municipalities a wider view of what is happening across outdoor locations.
Its software, called the Torch Intelligence Platform, establishes historical context and learns the normal patterns at each site. It then flags deviations, connects related events and provides alerts and reports. That approach lets the platform track more than one type of problem instead of treating each sensor reading as an isolated warning.
A growing network across seven states
Hundreds of TerraNodes are deployed across California, Oregon, New Mexico, Virginia, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island. Torch has deployed 300 units in seven states, with another 800 backordered. The new funding will help the company move from hundreds of devices to thousands.
The devices have detected fires at early stages in California, New Mexico and Oregon. They have also identified equipment faults, security issues and other anomalies. Those results give Torch a field record for its broader push, while the company continues developing the Torch Intelligence Platform.
Dominion Energy uses Torch at solar sites to monitor fire risk, solar-panel misalignment, overheating and vegetation growth. “The system gives its teams another way to identify issues across a large solar and battery-storage portfolio and focus attention where needed,” Chris Nee said.
Torch also operates in municipal and commercial settings, including citywide fire-monitoring networks and industrial operations. The company chiefly works with utilities and municipalities, charging an annual fee for its service. That model ties the sensing hardware to an ongoing software relationship rather than a single equipment sale.
For customers managing large outdoor portfolios, the appeal is the ability to place monitoring devices where traditional power and network connections are unavailable. TerraNode brings cameras, environmental sensors and edge AI into one field unit, while the software organizes the resulting information around normal conditions and changes.
Torch plans to increase manufacturing and field deployments while expanding its go-to-market and field operations teams. The company expects profitability “within 2027,” according to Vasya Tremsin, CEO and Founder of Torch Systems. The next phase will test whether the company can turn its early wildfire-detection work into a larger infrastructure monitoring business.
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