Data Processing at Lightspeed

Disaster Doesn’t Wait—Neither Should Your Map 

In a wildfire, flood, or warzone, the question isn’t what’s happening—it’s can we get in or out safely? That’s what the Stanford-based team behind ArgusNet set out to solve. They’re building the first-ever field-usable platform that converts unclassified imagery and fragmented data feeds into real-time route assessments—so FEMA, NGA, and Coast Guard teams can act decisively when minutes matter.

What Was at Stake 

From Hurricane Harvey to the Palisades Fire, analysts lost precious hours stitching together broken datasets and stale maps. ArgusNet saw a crisis: too much data, not enough decision support

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From Grant to Field Layer 

The team used their Innovation Fund grant to fly to Washington, D.C. and conduct 50+ interviews across NGA, FEMA, and DoD components. They then prototyped an edge-compatible platform that flags ingress/egress routes in disconnected environments—delivering a "good enough to act" assessment in under 30 seconds.

The Team

• Sanil Rajput led stakeholder interviews and platform scoping.

• Jeanette Han & Jamie Tym built the platform’s survivability layer.

• Ismail Mardin & Pace Murray integrated live-source geo-feeds into a unified display.

Impact 

Pilot tests show that ArgusNet reduces time-to-decision by over 70% in critical moments. NGA is now exploring broader deployment.

Advice to Future Teams 

“Crisis tempo is the real user environment,” says Jeanette. “Build for chaos, not clean desks.”