Company with ‘game-changing’ hurricane hunting technology coming to St. Pete’s Innovation District

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - St. Pete’s Innovation District, which brings tech jobs to the Bay Area, is continuing to explode.  

On Tuesday, a company launched new technology that’s a game-changer when it comes to tracking hurricanes.  

NOAA partnered with a company called "Saildrone" allowing researchers to be able to see in real-time, how energy from the Gulf of Mexico or the Atlantic Ocean transfers to the storm --it’s a game changer when it comes to notifying the public about the rapid intensification of hurricanes.  

"It puts St. Pete on the map," stated St. Pete City Councilman Ed Montanari. "Having Saildrone in St. Petersburg makes [the city] a hub for this type of technology." 

Saildrone joins several other businesses inside the same building which is located on the city’s waterfront.   

Inside there are laboratories and research centers and direct port access – companies working together in what’s called the Maritime Defense Technology Hub 

READ: New NOAA research takes hurricane hunting to new heights

"It touches NOAA, the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, and the U.S. Coast Guard," said Allison Barlow, director of St. Pete’s Innovation District.  

This district is made up of the work being done at the hub along with USF’s plans to build an oceanographic research center. Also, along 4th Street N., the "Tampa Bay Innovation Center" will partner with Cathie Wood’s "ARK Invest" bringing new companies here.  

The new Tampa Bay Innovation Center will open in July 2023.